GoBD Compliance
Audit-proof email archiving for German businesses under the Principles for Proper Management and Storage of Books, Records and Documents in Electronic Form (GoBD)
What is GoBD?
GoBD (Grundsätze zur ordnungsmäßigen Führung und Aufbewahrung von Büchern, Aufzeichnungen und Unterlagen in elektronischer Form sowie zum Datenzugriff) is a German administrative regulation from the Federal Ministry of Finance defining requirements for electronic bookkeeping, record-keeping, and tax-relevant document retention.
GoBD applies to all businesses subject to German tax law, regardless of size. Non-compliance can result in rejected bookkeeping, estimated tax assessments, and penalties.
Retention Periods
Tax-relevant documents: invoices, financial records, contracts with financial implications, payment confirmations
Commercial correspondence: offers, quotations, order confirmations, delivery notes, general business letters
GoBD Requirements & Piler Compliance
Immutability (Unveränderbarkeit)
Documents must not be modifiable after archiving. Any changes must be logged and traceable.
Completeness (Vollständigkeit)
All tax-relevant and commercially relevant emails must be captured completely.
Traceability (Nachvollziehbarkeit)
All access to archived documents must be logged for audit purposes.
Machine Readability (Maschinelle Auswertbarkeit)
Tax authorities must be able to search and export data during audits.
Retention Periods (Aufbewahrungsfristen)
Configurable retention per document type with automatic enforcement.
2025 E-Invoicing Compliance
As of January 2025, Germany mandates e-invoicing for B2B transactions. The July 2025 GoBD amendment clarifies that e-invoices (ZUGFeRD, XRechnung) must be stored in their original format.
Piler automatically complies because all email attachments are stored in their original format without modification.
Tax Audit Support
When tax authorities request access during audits, Piler supports all GDPdU/GoBD data access methods:
Auditor role with controlled read-only system access
Reports and exports generated on request
Export to external media in standard formats
Data Sovereignty for German Businesses
🏠 Self-Hosted Archiving
- Data stays in Germany
- Full control over encryption keys
- No cross-border data transfer
🔒 German Privacy Standards
- GDPR-compliant by design
- Direct auditor access without third parties
- Predictable costs (no per-user cloud fees)
Full GoBD Implementation Guide
Visit our comprehensive documentation for detailed GoBD compliance guidance, including retention configuration, procedural documentation templates, and audit preparation.
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