No Deletion of Address Data in the List of Shareholders

The list of shareholders (Gesellschafterliste) of a GmbH is publicly accessible in the commercial register and fulfils a central legitimising and evidentiary function. The law regulates which information is to be included in the list of shareholders. In practice, however, it happens time and again that information going beyond this – such as complete private addresses – is included.

What many do not know: once such additional data has been filed, it generally can no longer be removed from the list of shareholders. The information once disclosed thus remains permanently publicly accessible.

This can not only be unpleasant but can also entail considerable risks, for example with regard to data protection or the possible misuse of personal data.

If too much information is included beyond what is required, there is no legal possibility of having the list of shareholders subsequently deleted from the commercial register or of having the private data redacted.