Cash Register Requirements in Germany -
Accept Payments in Compliance with the Law Using LocaFox

The planned requirement to use a point-of-sale system starting in 2028 presents many businesses with new challenges. With LocaFox, you can rely on a point-of-sale system that already complies with relevant legal requirements such as TSE, KassenSichV, and GoBD—including convenient submission of your point-of-sale data to the tax office.

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Mandatory Cash Registers in Germany by 2028—What's the Plan?

The current draft bill stipulates that, as of January 1, 2028, businesses with total revenue exceeding €100,000 must, as a general rule, use an electronic point-of-sale system. Businesses with less than €12,000 in annual cash sales are to be exempt. The draft bill is still going through the legislative process.

More information on mandatory health insurance coverage
Mandatory use of cash registers starting in 2028

Services

TSE-compliant

All point-of-sale transactions are recorded in a tamper-proof manner via a Technical Security Device (TSE). With LocaFox, the TSE is directly integrated into the point-of-sale process—without adding any extra work to day-to-day operations.


KassenSichV

GoBD & KassenSichV

LocaFox supports the legal requirements for the proper recording and storage of your point-of-sale data. This ensures that relevant provisions of the GoBD and the Point-of-Sale Security Ordinance are technically incorporated into the point-of-sale system.

Cash Register Data Available for Audits

LocaFox retains your tax-related point-of-sale data for ten years, ensuring that it remains available to you over the long term. In the event of a tax audit, the required data can be provided in a structured format and exported.


Tax Office Filing Directly Through LocaFox

LocaFox also helps you with the required reporting for your point-of-sale system. The relevant point-of-sale data can be prepared and submitted for electronic transmission to the tax authorities directly through the LocaFox Backoffice.

Always at your side

New health insurance requirements?
We'll take care of that.

As a retailer, you have enough on your plate. You shouldn’t have to constantly check which technical requirements your point-of-sale system currently needs to meet. LocaFox is continuously developing its point-of-sale software and takes into account the relevant legal requirements for electronic point-of-sale systems. This allows you to focus on your day-to-day business—and we’ll take care of the technical foundation for legally compliant point-of-sale operations.

What happens if the regulations change?

Point-of-sale laws are changing. Your POS system evolves along with them.
Tax and technical requirements for POS systems are constantly evolving.As a cloud-based POS system, LocaFox can provide new technical requirements and necessary adjustments through software updates. This means you don’t have to look for a new POS system every time the law changes.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Will health insurance become mandatory in Germany in 2028?

Yes, according to current plans, a mandatory cash register requirement for certain businesses is set to be introduced in Germany as of January 1, 2028. The draft bill approved by the Federal Cabinet stipulates that businesses with total revenue exceeding 100,000 euros must, as a general rule, use an electronic cash register system. Businesses with less than 12,000 euros in annual cash sales are to be exempt from this requirement.

Important: As of now, the 2028 cash register requirement has not yet been finalized. The draft bill is still undergoing the legislative process and is therefore subject to change.

👉 For more information on the planned 2028 cash register requirement, see our magazine article: Cash Register Requirement Planned for 2028: What Does This Mean for Retailers?

Which companies should be exempt from the requirement to use a cash register?

The planned cash register requirement will not apply to every business. According to the current draft bill, an electronic cash register is generally required for businesses with total sales exceeding 100,000 euros. In addition, businesses with annual cash sales of less than 12,000 euros will be exempt.

Furthermore, the Federal Ministry of Finance will be able to establish additional exemptions by statutory order. The Federal Ministry of Finance cites, among other things, trust-based cash registers, certain forms of direct agricultural marketing, and weekly and annual markets as possible examples. Which additional exemptions will actually apply will not be determined until the legislative process is complete or the relevant regulations are enacted.

Will I still be allowed to use an open cash register in 2028?

Whether an open cash register will still be sufficient in 2028 depends on whether your business is subject to the planned cash register requirement. Under current law, there is generally still no general obligation to use an electronic cash register. An open cash register is also still permitted, provided that the legal requirements for proper cash register management are met.

If the planned cash register requirement takes effect as scheduled on January 1, 2028, businesses subject to the new requirement would have to replace their open cash registers with an electronic recording system. For businesses that fall below the revenue thresholds or qualify for a planned exemption, open cash registers may remain permissible.

What changes will take effect regarding the issuance of receipts starting in 2028?

Starting in 2028, digital receipts are set to become the norm, and the mandatory issuance of paper receipts will be eliminated. The current draft bill stipulates that businesses must provide their customers with an electronic receipt. However, customers will not be required to actually accept this digital receipt.

Even today, a sales receipt can be issued electronically. Under current law, however, the customer’s consent is generally required for this; alternatively, the receipt can be provided in paper form. The planned new regulation is intended to shift this principle more toward the electronic provision of receipts starting in 2028.

What legal requirements must a point-of-sale system meet in Germany?

Anyone who uses an electronic point-of-sale system in Germany must comply with various tax and technical requirements. These include, in particular, the German Fiscal Code (Sections 146 and 146a AO), the Point-of-Sale Security Ordinance (KassenSichV), the Technical Security Device (TSE), the GoBD, and the requirements for standardized data export in accordance with DSFinV-K.

