Germany Business Laws: Compliance Essentials for 2026
In-depth overview of German business laws, covering essential compliance requirements, including audits, bookkeeping, and anti-money laundering.
The exact change
Non-compliance with the GwG carries severe penalties, capped at EUR 100,000 for ordinary violations regardless of intent, with criminal penalties for money laundering offenses including imprisonment of up to 10 years.
Non-compliance with the GwG carries severe penalties. Ordinary violations are capped at EUR 100,000 (negligent) or EUR 150,000 (intentional), while certain more serious violations can reach up to EUR 1 million, and serious, repeated, or systematic breaches by credit and financial institutions specifically can reach up to EUR 5 million or 10% of annual group turnover. Criminal penalties for money laundering offenses include imprisonment of up to 10 years.
Suggested change
Corrected a mischaracterization of the Geldwaeschegesetz (GwG) anti-money-laundering fine tier structure.
Why this is better
The article mischaracterized the GwG (anti-money-laundering law) fine structure as a single flat EUR 100,000 cap regardless of intent, when the law actually has a tiered structure distinguishing negligent from intentional violations and imposing much higher caps (up to EUR 1 million, or EUR 5 million/10% of group turnover for financial institutions) for more serious breaches.
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