Registering as a freelancer in Germany
<p>I recently lost my job &amp; therefore I registered myself with ArbeitAgentur for unemployment benefits. The benefits will start from the next month. I've been working for the past 4 years as regular employee.</p>
<p>They've been sending some potential job pamphlets which I'm not really interested in since the jobs are not close to my skill set. I want to become a freelancer in Germany (I'm allowed to do that since I've Niederlassungserlaubnis).</p>
<p>My question is, <strong>can I register as a freelancer in Germany while receiving unemployment benefits - ALG1 or will the benefits stop soon after I register as a freelancer?</strong></p>
<p>I'll have some freelance projects in August and therefore in August, I'd like to stop taking the ALG1 benefits before that I need the Alg1 benefits.</p>

<p>When you're working as a freelancer you can't simultaneously get unemployment benefits. More precisely, you can do part-time work (less than 15 hours per week), but it will reduce your benefits if you make more than EUR 165 per month (profit, not revenue). If you <em>temporarily</em> want to do more freelance work, you can de-register as unemployed for those phases. Talk with your caseworker.</p>
<p>If you want to start a business (i.e. want to become permanently full-time self-employed) you may be able to get the <em>Gründungszuschuss</em> (ALG I + EUR 300 for 6 months). However, this requires a convincing business plan.</p>
<p>If you take on any work (also part time, also freelance), you must notify your case worker in advance. You also have to clearly document your earnings.</p>
<p>Aside from the ALG concerns, working as a freelancer in Germany involves a bit more bureaucracy. You have to determine whether your activities are <em>freiberuflich</em> or <em>gewerblich</em>, which can result in different taxes and formalities. Some businesses cannot be taken up freely but require permission first. In any case, you'll have to register with your Finanzamt, and will be required to file taxes in the future. You would likely do business as a sole proprietor (<em>Einzelunternehmer</em>). If this is just part-time work, you can likely opt into the <em>Kleinunternehmer-Regelung</em> which means you don't have to handle VAT/USt. While this is convenient for B2C services, you do need a VAT ID for B2B services when your client is in another EU country. Both <em>Freiberufler</em> and <em>Kleinunternehmer</em> benefit from simplified accounting requirements.</p>

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