Time recording: what is mandatory today, and what is only planned
Employers in Germany already have to record their employees' working time in full today. That duty follows from the Occupational Safety and Health Act, as the Federal Labour Court ruled on 13 September 2022. The frequently cited reform of the Working Hours Act, which is to prescribe electronic recording, so far exists only as a draft.
As of:September 2026
The duty already exists, regardless of the reform
On 13 September 2022 the Federal Labour Court ruled (order 1 ABR 22/21) that employers are obliged to introduce a system for recording working time. The court derives that duty from section 3(2) no. 1 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act, interpreted in the light of the European Working Time Directive.
It was preceded by the judgment of the European Court of Justice of 14 May 2019 (C-55/18), which obliged the member states to require an objective, reliable and accessible system for recording working time.
Decisive in practice: this duty applies now. It does not depend on whether and when the Working Hours Act is amended.
What the Working Hours Act already requires today
Independently of the Federal Labour Court order, the Working Hours Act contains its own, narrower record-keeping duty. Under section 16(2) ArbZG, the employer has to record the working time that goes beyond the daily working time in section 3, first sentence, that is, everything over eight hours. These records have to be kept for at least two years.
Breaches of the provisions of the Working Hours Act are regulatory offences and can be punished under section 22(2) ArbZG with a fine of up to 30,000 euros.
- Record-keeping duty for working time over eight hours (section 16(2) ArbZG)
- Records to be kept for at least two years
- Full time recording as an organisational duty under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (Federal Labour Court, 1 ABR 22/21)
What the planned reform would change
The amendment to the Working Hours Act exists as a ministerial draft. As things stand it has not entered into force. Many articles online already present the planned rules as applicable law, which is wrong and leads to wrong conclusions.
The draft provides, among other things, for electronic recording on the same day and to the minute, as well as an exemption for small businesses. The final text of the act may differ from it; it is binding only after the Bundestag and Bundesrat have passed it and it has been promulgated.
- Electronic recording as the standard case instead of documentation in any form
- Recording on the same working day, to the minute
- Exemption from the electronic form for small businesses
- Staggered transition periods by size of business
Transition periods by size of business as the ministerial draft provides for them. They run from the entry into force of the amendment, which is so far undetermined.
| Size of business | Transition period | What applies during that time |
|---|---|---|
| 250 employees and more | one year | Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory. |
| 50 to 249 employees | two years | Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory. |
| 11 to 49 employees | five years | Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory. |
| Up to 10 employees | dauerhaft ausgenommen | The electronic form does not apply. Recording is still required, just not in any prescribed form. |
250 employees and more
- Transition period
- one year
- What applies during that time
- Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory.
50 to 249 employees
- Transition period
- two years
- What applies during that time
- Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory.
11 to 49 employees
- Transition period
- five years
- What applies during that time
- Recording remains free of form for the time being; after that the electronic form is mandatory.
Up to 10 employees
- Transition period
- dauerhaft ausgenommen
- What applies during that time
- The electronic form does not apply. Recording is still required, just not in any prescribed form.
Status of the ministerial draft of 18/06/2026. The record-keeping duty itself already applies regardless of it; this is solely about the deadline for the electronic form. Private households are also permanently exempt under the draft. The text of the act as passed may differ.
Knowing the rules is one thing, keeping to them day to day another. MetronHR checks breaks, rest periods and maximum working time automatically as time is recorded.
What that means for you
If nothing is recorded at your workplace at all so far, that is a problem of the present and not of the future; the duty under the Occupational Safety and Health Act applies today. If time is recorded on scraps of paper or in a spreadsheet, that may satisfy the current position but would have to be changed once the amendment enters into force.
Anyone recording the start, the end and the breaks on the same day and logging changes traceably is on the safe side on both counts: with what applies today and with what the draft is heading for.
What we hear about this again and again
How shift planning works in MetronHR: build weekly rosters by drag and drop, reuse shift patterns and have conflicts checked automatically.
7:00 from home to the company, 25 minutes: not working time.
7:30 loading the vehicle and driving to the first customer, 40 minutes: working time.
Further reading:Federal Labour Court, 13/09/2022, 1 ABR 22/21 · ECJ, judgment of 14/05/2019, C-55/18 · Section 3(2) no. 1 ArbSchG · Sections 16(2) and 22(2) ArbZG · Ministerial draft of the Federal Ministry of Labour amending the ArbZG, 18/06/2026
This is not legal advice; for a specific case at your workplace you are better off asking someone qualified to give it.
Published by: AMNAU GmbH
Editorial responsibility: Ugur Aydogan, Product development.
Last reviewed: September 2026
Frequently asked questions
What we are asked about this most often.
Yes. The duty to introduce a system for recording working time has existed since the Federal Labour Court order of 13 September 2022 (1 ABR 22/21) and follows from section 3(2) no. 1 of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. It does not depend on the planned reform of the Working Hours Act.
Not necessarily under the current legal position; the Federal Labour Court prescribes no particular form. The ministerial draft amending the Working Hours Act provides for the electronic form as the standard case, but it is not yet in force.
The duty derived from the Occupational Safety and Health Act knows no exception by size of business. The ministerial draft merely provides small businesses with an exemption from the electronic form, not from recording as such.
At least two years under section 16(2) ArbZG. Longer commercial and tax law retention periods apply to documents relevant to payroll and tax.
Breaches of the Working Hours Act are regulatory offences and can be punished under section 22(2) ArbZG with a fine of up to 30,000 euros.
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Knowing the rules is one thing. Keeping to them is another.
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