All the latest developments in the German federal parliament for this week
Germany's Legislative Agenda: A Roundup of Key Draft Bills
In a week full of legislative discussions, Germany's Bundestag is set to deliberate on several significant draft bills. Here's a roundup of some of the key proposals:
Whistleblower Protection
The federal government's draft bill for the Whistleblower Protection Act will be discussed in its first reading this week. The aim of this bill is to improve the current inadequate protection for whistleblowers, providing legal certainty and preventing reprisals for justified reports, not just for violations of criminal provisions but also for reports of misconduct in the public interest.
Waste Incineration and Emissions Trading
Waste incineration will now require the purchase of emissions certificates. This move is part of the government's efforts to reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable waste management practices.
Trade Regulation Act Amendments
The federal government is discussing a draft bill in the final second and third readings this week, which proposes amendments to the Trade Regulation Act, the Crafts Code, and the Agricultural Organizations and Supply Chain Act. The bill aims to optimize and adapt various procedural aspects and individual regulations in these areas, facilitating the required implementation of the Online Access Act by the end of 2022.
Agricultural Organizations and Supply Chain Act Amendments
The draft bill proposes that the judicial review tasks in the Agricultural Organizations and Supply Chain Act will henceforth be concentrated in a senate to avoid divergent decisions by different senates when applying the same norms, particularly in consecutive administrative and penalty cases involving the same matter.
Expansion of the EU's Serious Criminal Offenses Catalog
The European Union is expanding the catalog of serious criminal offenses for which the EU can set minimum penalties to include sanctions violations.
Short-Time Work Allowance Adjustments
Coalition factions are discussing a draft bill to adjust the ordinances on short-time work allowance.
Insurance Intermediaries and Advisors Regulation
A new paragraph 11 of the Trade Regulation Act (GewO) will regulate the cooperation between competent authorities regarding the cross-border activities of insurance intermediaries and insurance advisors, in accordance with the Insurance Distribution Directive.
Youth Welfare Cost Recovery Abolition
The federal government aims to abolish cost recovery in youth welfare to support young people in their personal development.
Russian Attack on Ukraine and Energy Prices
The Russian attack on Ukraine has caused energy prices to rise sharply. The federal government is considering the introduction of a gas surcharge. Simultaneously, a law to reduce the VAT on gas supplies from 19% to 7% is being introduced to relieve consumers. The companies are obliged to pass on the tax reduction in full to the consumers.
Carbon Dioxide Storage Act Amendments
The latest status is that Germany's federal cabinet approved a draft bill on August 6-7, 2025, to amend the Carbon Dioxide Storage Act (also known as the Carbon Capture and Storage Act). This draft bill creates a legal framework to capture, transport, store, and export CO2, facilitating carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects as part of Germany's climate neutrality efforts by 2045.
Fuel Emissions Trading Act Amendments
Contrary to some reports, there is no publicly available information from these recent sources confirming changes to the national emissions trading system's fossil fuel coverage. If you seek precise updates on the Fuel Emissions Trading Act amendments related to fossil fuels coverage in emissions trading, more targeted or official government releases beyond August 2025 would be required.
Digital Processes in Craft and Trade Law
The draft bill in craft and trade law aims to provide user-friendly digital processes.
Notification Obligation Expansion
Paragraph 14 of the GewO will expand the notification obligation of financial authorities towards trade authorities, as well as the catalog of authorized recipients of trade notifications.
Centralization of Legal Services Registration and Fines System
The draft bill aims to centralize the registration of and oversight over persons registered under the Legal Services Act (RDG) at the Federal Office of Justice and create a comprehensive administrative fine system for any form of unauthorized commercial legal services.
Temporary Permit for Craft Organizations' Meetings
The temporary permit for the simplified conduct of meetings of the bodies and committees of craft organizations in the Crafts Code (HwO) will be made permanent due to its effectiveness in practice.
- The Whistleblower Protection Act, aimed at improving protection for whistleblowers in environmental-science and policy-and-legislation, will be discussed in its first reading this week.
- To reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainable practices in the industry, waste incineration in Germany will now require the purchase of emissions certificates.
- The Trade Regulation Act Amendments bill, currently in the final readings, targets the optimization and adaptation of various procedures and regulations, including renewable-energy and education-and-self-development sectors.
- The draft bill proposes to concentrate judicial review tasks in one senate for the Agricultural Organizations and Supply Chain Act, eliminating divergent decisions in consecutive administrative and penalty cases.
- The EU is expanding the catalog of serious criminal offenses to include sanctions violations, as stated in the General News.
- The coalition factions are discussing a draft bill to adjust the ordinances on short-time work allowance, impacting the personal-growth and business sectors.
- The Insurance Intermediaries and Advisors Regulation bill will regulate the cooperation between competent authorities, in line with the policy-and-legislation and finance sectors, according to the Trade Regulation Act (GewO).
