Business Address for Online Shops: Legal Notice Rules for Amazon, Etsy & eBay
Selling online? You need a registered address for your legal notice, here's how to protect your privacy too.
July 21, 2026
Quick Answer
You register your business where your operating establishment is located — that is, at the trade office (Gewerbeamt) of the municipality where you actually work. If you work from home, that's your place of residence. The notification requirement is set out in Section 14 GewO. A pure business address doesn't determine the registration location on its own if no actual activity takes place there.
What you'll learn in this article
- Where you need to register your business
- Whether your residence or your operating establishment counts
- What applies with a virtual business address
- How to find the responsible trade office
- What business registration costs and requires
- Special cases with multiple locations
Many founders end up at the wrong office for business registration because they mix up residence, operating establishment, and business address. This article shows you where to actually register and what your address has to do with it.
Where do I have to register my business?
The responsible authority is always the trade office of the municipality where your operating establishment is located. Operating establishment (Betriebsstätte) means the place where you actually carry out your commercial activity. In many municipalities, this office is called the Gewerbeamt, Ordnungsamt, or Bürgeramt.
Legally, this is based on Section 14 GewO, the notification requirement for businesses. You notify the responsible authority when you start your business, and which authority is responsible depends on where the activity takes place — not on your passport or your favorite city.
Residence or operating establishment: what counts?
What matters is the operating establishment, not automatically your residence. In practice, though, the two often coincide.
✓
Home office
If you work from home, your residence is your operating establishment. You register at the trade office of your place of residence.
✓
Your own business premises
If you have separate premises in a different municipality, you register wherever that operating establishment is located.
What applies with a virtual business address?
A virtual business address is the official address of your company for legal notices, the commercial register, and mail. But it isn't automatically your operating establishment. If no actual activity takes place at the address, it doesn't on its own determine where you register your business.
For sole proprietors, this means: you use the business address for your public-facing presence, but register the business where you actually work. For a GmbH or UG, business registration can take place at the registered company seat. We cover this same distinction, as it applies to the tax office, in our article on virtual offices and the tax office.
Important: Whether your business address is sufficient for business registration depends on your legal structure and your actual activity. If in doubt, the responsible trade office can clarify the classification.
How to find the responsible trade office
1
Determine your operating establishment
Clarify where you actually carry out your activity.
2
Look up the municipality
Find the trade office or Ordnungsamt for that municipality, often available online via the service portal.
3
Register online or in person
Many municipalities now offer business registration digitally.
What business registration costs and requires
The fee varies by municipality and is usually in the low double-digit euro range. You'll generally need to bring your ID card or passport, plus additional documentation for licensed trades.
✓ID card or passport
✓Address of the operating establishment
✓Description of the activity
✓For a GmbH or UG: commercial register extract
Special cases with multiple locations
If you have multiple operating establishments, you register a business for each one with its respective responsible municipality. Special rules apply to itinerant trades, where the place of residence is often decisive. If you relocate your operating establishment, you deregister the business at the old location and register it at the new one.
A credible address for your company.
Registered business address in Berlin, for legal notices and the commercial register.
Business address for your registration with Teeberg
Teeberg offers a registered business address at Kollwitzstraße 76 in Berlin, which you use as the official company address for legal notices and the commercial register.
Virtual Office
€79 / month
Registered business address and daily scan service, suitable for the commercial register and legal notices.
Mailing Address
€35 / month
Business address with mail forwarding as an affordable entry point.
* Prices exclude VAT, no guarantee, as of July 2026.
Further reading
Frequently asked questions about business registration
Where do I have to register my business?+
At the trade office of the municipality where your operating establishment is located — that is, where you actually carry out your activity. The legal basis is the notification requirement under Section 14 GewO.
Do I register at my residence or my operating establishment?+
At the operating establishment. If you work from home, your residence and operating establishment are identical, and you register at your place of residence. If you have separate business premises, that municipality applies instead.
Can I register my business at a virtual address?+
The virtual address is your business address, but without actual on-site activity it isn't automatically the operating establishment. For sole proprietors, the real place of activity counts; for a GmbH or UG, the registered company seat can apply. If in doubt, the trade office can clarify.
What does business registration cost?+
The fee varies by municipality and is usually in the low double-digit euro range. The exact amount can be confirmed with the responsible trade office.
Which trade office is responsible with multiple locations?+
You register a business for each operating establishment with its respective responsible municipality. Every fixed business facility is registered wherever it's located.