An electronic cash register system must, as a general rule, record business transactions individually, completely, accurately, in a timely manner, and in an organized fashion. The digital records must be protected by a certified TSE and kept available for cash register inspections or tax audits. In addition, the required POS data and receipts must be retained in accordance with legal requirements and, if necessary, made available in a machine-readable format.

With LocaFox, these technical requirements are directly integrated into the POS system. As a result, merchants do not have to worry about the technical implementation of TSE, DSFinV-K, or the corresponding POS data export themselves.

What does "TSE-compliant" mean?

TSE-compliant means that an electronic point-of-sale system secures its transactions subject to recording requirements using a certified technical security device—TSE for short. The TSE protects digital point-of-sale data from subsequent, undetected alterations and ensures that transactions are logged in a traceable manner.

The recorded information includes, among other things, the start and end times of a transaction, a sequential transaction number, payment method, transaction data, and technical verification and signature information. This allows auditors to verify whether cash register transactions were properly recorded.

With LocaFox, the TSE is integrated into the standard checkout process. Transactions are thus secured technically in the background, without merchants having to manually process each individual transaction.

What is the KassenSichV?

The KassenSichV—short for the Cash Register Security Regulation—sets forth the technical requirements for electronic cash register systems in Germany. In particular, it specifies how cash register transactions must be recorded, protected by a TSE, and made available for audits by the tax authorities.

For example, the KassenSichV defines what information must be logged during a transaction and what details a sales receipt must contain. The goal is to make it more difficult to tamper with digital point-of-sale data after the fact and to ensure that business transactions are traceable for tax authorities.

What does GoBD-compliant cash handling mean?

GoBD-compliant cash register operations mean that tax-relevant data is recorded in a traceable, complete, accurate, timely, and organized manner and is kept available for the prescribed retention period. GoBD stands for “Principles for the Proper Maintenance and Retention of Books, Records, and Documents in Electronic Form, as well as for Data Access.”

For point-of-sale systems, this means, among other things, that tax-relevant records may not be arbitrarily altered or deleted and must be available in a traceable and machine-readable format in the event of an audit. Upstream and downstream systems may also be relevant if they contain tax-relevant data.

Important: The GoBD should not be equated with a single technical certificate. A suitable point-of-sale system provides the technical foundation—however, correct use by the company is also crucial for overall proper cash register management.

What is the DSFinV-K?

The DSFinV-K is the “Digital Interface of the Tax Administration for Point-of-Sale Systems.” It defines a standardized format in which data from electronic point-of-sale systems can be exported to the tax administration.

This allows point-of-sale data to be structured and analyzed automatically, regardless of the point-of-sale system used. The DSFinV-K export plays a particularly important role during cash register audits and on-site tax audits because it ensures that the tax authorities receive the relevant data in a standardized format.

LocaFox provides the necessary cash register data for such a standardized export, eliminating the need to manually compile it from various sources during an audit.

What information does the tax office need during a tax audit?

During a tax audit, the tax office may require access to a company’s tax-relevant cash register and transaction data. The specific documents required depend on the scope and subject matter of the audit in question.

For electronic cash register systems, the recorded business transactions and transaction data, the cash register system’s master data, TSE data, and signature information—as well as a standardized DSFinV-K export—may be particularly relevant. In addition, other tax-relevant documents from accounting or from upstream and downstream systems may be requested. Within the framework of legal requirements, the tax authorities have the right to audit electronically stored data that is subject to retention requirements.

With LocaFox, the data relevant to the point-of-sale system is available in a structured format and can be exported as needed for an audit.

Do I have to register my point-of-sale system with the tax office?

Yes. Electronic cash register systems as defined in Section 146a of the German Fiscal Code (AO) must be reported to the tax authorities electronically. The option to file electronic reports has been available since January 1, 2025.

For electronic cash register systems purchased on or after July 1, 2025, the report must generally be submitted within one month of purchase. The decommissioning of a system must also be reported within one month. The information to be provided includes, among other things, the type and number of cash register systems, serial numbers, information on the TSE used, and the date of purchase or decommissioning.

Changes may also require a new notification. Furthermore, the current draft bill on the 2028 cash register requirement explicitly stipulates a notification requirement in the event of a change in the TSE.

How do I register my cash register with the tax office?

The registration of an electronic cash register system is submitted digitally to the tax authorities. Generally, the registration can be completed, for example, via “Mein ELSTER” or through a corresponding electronic interface. This requires, among other things, information about the company, the business location, the POS system, and the TSE used.

LocaFox can handle this process for you directly or significantly simplify it: The “Report POS Data” feature in the LocaFox Backoffice compiles and verifies the relevant information. The report can then be transmitted electronically to the tax authorities. You can also view the current status of the transmission in the Backoffice. The technical implementation of the LocaFox POS report is carried out in collaboration with our service partner, fiskaly.

This eliminates the need to manually gather the required information from various sources. Alternatively, the necessary data can be exported from LocaFox and reported, for example, through a tax advisor or another designated submission channel.

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