In Germany, we support several types of businesses and other entities (e.g. associations), which are outlined below. You must select your business type as part of the application form you fill in to activate your Stripe account. Selecting the correct business type is important since the form will tailor its requirements accordingly.
In English: Sole Proprietorship or Individual
If you are an individual engaged in self-employed activity, then your business most likely falls under this category. Within this category, we support several different types of businesses:
Eingetragener Kaufmann / Kauffrau (e.K.) – Sole trader registered in the commercial register (Handelsregister)
Kleingewerbetreibender – Small Business Enterprise not registered in the commercial register (Handelsregister)
Freiberufler – Independent professional or freelancer who exercises a liberal profession
Other
In English: Company or corporation
If you are applying for a Stripe account on behalf of an incorporated company, then most likely this will be either a GmbH or a UG in case of a privately held company or an AG in case of a publicly traded one. We support several different types of companies:
Gesellschaft mit beschränkter Haftung (GmbH)
Unternehmergesellschaft (UG)
Aktiengesellschaft (AG)
Other
In English: Partnership
If you are applying for a Stripe account on behalf of a partnership you have entered with another person or legal entity, then most likely this will be either a GbR, OHG, KG or PartG. Partnerships typically have an Articles of Association and, with the exception of the GbR, are registered either in the Commercial Register (Handelregister) or Partnership Register (Partnerschaftsregister). Within this category, we support several different types of businesses:
Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts (GbR)
Offene Handelsgesellschaft (OHG)
Kommanditgesellschaft (KG)
Partnerschaftsgesellschaft (PartG)
GmbH & Compagnie Kommanditgesellschaft (GmbH & Co, KG)
Other
In English: Association / Cooperative
In addition to companies and partnerships, we support several different types of associations as well as cooperatives:
Eingetragener Verein (e.V.) – An associated registered in the Register of Associations (Vereinsregister)
Eingetragene Genossenschaft (e.G.) – A cooperative that has been registered in the Register of Cooperatives (Genossenschaftsregister)
Nicht eingetragener Verein (n.e.V.) – An association that has not been registered in the Register of Associations (Vereinsregister)
Other
There are certain details that we require only for specific business types. For example, in the case of a company or certain types of partnerships (e.g. OHG and KG), we will require the Commercial Register number (“Handelsregisternummer”) of your business. If we are not able to verify this number, then we will require a proof of legal entity through one of the following documents:
USt-Registrierung (VAT Registration)
Gewerbeanmeldung (Trade registration)
Gewerbeschein (Trade license)
Handelsregisterauszug (Commercial register extract)
Jahresabschluss (Financial statements)