ED15 - Employee Onboarding: Operating Number, SV Registration, ELSTER

Problem

An entrepreneur hires their first employee - and faces a forest of obligations that apply from the 1st employee:

• "What do I have to register?" - SV registration, ELStAM retrieval, DEÜV registration, payroll tax registration - but in which order?
• Operating number available, but not in the repo - the SV operating number (see ED13) sits in the payroll software, but not in the repo - if the account is cancelled, it is gone
• ELStAM retrieval forgotten - the electronic payroll tax deduction characteristics must be retrieved before the first payroll run - but many entrepreneurs do not know this
• DEÜV registration late - registration with the health insurance (DEÜV reason 10) must take place within 6 weeks of the start of employment - but nobody monitors the deadline
• Immediate notification overlooked - in certain sectors (construction, hospitality, cleaning, security, hairdressing, transport and others) the start of employment must be reported to the DRV before the activity begins - those who overlook this risk fines and suspicion of illicit work
• No payroll software available - without ITSG-certified payroll software the reporting path is missing - the SV reporting portal (sv-meldeportal.de) provides a remedy, but is unknown to many
• No master data in the repo - employee master data (§ 4 LStDV) sits in the payroll software, but not in the repo - not GoBD-compliant
• No deadline monitoring - the onboarding deadlines (SV registration, DEÜV, ELStAM) are not monitored centrally

Trigger B - 1st employee: These obligations arise with the first employee - they build on the organisational foundation (Part II) and the authority identifiers (Part III).

Core message

Employee onboarding in the Git repo means:

1. Master data as JSON artefact - all § 4 LStDV mandatory fields in the repo, with sphere tag and V7GUID:uuidV7
2. SV registration as evidence with sidecar - DEÜV registration reason 10, receipt with SHA-256
3. Sector check § 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV - per employee check whether immediate notification is required (construction, hospitality, cleaning, security and others)
4. SV reporting portal as emergency channel - without payroll software submit registrations directly via sv-meldeportal.de, receipt as evidence with sidecar
5. ELStAM retrieval documented - retrieval before first payroll run, result in the repo
6. Deadline check for onboarding steps - DEÜV (6 weeks), immediate notification (before start), ELStAM (before payroll), LStA (10th of following month)
7. Onboarding checklist as Git artefact - structured step-by-step list with status tracking

Compliance by Design: Onboarding is not carried out ad hoc, but captured through structured mandatory fields, evidence with sidecars and deadline check.

Onboarding timeline

Master data as JSON artefact (§ 4 LStDV)

Master data JSON

{
  "$schema": "https://gitcover.org/schemas/employee-stammdaten-1.0.schema.json",
  "V7GUID": "<V7GUID-Class-aus-Registry>",
  "uuidV7": "<uuidV7-Object-mit-vorgegebener-Zeitmarke>",
  "author": "E1",
  "role": "Lohnverantwortlicher",
  "tenant": "ORG-1",
  "sphere": "ideell",
  "source": "E1",
  "source_sha256": "<SHA-256-des-Anstellungsvertrags>",
  "tags": ["mitarbeiter", "stammdaten", "§4-lstdv", "onboarding"],
  "mitarbeiter": {
    "name": "Druschel, Axel Franz Johann",
    "geburtsdatum": "1960-04-08",
    "anschrift": "<ANSCHRIFT>",
    "steuer_idnr": "<STNR-11-STELLIG>",
    "sv_nummer": "<SV-NR-12-STELLIG>",
    "krankenkasse": "BKK firmus",
    "ik_nummer": "<IK>",
    "eintrittsdatum": "2026-09-01",
    "beschaeftigungsart": "Geschaeftsfuehrer",
    "taetigkeitsschluessel": "62113",
    "personengruppe_deuev": "101",
    "beitragsgruppenschluessel": "0320",
    "aktivrente_flag": true,
    "bruttolohn_monat": 2000.00
  }
}

Note: The uuidV7 is the DocID of the entry. The composite key V7GUID:uuidV7 serves storage organisation and DB queries. The mitarbeiter object contains all § 4 LStDV mandatory fields. The aktivrente_flag documents the active pension (§ 3 Nr. 21 EStG) - see ED12 (DRV status determination) and ED18 (payroll).

ELStAM retrieval (§ 39e EStG)

Important - ELStAM before payroll: The ELStAM retrieval must take place before the first payroll run. Without ELStAM data no payroll tax may be calculated (§ 39e EStG). The retrieval is documented in the repo - on error (no data set) the retrieval attempt is logged as a repo event (evidence "tried", see ED14 interface error logging).

