Every second company names red tape as its biggest location problem — in retail something else comes first
On 21 September 2026 the ifo Institute published a special analysis of its business survey: 50 per cent of companies name bureaucracy as the biggest problem of Germany as a business location, energy costs 27 and labour costs 22 per cent. In retail, weak demand leads with 25 per cent — more than in any other sector.
What happened
The ifo Institute published a special analysis of its business survey on 21 September 2026. Half of the companies surveyed name bureaucracy and regulation as the biggest problem of Germany as a business location; energy costs follow at a clear distance with 27 per cent and labour costs with 22 per cent. The burden grows with company size: sole traders name bureaucracy at 33 per cent, micro-enterprises with fewer than ten employees at 41 per cent, small companies at 50, medium-sized at 58 and large ones at 59 per cent. By sector, the picture splits apart: in industry, 39 per cent name energy costs, in services only 17; construction points above average to a shortage of skilled workers (29 per cent) and long approval procedures (13 per cent). In retail, weak demand comes first — 25 per cent name the general economic and order situation, more than in any other sector. The basis is a special question in the ifo business survey of July 2026 with 4,449 evaluated responses from industry, construction, retail and services; the question was put as free text, multiple answers were possible, and the shares therefore add up to more than 100 per cent.
Who is affected
Retail, hospitality and online shops — and among them especially businesses with between ten and 250 employees, where, according to ifo, the obligations start to bite almost simultaneously.
Assessment
The most interesting finding of this survey is the one that does not make the headline: in retail, bureaucracy is not problem number one, demand is. That matches what can be seen at the terminals — falling average basket sizes with rising transaction numbers. Anyone chasing turnover their market simply is not delivering right now has neither the time nor the patience for documentation obligations. That is exactly why administrative effort in retail usually only becomes a topic once a deadline has already passed.
And the next deadlines are close. On 20 November 2026 the new consumer credit law applies, covering buy-now-pay-later, interest- and fee-free instalment payments and small loans under 200 euros for the first time — that affects every shop offering instalment payment in the checkout. On 1 January 2027 comes the obligation to send E-Rechnungen (structured electronic invoices) in domestic B2B business, for all companies with more than 800,000 euros of turnover in the previous year; the current year is what counts. And the draft bill on mandatory tills has been on the table since August. That is the difference between bureaucracy as a complaint and bureaucracy as a task: one costs nerves, the other has a date. Anyone who knows the dates can work through them in quiet weeks instead of in December.
What to do now
- Check whether your previous year's turnover is above 800,000 euros — if so, from 1 January 2027 you have to be able to send E-Rechnungen, not just receive them.
- If you offer instalment payment or purchase on account: clarify in writing with your provider how it will implement 20 November 2026 and what changes for your checkout process.
- Review till and terminal contracts for term and software status before mandatory tills are decided. Negotiating gets harder once a law has been passed.