The Bitkom draws an ambiguous balance of startup policy in Germany. One year after the start of the new federal government, only a few measures have been implemented for founders.
Twenty five projects that would benefit startups include the current coalition agreement. One year after the new federal government has started work, only four of these measures have been fully implemented for founders. These are, above all, those in which existing measures are continued, as criticized by Bitkom in its one year assessment of the German startup policy.
Bitkom: 2019 must become a startup year
“The year 2019 must now really be a startup year, in which the big announcements are also on the way,” says Bitkom President Achim Berg. One of the promises made is that state support programs such as Exist, Invest Grant, the HTGF and the Central Innovation Program for SMEs have been continued and partly increased. Also positive are the expansion of the Digital Hub initiative and the new Startup Card.
The adoption of the Law on Employment Immigration is expected this year, the draft is already available. The national training strategy is currently being developed. According to the Bitkom assessment, there was hardly any progress in the planned reduction of bureaucratic requirements for startups and the facilitation of startups. The online citizen portal, which will allow online start-ups in the future, was launched live in September, but only in a beta version.
By contrast, nine of the 25 measures, including a possible change in bankruptcy law, have not yet done anything to introduce a startup period similar to family care or new employee participation options. The Bitkom considers the large national digital fund particularly important with which institutional investors could be won. But startups are waiting for it in vain.
Also published on Medium.