DEÜV registration (reason 10)

Practical example: The MD (E1) starts on 01.09.2026 at the KMU. The DEÜV registration (reason 10) must take place by approx. 13.10.2026 (6 weeks after the entry month). The health insurance receipt is stored as evidence with sidecar in the repo. The deadline check contains an entry "DEÜV reason 10 - 131006".

Immediate notification to SV (§ 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV)

In addition to the regular DEÜV registration (reason 10, 6-week deadline) there is an immediate notification obligation for certain sectors: The day of start of an employment relationship must be reported to the data centre of the pension insurance at the latest at its start - i.e. before or on the first working day, not 6 weeks later.

Sectors with immediate notification obligation

§ 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV lists 11 economic sectors in which immediate notification is mandatory:

Why these sectors? These economic sectors have an increased risk of illicit work, bogus self-employment and contribution evasion. Immediate notification enables the DRV to check promptly whether an employment relationship was correctly registered - while the employee is already active.

Legal consequence of non-submission

The immediate notification is not a registration under § 28a Abs. 1 SGB IV (regular DEÜV registration). It does not replace it, but is an additional reporting obligation. If it is not submitted, the following threaten:

• Contribution reassessment with interest
• Estimation of the remuneration by the collecting agency
• Sanctions under § 111 SGB IV (fine up to 5,000 EUR)
• Suspicion of illicit work with reporting obligation to customs/financial control

Data content of the immediate notification

The immediate notification contains reduced information (less than the full DEÜV registration):

The notification is stored in the master data file under § 150 Abs. 1 and 2 SGB VI - it serves the DRV as an early warning system.

Decision: is my company affected?

Practical example: The KMU (software development) does not belong to the sectors of § 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV. For the MD (E1) no immediate notification is required - the regular DEÜV registration (reason 10) with the 6-week deadline is sufficient. However, if the KMU were to hire a cleaning person for the office, this would fall under building cleaning (No. 6) - immediate notification obligation would be triggered. Sector affiliation must be checked per employment relationship, not per company.

Notification without payroll software: the SV reporting portal

Not every entrepreneur has ITSG-certified payroll software. For micro-employers (up to approx. 10 employees), self-employed and exceptional cases the social insurance provides the SV reporting portal at sv-meldeportal.de as a system-tested filling aid - the statutory successor to sv.net (operation discontinued 30.06.2024).

Legal basis

§ 95a SGB IV obliges the social insurance providers to permanently provide a generally accessible, electronically supported and system-tested filling aid for data exchange under SGB IV and the Aufwendungsausgleichsgesetz. The SV reporting portal is this filling aid - it does not perform calculations (no competitor to professional payroll software), but merely supports the capture and transmission of notifications.

Prerequisites for use

Exception BundID account: For foreign companies, self-employed and employees who use the portal exclusively for A1 certificates, the BundID account has been permitted as an alternative since 2024.

Registration and reporting procedure

Registration takes place once, independent of the term. In detail:

1. Apply for ELSTER organisational certificate - via Mein Unternehmenskonto (info.mein-unternehmenskonto.de), for which the company tax number is required. A separate certificate can be applied for per employee (up to 500 per company account).
2. Start registration in the SV reporting portal - authentication with the ELSTER organisational certificate. Company data is partly taken over automatically from the ELSTER account.
3. Link operating number - mandatory; matched against the central operating number file of the BA.
4. Activation code by post - the authorisation letter is sent by post to the management. Internal organisation hands the activation code to the authorised user.
5. Log in to the portal - thereafter with organisational certificate.
6. Capture notification - DEÜV notifications (reason 10, 30, 50, 92), contribution proofs, A1 certificates, applications.
7. Receive receipt - electronic confirmation from the data receiving office.
8. Receipt as evidence with sidecar - store in the Git repo (SHA-256, V7GUID:uuidV7, sphere tag).

Costs

Payment by bank transfer or PayPal. Any number of notifications per term.

