Industries

More knowledge means better planning.

The more you know about your industry, the better you can plan the path to self-employment. Knowledge of industries will help to indicate whether and how you can make your business idea succeed. What legal frameworks exist in your industry? Does your industry have averages which help you estimate the typical sales and profit you might achieve?

The City of Munich’s information on starting a business provides important details about framework conditions, practical tips, and useful contacts in the city. The information is currently available in English for the following areas:

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E-Commerce

How to start selling online: Before offering your products or services online, we recommend to clarify relevant legal and tax issues for your business.

Further information
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Food businesses

Food import, processing or trade Restaurant, café or catering: A lot of the relevant legal provisions relate to food safety, food hygiene, food labelling and the company’s operational self-monitoring. Apart from that there are specific requirements for commercial premises in which food is processed or stored.

Further information

FAQ

Bezirksinspektion

The Licenses and Consumer Services inspectors offices [Bezirksinspektion] belong to the District Administration Service (Kreisverwaltungsreferat, KVR), section III “Gewerbeangelegenheiten und Verbraucherschutz” focusing on commercial and trade affairs and consumer protection.

The Licenses and Consumer Services inspectors offices [Bezirksinspektion] are based in Munich’s city districts. These 25 city districts are grouped together to five areas, each one with its own local Bezirksinspektion:

  1. Bezirksinspektion Mitte
    districts in the city center # 1, 2, 3
    address: Tal 31, phone: +49 89 233-32400, email bi-mitte.kvr@muenchen.de
  2. Bezirksinspektion Süd
    districts in the south # 6, 7, 8, 17, 18, 19, 20
    address: Implerstrasse 11, phone: +49 89 233-39888, email bi-sued.kvr@muenchen.de
  3. Bezirksinspektion West
    districts in the west # 9, 21, 22, 23, 25
    address: Landsberger Strasse 486, phone: +49 89 233-46550, email bi-west.kvr@muenchen.de
  4. Bezirksinspektion Ost
    districts in the east # 5, 13, 14, 15, 16
    address: Trausnitzstrass 33, phone: +49 89 233-63500, email bi-ost.kvr@muenchen.de
  5. Bezirksinspektion Nord
    districts in the north # 4, 10, 11, 12, 24
    address: Hanauer Strasse 56, phone: +49 89 233-38600, email bi-nord.kvr@muenchen.de
  • Learn more about Munich’s city districts
  • Are you not sure which Munich street address belongs to which city district? Scroll down this page until header “Ermitteln der für Sie zuständigen Stelle” and enter the street address of your future premises into the entry field.

Entrepreneurs turn to their Bezirksinspektion for guidance and permits such as:

A. Planning to start a restaurant business, coffee shop, food stall, canteen, food truck, food carts, coffee-bike, food delivery service, night club

B. Home-based food businesses

C. Food hygiene

D. Food Labeling

E. Meat, poultry meat, dairy and other establishments

F. Using public ground such as roads, sidewalks, places and pedestrian zones

Are you planning to use public ground for your business such as for parking a food truck or coffee bike, for displaying goods, setting up plant containers, outdoor seating or bike racks outside of your business? Are you going to sell fruit, flowers, roasted nuts, or self-crafted artwork or newspapers from a stall or a temporary setup? This includes stalls demonstration and promoting products in the pedestrian area of the Munich Old Town.  This type of land use requires a permit from your local Bezirksinspektion.

Please note that according to the City of Munich’s special regulation § 20 Abs. 6 Sondernutzungsrichtlinien mobile vendors such as snack vans, food trucks, food carts, coffee bikes and others on public ground may not park on public ground. Selling from a vendor’s tray is also not allowed.

Is your mobile vending operation going to be located on private property? Before applying for permits or licences from Bezirksinspektion verify if your preferred location is a good candidate for zoning approval. Zoning refers to municipal or local laws and regulations that govern how land may be used. Each zone allows certain activities or uses and prohibits others. The local construction authority [Lokalbaukommission] based at the Munich Department of Urban Planning enforces these zoning regulations, reviews projects and proposals for compliance, and issues certain permits. Please check with Lokalbaukommission to determine if sales and service uses are allowed at your preferred location. Confirm property owner consent, too. Entrepreneurs are strongly encouraged to obtain zoning approval before signing a lease.

Are you planing a home-based business? To find out whether your home complies to residential zoning rules allow, please contact Lokalbaukommission. Depending on your type of business, you may also need additional special permits relating to signage, noise levels or health issues.

Learn more about legal prerequisites and building regulations for commercial use of premises in Munich on our website.

G. Food supplement, cosmetics, tobacco, e-cigarettes, toys, cleaning agents, glasses, clothing, tableware and over-the-counter medicines, labeling of fur

Contact your Licenses and Consumer Services inspectors offices [Bezirksinspektion] if you have any questions on these issues. Information leaflets are available for download, too.

Other useful contacts

As the owner of a food business, you have a responsibility to ensure that you do not contribute to any build-up of restaurant fats, oils, grease and starches in wastewater. Grease separators are required in businesses and facilities where the quantities of greasy dirty or rinse water produced exceed the rates normally associated with private households. Contact “Münchner Stadtentwässerung”, the municipal enterprise in the wastewater management sector, for advice and guidance.

Direct any questions on commercial waste disposal to the waste management corporation of Munich (Abfallwirtschaftsbetrieb München).

Can I start a business out of my home?

Many entrepreneurs start working from home and use a part of  their apartment or house for their business. You should inform your landlord about your plans. Also contact the Amt für Wohnen und Migration, the municipal Housing and Migration Office, whether you are actually allowed to use your home for business purposes or whether you need a permit to do so. If you are a home owner, you should also obtain approval for working from home in case of doubt.

You also need to consider building, fire protection, and industry-specific regulations such as requirements for practices and rooms in which some form of childcare is offered, or  food hygiene regulations for anyone planning to store, process or sell food.