01 / Scope
Who Germany KYC rules cover
Obliged entities listed in section 2 GwG, including specified financial institutions and non-financial professions. Sector rules and supervisory circulars can add detail.
02 / Start the check
When Germany customer due diligence starts
- When establishing a business relationship.
- For covered occasional transactions and transfers at the thresholds in section 10(3).
- Whenever there are facts indicating money laundering or terrorist financing, regardless of an exemption or threshold.
- When there are doubts about previously collected identifying information.
03 / Evidence
Identity data required for Germany KYC
- For a natural person: first and last names, place and date of birth, nationality, and residential address under section 11(4).
- For a legal person or partnership: legal name, legal form, registration number where available, registered office, and principal place of business.
- Identity of the beneficial owner and additional identifying features where appropriate to the case risk.
- Purpose and intended nature of the relationship where not already clear.
Verification methods and evidence
- For natural persons, check the permitted official identity evidence or an eligible electronic identification route under section 12.
- For legal persons, consult registers or founding documents permitted by section 12 and record the retrieved particulars.
- Apply risk-sensitive measures, including enhanced due diligence where section 15 applies.
04 / Entity customers
Beneficial-owner and representative checks
The obliged entity must identify the beneficial owner, understand the ownership and control structure where required, and use risk-appropriate measures to verify the information.
05 / After onboarding
Ongoing KYC monitoring in Germany
Monitor the relationship continuously and update documents, data, and information at risk-appropriate intervals. Enhanced measures apply to higher-risk cases.
Record retention
Section 8 requires the specified information and measures to be recorded. Records are generally retained for five years and must in all cases be destroyed no later than ten years unless another law provides otherwise.
06 / Build notes
How to implement Germany KYC requirements
- Capture the evidence route from section 12, document metadata, and register retrieval, not only extracted identity fields.
- Separate the customer, representative, person on whose behalf the transaction occurs, and beneficial owner in the data model.
- Make the ownership-and-control review an auditable task for entity onboarding.
- Treat sector-supervisor requirements as an overlay on the GwG baseline.
07 / Related answers
Questions behind international KYC implementation
08 / Source ledger
Primary sources for Germany KYC rules
We use regulator and legislation publishers here, not vendor explainers. Pinpoint citations show where to begin; the linked instrument controls.
GwG, current text Official consolidated German text; see sections 8 and 10-15.
recording and retention Records, digital storage, five-year retention, and deletion ceiling.
identification information Fields to collect for individuals, entities, and beneficial owners.
verification Permitted documents, electronic routes, and registers.
Source review completed 18 July 2026. This page is a structured research summary, not a legal opinion or a substitute for sector-specific advice.