A reprieve for companies with electronic cash register systems

The German Act for the Protection Against Manipulation of Digital Basic Records (the so-called Cash Register Act) obliges companies with electronic cash register systems to retrofit their systems with a certified technical security system (a so-called TSS) from 1.1.2020. A TSS consists of a security module, a storage medium and a digital interface that are manufactured and provided by private suppliers. For information about the stipulations under Section 146a of the German Fiscal Code and the Federal Ministry of Finance’s Administrative Regulations Governing the Application, from 17.6.2019, (which, in the meanwhile, are no longer published on the website) we would refer you to this article. We had already commented there that equipping 2.1 m cash register systems throughout the German federal territory by 1.1.2020 would be illusory. There has now been a decision at the level of the Federal Government and the German federal states to grant a grace period that will apply until 30.9.2020. The reason for this is that there was, or still is a significant delay in the certification, manufacture and sale of the security equipment.