Apply for a business identification number (W-IdNr.) 
If you start a business activity, you will be given a business identification number (W-IdNr.).
-
Basic information
In future, the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) will assign a business identification number (W-IdNr.) to every business entity in addition to the tax identification number (IdNr.).
Tax authorities will thus be able to correctly assign economically active legal entities to the natural persons acting in each case.
The W-IdNr. will consist of the letters 'DE' and 9 digits and thus correspond in its form to the VAT identification number (USt-IdNr.).
The BZSt will issue a W-IdNr. at the request of the competent tax authority and inform you without you having to submit an application.
Requirements
The business identification number (W-IdNr.) is issued to
- natural persons who are economically active
- legal entities
- associations of persons
-
Procedure
The W-IdNr. is assigned automatically by the Federal Central Tax Office. For newly established companies, you will receive the number as part of the tax registration procedure, while existing companies will receive the number in stages until probably 2026. The initial allocation started on November 1, 2024. No separate application is required.
The Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) will issue a business identification number (W-IdNr.) at the request of the competent tax authority and inform you; you do not need to submit an application yourself.
-
Necessary Documents
- No documents required.
-
Competent Department
-
Bundeszentralamt für Steuern (BZSt)
- +49 228 406-0
- +49 228 406-2661
- An der Küppe 1, 53225 Bonn
- Website
- poststelle
@bzst. bund. de
-
-
Fees / Costs
gebührenfrei
-
Deadlines & processing time
What deadlines must be paid attention to?
None.
How long does it take to process
None.
-
Legal Bases
This page has been automatically translated by DeepL. We cannot guarantee that the translation is correct.
The official information in German is complete and correct. 16.07.2025