Banking for Kleingewerbe
Business account for small businesses
Keep business and private money cleanly apart with a German IBAN, Business Mastercard® and receipt capture right in the app. The VAT preview shows you at a glance what’s due to the tax office.
Since 2011 · BaFin-regulated · English-speaking phone support
Business banking you can rely on
Separate from day one
A dedicated account for the business keeps your payments clearly apart from your private money. From €0/month.
- German IBAN – for a clean split
- Up to 15 IBANs on higher plans – for taxes and reserves
- Real-time transfers and standing orders – quickly done
- Store receipts in the app – attached right to the transaction
- Add other accounts – keep the full picture
See what’s left, any time
Every payment in and out flows straight into your overview. So it’s always clear what to set aside for the tax office and what stays in the business. No surprises later.
- VAT: shows how much to set aside for the tax office, so nothing catches you out.
- Profit: a clean overview of what’s left after your costs, with a view of the past months.
A flexible card for your business
Materials, fuel or supplies: pay straight from the business account with your company card. Snap the receipt in the app and attach it to the payment. No paper folder, no missing receipt in December.
The debit card comes physical or virtual, with Apple Pay and Google Pay. Every payment is visible straight away.
Invoicing and e-invoicing, straight from your account
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Create invoices with Holvi
Create and send invoices in a few clicks (with Holvi Pro and higher). Incoming payments are matched to the invoices you’ve sent, so you can see at a glance what’s still open.
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Ready for mandatory e-invoicing
Receive, check, pay and legally archive incoming e-invoices with Holvi Lite and higher. Create, send and track them from Holvi Pro. In both German standard formats (ZUGFeRD and XRechnung).
Clean books, a happy accountant
The connection to your accountant runs in the background. Sorted data, receipts already attached to the payments and their own access to the account. DATEV, sevdesk, Lexware Office and many other tools connect without fuss.
Payments from other business accounts? Easy to add.
Secure by default.
For over 15 years, businesses have trusted Holvi to keep their money safe.
3D Secure on every online payment
Extra protection built into every card.
Lock and unlock in a tap
Block a card instantly from the app and unblock it just as fast.
Your money, safeguarded
Holvi is supervised by BaFin and customer funds are held as safeguarded funds.
Ready in a few steps
Apply for your account online, with no appointment.
A valid ID or passport, plus your tax number or VAT ID.
After the check, your account is usually ready within a day. In exceptional cases it can take a little longer.
Order the Business Mastercard® and optionally connect your bookkeeping or give your accountant access.
FAQs about the Holvi business account for small trades
Holvi offers several business accounts for small trades: from €0/month with Holvi Flex, up to higher plans with more IBANs, cards and free transactions. Compare all plans on the pricing page.
No, a small trade isn’t required to keep a separate business account. It still makes sense: a separate account with a VAT and profit overview gives you more clarity. It also stops you accidentally spending money that isn’t yours and makes tax payments easier to plan.
You can, but it’s not a good idea. If business payments run through your private account, you quickly lose the overview. As a result, at month-end, you’re sorting through countless transactions. That makes both your own planning and the work with your accountant harder.
Holvi offers a business account for sole proprietorships (Einzelunternehmen) and a business account for GbRs (civil-law partnerships) that aren’t entered in the commercial register (Handelsregister). The following legal forms cannot legally be a small trade:
- OHG (general partnership)
- KG (limited partnership)
- GmbH (limited liability company)
- UG (entrepreneurial company, limited liability)
For these, Holvi offers a business account for GmbH and UG, as well as for OHG and KG.
Note: A Kleingewerbe isn’t a legal form of its own, it describes a commercial activity of modest scale. Because of its smaller size, bureaucratic hurdles like registration in the commercial register and the strict rules of the German Commercial Code (HGB) don’t apply. Instead of full double-entry bookkeeping, a simple income-surplus calculation (Einnahmen-Überschuss-Rechnung) is usually enough for tax purposes. This makes a small trade, usually a sole proprietorship or a GbR, an easy way to start out self-employed.
After you open online, your IBAN is usually ready for payments straight away. In exceptional cases, activation can take a little longer.
Usually a national ID card or passport. You’ll also need your tax number (Steuernummer) or VAT ID, plus your trade registration (Gewerbeanmeldung). There’s a checklist in our Help Centre.
Yes, the Holvi business account supports self-employed people and businesses that fall under the small business regulation (Kleinunternehmerregelung).
No, opening a Holvi business account leaves your SCHUFA score (the German credit rating) untouched. A check only happens if you later apply for a Holvi credit card.
The small-trade account is just the beginning
Invoicing
Invoices in a few clicks, with or without the small business regulation.
Online bookkeeping
Send clean data to your accountant automatically.
International transfers
Payments in 18 currencies, transparent and without a second tool.