News on the German Evidence Act: Digital employment contract from 1 January 2025

At a glance

• On 18 October 2024, the Federal Council approved the Bureaucracy Relief Act IV (BEG IV).
• The measures adopted include the digital employment contract.
• From 1 January 2025, employers will be able to provide information about key contractual terms of the employment relationship by email. Written proof is no longer required.

On 18 October 2024, the Federal Council approved the BEG IV. The BEG IV includes, among other things, amendments to the Evidence Act. From 1 January 2025, employers will be able to provide key terms of their employment contracts as well as age limit agreements in text form, ie by email.

The main changes are as follows:

Digital employment contract

• Essential contractual conditions can be documented and transmitted electronically in text form.
• 'Text form' includes emails, and an electronically qualified signature is not required.
• The digital employment contract must be accessible, savable, and printable by the employee.
• The employer must ask the employee to provide proof of receipt from employees upon transmission.
• If employees expressly request written proof of their employment conditions, employers must send the information on paper.
• Any changes to the terms and conditions of employment may also be made in text form.
  The formal simplifications do not apply to employees who work in an economic sector or branch of industry that is particularly at risk of undeclared work and illegal employment (Section 2a (1) of the Illegal Employment Act). In this case, it remains mandatory to provide proof in paper form.

Age-limit agreements

Further changes concern agreements on the termination of the employment relationship upon reaching the statutory retirement age. To date, an agreement in an employment contract according to which the employment relationship ends upon reaching the standard retirement age in the statutory pension insurance scheme, must be in writing. Employers will be allowed to make this agreement in text form in future. For other forms of fixed-term contracts the written form requirement remains in place.

Amendment to the Temporary Employment Act 

Further, the proposed wording provides for an amendment to the Temporary Employment Act. According to this, the text form is to be sufficient for the transfer agreement between the lender and the hirer.

Outlook

Next, the BEG IV will be finalised and published. The above amendments will enter into force on 1 January 2025.