German BAG Rules on Payslip Format

Feb 21, 2025 Benn-Ibler Rechtsanwälte

May payslips be made available to employees only digitally or must they be snail-mailed as well? The German Federal Labour Court (Bundesarbeitsgericht, hereinafter BAG) recently had to address this issue.

In the case at hand, the plaintiff works as a retail sales assistant. Her payslips were made available to her in a digital, password-protected online mailbox. This was done based on a company-wide agreement stipulating that the online inbox was the only way for employees to access their payslips. Only if employees couldn’t access the documents stored in their digital inbox by using a personal digital device, the employer let them to view and print their documents at the workplace.

The sales assistant lodged a complaint against this rule. She wanted to continue to receive her payslips in print and by post.

The plaintiff’s claim for the issue of payslips was upheld by the BAG. Her argument was that her payslips had not been properly issued to her by virtue of their being posted on the online portal. She claimed that the statements must be sent to her. A digital mailbox can only be the means of receipt for such statements if the recipient has designated it as the means of receipt for statements in legal and business transactions.

However, the BAG took a different view.

Under German labour law, employers must provide employees with a statement of salary in writing at the time the employee’s remuneration is paid. In principle, an employer can fulfil this obligation by posting the statement as an electronic document in a password-protected digital employee mailbox.

Accessing their payslips is an action which employees are responsible to fulfil themselves. Employers can meet their respective obligation without ensuring that employees access their payslips at the workplace.

Press release on BAG 9 AZR 48/24 (28 January 2025)