Foundation register – launch to be postponed from 2026 to 2028

The reform of foundation law, which came into force in July 2023, created a nationwide foundation register based on the commercial register. This was actually due to be launched in January 2026. It now appears that this launch will be postponed to January 2028. The postponement does not necessarily only have disadvantages for foundations.

Federal government bill: postponement of the foundation register until 2028

As was announced in mid-September, the German government has added a provision to a current draft law on electronic records that will postpone the launch of the foundation register by two years to the beginning of 2028. The German government openly justifies this by stating that the technology required to maintain the register will not yet be available by January 1, 2026. The law is expected to be passed this fall.

What does this mean for existing foundations?

If the bill is passed as planned, the start of the foundation register will be postponed to January 1, 2028.

• Foundations that exist on January 1, 2028 must register with the foundation register during 2028. Foundations established after 2028 must be registered upon establishment. It will only be possible to inspect the entries and the foundation documents submitted (including the foundation statutes) from registration in 2028. Only then will the corresponding publicity effects of the registrations take effect, for example with regard to the effective representation of the foundations.

• Until the end of 2027, the current foundation directories of the federal states will remain in place, which have no legal effect. Until then, any certificates of representation issued by the foundation authorities must continue to be used as proof of representation of foundations.

• However, the postponement of the introduction of the foundation register does not mean a change in content. The foundation register and the foundation documents to be submitted, including the foundation statutes, will be accessible to everyone from 2028. This applies to all foundations with legal capacity, charitable foundations and family foundations. It is still unclear to what extent any parts of the articles of association may be redacted if there is a legitimate interest in doing so, and who decides on this.

Foundations should therefore check whether regulations or information that should remain confidential can or should be transferred from the foundation statutes to other documents. This applies to content that does not necessarily have to be included in the articles of association. The postponement of the introduction of the foundation register gives foundations more time to make such changes in good time. This is because amendments to the articles of association that take effect before 2028 do not have to be submitted to the foundation register. However, amendments to the articles of association only become effective once they have been approved by the relevant foundation authorities. The process up to the granting of such approval can then quickly take 6 to 12 months. As amendments to the articles of association also have to be approved by the foundation committees and, if necessary, discussed and agreed with the foundation authorities and, in the case of charitable foundations, with the tax office, it is advisable not to wait too long before making preparations. Postponing the introduction of the foundation register can therefore even be advantageous for foundations.