Letterhead layout: what goes where

From top to bottom

The letterhead itself

Form B gives you the top 45 mm (Form A: 27 mm). That space holds:

• the logo,
• the full company name — including the legal form where applicable,
• optionally a claim or slogan.

The letterhead is not a substitute for the mandatory disclosures. Commercial register number, tax identification and bank details belong in the footer: they are not needed for daily correspondence and would overload the header.

The reference block

To the right of the address field sits the reference block, carrying the information the recipient needs to route and answer the letter:

• your reference / our reference
• contact person
• telephone or direct extension
• place and date

The date may also appear above or below the subject line. What matters is that it appears only once in the letter and that the format is consistent — for instance "15 September 2026".

Disclosures required by law

These are requirements of German commercial law, not of DIN 5008. They apply to business letters on paper and, under case law, to comparable electronic correspondence:

• Company name and legal form, and the registered seat of the company
• Register court and commercial register number
• All managing directors or members of the board
• VAT identification number where one exists — or, for small businesses exempt under § 19 of the German VAT Act, a note that no VAT is charged
• where applicable, the chairman of the supervisory board

Which companies these obligations apply to follows from the Commercial Code and the GmbH Act. Small traders who are not entered in the commercial register need not state register details, though tax information may still be required depending on the legal form.

What makes a letterhead look unprofessional

• Too many typefaces and colours. Two typefaces are enough; one accent colour suffices.
• Type that is too small. Below 10 pt the body text becomes hard to read; in the address field, 8 pt is the absolute minimum.
• Decorative elements at the edge that get clipped when the sheet is punched or trimmed.
• No margin. Setting the text closer than 25 mm to the left edge risks punched holes cutting into letters.
• A footer without the required disclosures — the most common and most expensive mistake, because a missing register entry can trigger a formal warning with legal costs.