First steps…
The first step in starting a side business in Germany while continuing to work in another job as a full time employee is inform your company of your intention to take up a side job (Nebentätigkeit). This may not always be necessary, however it is possible that you are required to do this if it is included in your work contract like it was in mine. I found a good example of a letter online at this website: http://www.klicktipps.de/download.php. Take a look towards the bottom of the page under “Sonstiges” and then “Anmeldung Nebentätigkeit” for the word document.
I gave my letter to my boss last week on Tuesday. He said I could have just told him in person and it would have been OK. He wasn’t really surprised or worried about it and it seems that a number of people in my company have a side job or maybe even a side business. It is not a problem to do, just as long as you are not doing something that puts you in direct competition with your company.
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