Accountants and corporate service providers in Frankfurt

Sectors named in Frankfurt

Real estate leads with 16 mentions, as it does across Germany. What sets the Frankfurt list apart is the weight of finance-related work in it. Financial services and e-commerce are named five times each, crypto four times, fintech, private equity and funds three times each, and family offices twice. Healthcare (four), non-profit work (three) and freelancers (three) follow, then start-ups, IT, construction and hospitality with two each.

Those sectors show in the structures. Besides the GmbH, named by 11 Frankfurt firms, and branches, named by six, the list mentions partnerships five times, foundations four times and special purpose vehicles three times, and two firms name fund vehicles. Subsidiaries, holding companies and sole proprietorships are each named by three, the AG, the KG, the GmbH & Co. KG and associations by two each, and a representative office and the UG, the so-called mini-GmbH, by one each. If you are setting up an SPV or a fund vehicle, ask whether the firm works alongside the lawyers who draft the documents or drafts them in house.

Services in Frankfurt

Accounting and tax compliance are each offered by 32 of the 37 Frankfurt firms and payroll by 26. Nineteen handle company formation, about half the list. VAT is listed by only 16 and audit by eight, so check that the firm you choose files VAT returns itself if your company will invoice in Germany, and ask who audits if your structure needs it. Six Frankfurt firms provide a virtual office, more than in any other German city on Accountanty, four act as company secretary and three help with a bank account. One lists residence and visa support.

Clients and languages in Frankfurt

Private individuals are the client group Frankfurt firms name most, by six of them. Foreign investors, expatriates, freelancers, non-profit organisations and private clients are each named by three, and medium-sized companies, SMEs, small businesses, the self-employed and start-ups by two. Twenty-nine of the 37 say they focus on foreign clients, and the accountants for foreign clients page gathers every such firm in Germany.

Thirty-four Frankfurt firms advise in German and 30 advise in English. Spanish is the third language, with five firms, then French and Russian with four each, Italian and Polish with three, and Turkish and Chinese with two. Single firms work in Japanese, Vietnamese, Dutch, Albanian and Portuguese, a spread that helps an investor from Spain, Latin America or the Balkans find an adviser in their own language.

Credentials and track record in Frankfurt

Many Frankfurt firms describe themselves as a Steuerberatungsgesellschaft, and four name the Steuerberaterkammer Hessen, the tax advisers’ chamber for the state of Hesse. Some are also registered audit firms. Among the law firms, one states its admission by the Rechtsanwaltskammer Frankfurt am Main and one describes itself as a combined law and tax consultancy. Fourteen firms state a founding year, with the oldest from 1899 and the median from 2006. Three publish prices.

Choosing a firm in Frankfurt

Because most Frankfurt firms are small, ask who covers your file during holidays and at year end, and whether audit is done in house or by a partner firm. For a finance-related business, ask for a comparable engagement before you discuss fees. One firm in Dreieich and one in Ober-Ramstadt appear on the Germany page, which also covers the legal steps; for a wider choice, compare Berlin, Munich and Hamburg. A single quote request through Accountanty can reach several Frankfurt firms.