Business, finance and payments
W-IdNr.
Abbreviation for Wirtschafts-Identifikationsnummer
In short and in plain language
The W-IdNr. is a number for firms and the self-employed in Germany.
The federal tax office gives it out. Nobody has to apply for it.
It lets the office tell each firm apart for sure. It starts with the letters DE.
The old tax number stays in use as well.
Definition
The W-IdNr. is the German business identification number. Since November 2024, the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) has been assigning it in stages, without an application, to everyone who is economically active. Under Sections 139a and 139c of the German Fiscal Code it serves to identify them unambiguously in taxation and administrative procedures, and it begins with the letters DE. The tax number and the VAT identification number remain in use alongside it.