Law & websites · 1 November 2026 · 4 min read
Impressum: what must be in it, and what happens if it's missing?
Germany's imprint obligation under § 5 DDG explained plainly: which details are mandatory, where it must appear and which mistakes get expensive.
Almost every business website in Germany needs an Impressum (imprint). Since May 2024 the obligation sits in the Digital Services Act (§ 5 DDG), which replaced the old Telemedia Act. The content barely changed, but many sites still cite the TMG.
Mandatory details
- Full name (for companies: company name and legal form)
- A postal address that can receive legal service. A P.O. box is not enough.
- Email address plus a second quick contact channel, usually a phone number
- Commercial register and number, if registered
- VAT ID, if you have one
- For licensed activities: the responsible supervisory authority
- For regulated professions: chamber, professional title and rules
Where it must appear
The imprint must be easy to recognise, directly reachable and always available. In practice: a clearly named link ("Impressum") in the footer of every page, at most two clicks away, and findable on mobile.
Common mistakes
- Only a contact form, no email address
- A P.O. box instead of street and number
- Imprint as an image instead of text
- No imprint on social profiles used for business
- Citing the outdated TMG instead of the DDG
What happens if it's missing?
A missing or incomplete imprint can be treated as an administrative offence with fines of up to €50,000. More common, and faster, are cease-and-desist letters (Abmahnungen) from competitors that come with legal fees.
Every website I build ships with an imprint and privacy policy, properly linked on every page.
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