What an Impressum must contain in Germany and Austria

We build websites for companies selling in Germany and Austria, so we are often asked what has to go in the Impressum. The answer below is general guidance written by a web agency, not by lawyers. Rules change, and the exact details depend on the legal form, the activity and the country where the company is registered.

So use this article as a checklist before talking to a lawyer, a tax adviser or a service specialising in legal texts. We take care of the technical side: a separate, easy-to-find page linked from every page of the site. The final content is something you decide together with your specialist.

In Germany, the Impressum duty for digital services offered on a commercial basis currently sits in § 5 of the Digitale-Dienste-Gesetz (DDG), which replaced the old provision in the Telemediengesetz. In practice, the page usually contains the name or company name, the full postal address, the legal form and, for companies, the legal representative.

Then come details for quick contact, including an email address, the commercial register and registration number where applicable, and the EU VAT ID if the company has one. For some regulated professions or licensed activities, the supervisory authority and professional details are added. If you publish editorial content, a person responsible for the content may also be needed.

In Austria the information comes from several laws. § 5 of the E-Commerce-Gesetz (ECG) requires, among other things, the name or company name, the geographic address, contact details including email, the company register number and register court, the supervisory authority, membership of a professional chamber where relevant, and the VAT ID.

For companies entered in the commercial register, § 14 of the Unternehmensgesetzbuch (UGB) requires details such as the company name, legal form, registered office, register number and court. Separately, § 25 of the Mediengesetz (MedienG) requires an “Offenlegung”, a disclosure about the owner of the medium. For many small websites this comes down to a few basic details, but it is worth checking with a specialist.

In both countries the basic idea is the same: the information must be easy to recognise, directly accessible and permanently available. In practice this means a visible link called “Impressum” in the footer of every page, not hidden in a secondary menu or a downloadable document.

On the technical side, we recommend a simple HTML page without slow-loading elements, with text that can be copied. Avoid images with the address written in them, because not all visitors can read them. If the site has several languages, the link must be easy to find in each version. Company social media profiles may also need a link to the Impressum.

The most common problem is an Impressum copied from another site, with details that don't match the real legal form. Next come incomplete addresses, for example only a PO box, a missing email address or old register details after a move. Another mistake is a page that exists but isn't linked from the footer.

In Germany an incomplete Impressum can lead to formal warnings from competitors or associations, and in Austria administrative penalties can apply. We don't want to scare anyone, but a check by a specialist usually costs little compared to the trouble later. Update the page every time the address, the representative or the register number changes.

Many companies we work with are registered in Romania but sell to customers in Germany or Austria. In that case, the question of exactly which rules apply, those of the country of origin or those of the customers' country, has no universal answer. It depends on the activity, the type of customers and how the offer is set up.

Our recommendation is simple: put your company details in a list, talk to a lawyer familiar with the target market and ask for an Impressum text and a privacy policy. We publish the texts, link them correctly from every page and update them when you receive a new version. If you need a website for the German or Austrian market, write to us through the quote form.