Functional scope

• DEÜV notifications (registration, deregistration, annual notification, immediate notification)
• Contribution proofs (SV contribution proof to KK)
• A1 certificates (posting certificate EU)
• Certificates (e.g. SV certificate for employee)
• Online data storage ("file cabinet") - encrypted, per operating number, retained for 5 years
• Personnel administration with history - basic data, notification data per month
• Mandant administration - for tax advisors managing several employers

Important for the Git repo: The SV reporting portal is a capture and transmission aid, not a GoBD-compliant retention location. Online data storage for 5 years does not replace the GoBD retention periods (10 years for evidence, see ED07). The receipts and notification data must additionally be stored in the Git repo with sidecar.

GitCover integration

For Git-native compliance the SV reporting portal is an interface system like ELSTER (see ED14):

Practical example: The KMU uses ITSG-certified payroll software and therefore not the SV reporting portal. Should the payroll software fail (emergency), the SV reporting portal can serve as a backup channel. Registration with ELSTER organisational certificate is already in place (for ELSTER LStA, see ED11). The operating number is in the repo (ED13). In an emergency the KMU can capture immediate notifications or DEÜV registrations manually - the receipts are stored as evidence with sidecar in the repo, just like the payroll software receipt.

Note from preliminary work: In the SV notification catalogue of AFJD/agents/ it is noted: "Immediate notifications (reason 20) do not apply to GCC, as it does not belong to the sectors of § 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV." This statement is correct for the software sector - but must be checked per employment relationship whenever employees move to sector-relevant activities (e.g. cleaning person, driver).

Onboarding checklist as Git artefact

{
  "$schema": "https://gitcover.org/schemas/onboarding-checklist-1.0.schema.json",
  "V7GUID": "<V7GUID-Class-aus-Registry>",
  "uuidV7": "<uuidV7-Object-mit-vorgegebener-Zeitmarke>",
  "author": "E1",
  "role": "GF",
  "tenant": "ORG-1",
  "sphere": "ideell",
  "source": "E1",
  "tags": ["onboarding", "checkliste", "mitarbeiter"],
  "mitarbeiter_uuidV7": "<uuidV7-der-Stammdaten>",
  "checkliste": [
    {"schritt": "Vertrag unterschrieben", "status": "done", "beleg_sha256": "<SHA-256>"},
    {"schritt": "Stammdaten erfasst", "status": "done", "beleg_sha256": "<SHA-256>"},
    {"schritt": "Branchen-Check § 28a Abs. 4 SGB IV", "status": "done", "ergebnis": "nicht betroffen"},
    {"schritt": "Sofortmeldung (falls betroffen)", "status": "n/a", "frist": "vor Aufnahme"},
    {"schritt": "ELStAM abgerufen", "status": "done", "beleg_sha256": "<SHA-256>"},
    {"schritt": "DEÜV Grund 10 angemeldet", "status": "pending", "frist": "131006"},
    {"schritt": "KK-Mitgliedschaft bestätigt", "status": "pending", "frist": "300826"},
    {"schritt": "Erster Lohnlauf", "status": "pending", "frist": "300926"},
    {"schritt": "LStA übermittelt", "status": "pending", "frist": "151006"},
    {"schritt": "SV-Beitragsnachweis", "status": "pending", "frist": "271006"}
  ]
}

Note: The uuidV7 is the DocID of the checklist. The composite key V7GUID:uuidV7 serves storage organisation and DB queries. The mitarbeiter_uuidV7 field references the employee's master data (cross-reference via uuidV7). Each step has a status (done/pending) and optionally a deadline and an evidence hash.

Risk leverage

Harness requirement (preview)

Derivable from ED15:

The full requirement list in Harness-Anforderungen.md.

Sources

• EStG (§ 39e - ELStAM, § 4 LStDV - mandatory fields, § 41a - payroll tax registration)
• SGB IV (§ 28a Abs. 1 - DEÜV notifications, § 28a Abs. 4 - immediate notification, § 28i - operating number, § 23 - SV contribution proof, § 95a - SV reporting portal, § 111 - sanctions)
• SGB VI (§ 150 Abs. 1 and 2 - master data file)
• sv-meldeportal.de - official SV reporting portal of the social insurance providers
• info.sv-meldeportal.de - information portal with registration, guides, FAQ
• info.mein-unternehmenskonto.de - unified company account (ELSTER)
• gesetze-im-internet.de/sgb_4/__28a.html - § 28a SGB IV full text
• AFJD/agents/ (anonymised) - SSoT concept with master data, onboarding checklist
• GCC/TOP/Employees/AFJD/40_SV-Meldungen_Katalog.md - preliminary work SV notifications, sector check, DEÜV submission reasons

Source topology and CDN reference links

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