Systematically recording working time is mandatory in Germany. What that means in practice, who it affects and how to implement it without much effort - explained concisely.
The trigger was the European Court of Justice in 2019: employers must provide an objective, reliable system for recording daily working time. The Federal Labor Court (BAG) confirmed this requirement for Germany in its ruling of September 13, 2022 - derived from the Arbeitsschutzgesetz (Occupational Health and Safety Act). Since then: employers are obligated to record their employees' working time.
A statutory amendment to the Working Hours Act (Arbeitszeitgesetz), spelling out the details (such as electronic recording), is in preparation. The fundamental obligation already exists today, however - regardless of the exact status of the legislative process.
The obligation is not a German special case. It is based on the EU Working Time Directive 2003/88/EC: it limits average weekly working time to 48 hours and requires a daily rest period of at least 11 hours, a weekly rest period and breaks. In its judgment of 14 May 2019 (Case C-55/18, “CCOO”), the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that these limits can only be monitored if daily working time is measured. All member states must therefore require employers to set up an objective, reliable and accessible system for recording daily working time.
Each country regulates how this is implemented - with its own deadlines, exceptions and retention rules. Some examples:
| Country | Legal basis | What applies |
|---|---|---|
| Germany | Decision of the Federal Labor Court (BAG) of 13 Sep 2022 (Occupational Safety and Health Act) | Mandatory for all employers; new rules in the Working Hours Act are planned. In the sectors under § 2a SchwarzArbG: recording within seven days and two-year retention. |
| Denmark | Amendment to the Working Hours Act (arbejdstidsloven), since 1 July 2024 | The daily working time of all employees is recorded and kept for five years. Exceptions for employees who largely determine their own working hours. |
| Spain | Real Decreto-ley 8/2019, since 12 May 2019 | Daily working time register (registro de jornada) with start and end times, four-year retention. |
| Austria | § 26 of the Austrian Working Hours Act (AZG) | Records of the hours worked; violations can lead to administrative fines. |
The basic principle is the same everywhere: start, end and duration of working time must be recorded in a traceable way. If you have employees in several countries, you should check the national details - deadlines, exceptions, retention - with the competent authority or a specialist adviser. Presio records working time according to this principle in every country and in over 35 languages, with the data stored in the EU.
In principle all employers - regardless of size or industry. Even a small trade business with three employees is covered by this.
For the sectors listed in § 2a of the Act to Combat Undeclared Work (SchwarzArbG) stricter rules also apply: start, end and duration of daily working time must be recorded no later than the end of the seventh day after the working day and kept for at least two years (§ 17 Minimum Wage Act). New employees in these sectors must be registered with social security via immediate notification (Sofortmeldung) no later than when they start work, and everyone must carry their ID at work. These sectors include:
Customs authorities specifically target these industries for inspections - complete, gapless records are especially important here.
At least Start, end and duration of daily working time - including overtime. Mere presence isn't enough; what counts is the actual hours worked. Breaks are generally deducted.
Both are allowed - paper timesheets and Excel spreadsheets aren't prohibited. In practice, though, they're error-prone, hard to evaluate, and a real time sink at month-end: slips get lost, figures are illegible, and typing them up costs hours.
Digital time tracking via an app solves this: employees clock in with a tap, balances and overtime are tallied automatically, and there's a clean export for payroll. That's exactly what Presio made.
Just need a template for now? Here's a free timesheet as PDF & Excel.
Violations of the requirements of the German Working Hours Act (ArbZG) can be punished with fines of up to 30,000 €. In the area of § 2a SchwarzArbG, there are also customs inspections and further sanctions. At least equally relevant: without clean records, a dispute (e.g. over overtime) quickly comes down to one person's word against another's.
Yes. Since the 2022 ruling of the Federal Labour Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht, BAG), employers have been required to systematically record their employees' working time - start, end and duration. This obligation applies regardless of whether the planned amendment to the law has already taken effect. So in 2026, too, employers must record working time.
In principle, for all employers and their employees. In some sectors - such as construction, hospitality and accommodation, building cleaning, security and freight forwarding - the stricter rules under § 17 of the Minimum Wage Act (MiLoG) and § 2a SchwarzArbG also apply: recording within seven days, immediate notification (Sofortmeldung), carrying ID. There are some exceptions for executive employees.
Failure to comply with the Working Hours Act (Arbeitszeitgesetz) can result in fines of up to 30.000 €. In the sectors covered by § 2a SchwarzArbG, customs inspections and further sanctions may also apply. In addition, without reliable records, the employer is in a weak evidentiary position in disputes over overtime.
Legally permitted, but error-prone and open to manipulation in practice. What's required is a systematic, reliable process. An app records the times in a tamper-proof, traceable way and saves the later work of typing them up - reducing errors and effort significantly.
Yes, in principle. Following the judgment of the European Court of Justice of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18), all EU member states must require employers to record daily working time with an objective, reliable and accessible system. Each country regulates the details - such as retention periods and exceptions - itself, for example Denmark since 1 July 2024 and Spain since 2019.
In Germany, generally at least two years (among others, § 16 of the Working Hours Act and § 17 of the Minimum Wage Act). Some other EU countries require more: Denmark five years, Spain four years.
Presio records working hours compliantly - in the browser, via the iPhone app or at the kiosk tablet. Try it free for 14 days, no credit card.
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