Berlin businesses may be forced to accept card payments

Berlin’s state government is in favour of obliging shops, cafes and restaurants in the capital to offer customers at least one digital payment method.

Berlin gov’t may push card payments

Berlin’s CDU-SPD state coalition government has said it will launch an initiative to require shops, cafes, bars and restaurants in the capital to offer customers at least one digital payment method.

According to t-online, of the 80.300 cash-only establishments inspected in 2024 in Berlin, just 1,2 percent were keeping records of cash flow.

“I can’t think of any other reason why you would only take cash payments than to avoid paying tax,” CDU representative Dirk Stettner told B.Z..

The German Tax Association and the Federal Audit Office estimate that requiring establishments to offer a digital payment option could bring an additional 15 billion euros into government coffers annually.

The CDU-SPD government plan to launch the initiative at their coalition retreat on April 20 and 21.

Hospitality association spurns card payment push

According to Stettner, the new rules will not impact cash payments, and small establishments will be exempt from offering at least one digital payment method. The German Hotel and Eatery Association (Deutscher Hotel- und Gaststättenverband or DEHOGA) has been quick to spurn the initiative.

In a press release, DEHOGA pointed out that digital payment systems incur additional costs for businesses, that Germany lacks the digital infrastructure to support widespread card payments, and that digital systems are vulnerable to cyberattacks.

While cash payments are declining in Germany, they remain hugely popular. A recent study by the Deutsche Bundesbank found that paying in cash is still nearly always possible in Germany. 

Researchers made over 2.000 test purchases at retailers, in hospitality or for services, and found that a cash payment was possible in 98,7 percent of cases. In 0,7 percent of cases, it was possible to pay with cash at another till or on request.