GbR partnership agreement (Germany)
Published byDocMuse
This document is in German
The PDF you download is in German — that is the language it has to be filed in, so it is not translated. Everything on this page is here to tell you what it says.
The partnership agreement for a German civil-law partnership (Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts, GbR) under the law in force since 1 January 2024 (§§ 705 ff. of the German Civil Code, BGB, as reformed by the MoPeG), for two or three freelancers, self-employed people or a small team: name and seat, whether the GbR is entered in the partnership register as an eGbR, purpose, contributions and shares, management and representation, resolutions, profit and loss, notice, leaving, a partner's death, settlement and dissolution. No notary is needed for the agreement itself. In German.
What you fill in
The details the document asks for.
- Partner 1: full name or business name
- Partner 1's date of birth
- Partner 1's address
- Partner 2: full name or business name
- Partner 2's date of birth
- Partner 2's address
- Partner 3: full name or business name
- Partner 3's date of birth
- Partner 3's address
- Name of the GbR
- Seat of the GbR (where the business is run)
- Address of the GbR
- Kind of GbR: registered in the partnership register or not
- Purpose
- Partners' contributions (money, assets, work)
- Shares in the partnership (e.g. 50% each)
- Management and representation of the GbR
- Partners who manage alone (only if that option is chosen)
- How the partners pass resolutions
- Drawings (amount and timing)
- Death of a partner
- City
- Date
Preview
This document is produced for you. Your answers are typed into it and the finished PDF is yours to keep.
Common questions
- Does a German GbR partnership agreement have to be notarised?
- No. A GbR's partnership agreement needs no form; it is valid even when made orally, but should be written down and signed by every partner. It is different where a partner is to contribute land (§ 311b(1) BGB) or assign GmbH shares (§ 15(4) GmbHG): then the whole agreement must be notarised, and this document is not enough.
- When should a German GbR be registered as an eGbR?
- Registration in the partnership register (Gesellschaftsregister) is voluntary, but in practice compulsory before the GbR acquires or sells land, because without it the land registry will not enter the partnership. All partners file it with the register court, with signatures certified by a notary. The partnership then adds eGbR to its name (§ 707a BGB) and must report its beneficial owners to the transparency register.
- Are the partners of a German GbR personally liable for its debts?
- Yes. Every partner is personally and jointly liable to the partnership's creditors, with all their assets; anything to the contrary in the partnership agreement does not bind third parties (§ 721 BGB). A partner who joins later is also liable for earlier debts. Limiting liability takes another legal form, such as a UG or GmbH, or an arrangement with the individual creditor.
- What happens when a partner in a German GbR gives notice or dies?
- Since 2024 this no longer dissolves the GbR: the partner leaves and the others carry on (§ 723(1) BGB). The partner or their heirs receive a settlement reflecting the value of the share (§ 728 BGB). Unless agreed otherwise, notice is three months to the end of a calendar year (§ 725(1) BGB). The agreement lets you choose instead that the heirs join the partnership (§ 711(2) BGB). If only one partner remains, that partner takes over the assets (§ 712a BGB).
How you can sign this document
- Print it and sign by hand. The signature lines in the document are left blank on purpose — sign on them in ink.
- Sign it yourself with a qualified electronic signature. If you already hold a QES — Evrotrust, B-Trust, StampIT, ZealiD or any qualified provider on the EU Trusted List, on a card, a USB token, in a mobile app or in the cloud — our signing guide explains step by step how to sign this exact file without invalidating it. Step-by-step help, and a way to check it worked
DocMuse sells documents, not legal advice. Acceptance always depends on the recipient's rules and your local law.
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