Self-employed and starting a business

Trade registration in Berlin, tax office, freelancers, false self-employment, craft trades.

Union citizens may establish themselves as self-employed in Germany (§ 2 (2) no. 2 FreizügG/EU). No residence permit is needed.

Steps

1. Trade (Gewerbe): register at the district's Ordnungsamt, online or on paper; the registration is passed to the tax office and chambers (service.berlin.de: Gewerbeanmeldung). Registration is due when business starts.
2. Freelancers (liberal professions such as doctors, lawyers, tax advisers, scientific, artistic, writing work) generally do not register a trade (same page). They register with the tax office (Finanzamt) via the electronic questionnaire on ELSTER. The borderline between trade and liberal profession is decided case by case and was not assessed here.
3. Social insurance and health insurance: see Social security and health; self-employed people pay their own contributions.

Craft trades (Handwerk)

For some trades listed in the Craft Code, a master certificate or equivalent is needed to run a business. EU citizens can obtain an exceptional permit (Ausnahmebewilligung) for entry in the craft register (§ 9 HwO; EU/EWR-Handwerk-Verordnung; Berlin service page). Providing services across borders without a German establishment follows a notification procedure. Exact experience periods and fees: ask the Berlin Chamber of Crafts.

False self-employment (Scheinselbständigkeit)

Whoever works on instructions and is integrated into the client's organisation is employed in law, whatever the contract says (§ 7 (1) SGB IV). A status determination procedure at the German Pension Insurance clarifies this (§ 7a SGB IV). Be wary of an employer who insists you "register a business" to work for them alone: Scams.