GoBD and replacement scanning: can you throw away paper receipts in Germany?
GoBD scanning rules in Germany let you throw away paper receipts after scanning if the scan is complete, unchangeable and documented. Here is what applies and what must stay.
In short: Yes, in Germany you may throw away paper receipts after scanning them, as long as you follow the GoBD scanning rules. The scan must match the original in image and content, be stored so it cannot be altered, and stay readable for the whole retention period; you describe how you do this in a short process document (Verfahrensdokumentation). A few documents such as notarial deeds and certain customs papers must still be kept in the original.
Anyone claiming business expenses in Germany collects receipts: fuel slips, invoices, till receipts from the hardware store. After a few years that is a shelf of binders. So the obvious question is whether a scan is enough to let the paper go. The answer lies in the GoBD, the German Federal Ministry of Finance's "principles for the proper keeping and storage of books, records and documents in electronic form and for data access".
This article explains what replacement scanning (ersetzendes Scannen) means, which requirements you have to meet, what a process document for a small business looks like, and which documents stay on paper regardless.
What is replacement scanning under the GoBD?
Replacement scanning means you digitise a paper receipt, keep only the digital version and destroy the original. The GoBD explicitly allow this. The legal basis is § 147 (2) of the Abgabenordnung (AO, the German Fiscal Code), which permits keeping records as a reproduction on an image or data carrier if that complies with the principles of proper bookkeeping.
The scan then becomes the receipt. It must do everything the paper would have done: during a tax audit the auditor has to be able to find it, read it and match it to the booking. That applies for the full retention period, which is eight years for accounting vouchers and invoices and ten years for books and annual accounts. The details are in the article on retention periods in Germany.
What are the GoBD scanning requirements for receipts?
The GoBD ask for five things: image fidelity, completeness, immutability, timely capture and traceability. In everyday terms:
- Identical image: The scan shows the whole receipt, including the back if anything is printed there. Nothing cut off, nothing unreadable.
- Colour where it matters: If a coloured element is relevant for tax (a red "paid" stamp, a coloured signature), scan in colour. A black-and-white till receipt can stay black and white.
- Unchangeable: Once filed, the scan must not be editable or silently deletable. A PDF in a folder with a change log or in an archive system qualifies; a photo in your camera roll that can be retouched any time is risky.
- Timely: You scan soon after receiving the receipt, not at year end. Thermal receipts fade anyway, which is one more reason to scan till receipts quickly.
- Findable: Every scan can be linked to a booking, for example by date, amount and merchant in the file name, or by a voucher number.
An app like Belego covers the first points: it crops and straightens the photo and saves every scan directly as a PDF named with date, merchant and amount. Immutability and archiving for eight or ten years are then up to your filing system, for example by exporting into an accounting or archive tool.
Can you really throw away paper receipts after scanning?
Yes, once the scan has been checked, properly filed and your procedure is documented. The GoBD do not prescribe a waiting period. A buffer step is still sensible: collect the paper in a box for a week or a month after scanning, spot-check a few against the scans, then shred the lot. That way a cropped scan is caught while the original still exists.
Example: on 3 March you buy office supplies for 87.40 euros. In the evening you photograph the receipt, check amount and date, and the PDF goes into the folder "2026-03". At the end of March you go through the box, compare three receipts with their scans and throw the pile away. That is GoBD-compliant provided this routine is what your process document describes.
One point is often overlooked: input VAT deduction depends on a proper invoice. If details are missing from the scan because the original was already unreadable, no scanner will help. What a small receipt must show is covered in the article on small-amount invoices up to 250 euros.
The process document: how short can it be?
The Verfahrensdokumentation describes how a receipt is handled from arrival to destruction. For a large company it is a thick document. For a freelancer or a small GmbH one or two pages are enough, as long as they describe what you actually do. An auditor wants to see that you thought about the procedure and stick to it.
A minimal version answers these questions:
- Who scans? (You, an employee, the office)
- With what? (Smartphone app, document scanner, model or app name)
- When? (On the day of receipt, at the latest within a week)
- How is it checked? (Visual check of amount, date, completeness)
- Where is it filed? (Folder structure, file names, archive system, backup)
- How is immutability ensured? (Archive software, write-protected storage, log)
- When is the paper destroyed? (After checking, monthly)
The German Federal Chamber of Tax Advisors (Bundessteuerberaterkammer) publishes a template process document for replacement scanning that you can scale down to your size. A clear folder structure with consistent file names keeps the document shorter because much of it becomes self-explanatory.
Is scanning receipts with a smartphone enough?
Yes. Since the 2019 revision of the GoBD, photographing with a smartphone or tablet is explicitly permitted, including on the road and abroad. What counts is not the device but the result: complete, readable, filed so it cannot be changed.
In practice: lay the receipt flat, good light, no shadow, whole receipt in the frame. Belego crops and straightens automatically and reads amount, date and merchant. Anything it cannot read with confidence is left blank rather than guessed, and you fill it in by hand. For archiving you export a month or a year as a ZIP containing all PDFs and a CSV list. Why PDF is the right format for bookkeeping and audits is explained in a separate article.
Which documents you must not throw away
Not everything can go in the bin after scanning. Some documents have an evidentiary function that only the original fulfils.
| Document | Discard after scan? | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| Till receipts, invoices, quittances | Yes | Accounting voucher, scan is sufficient |
| Bank statements, delivery notes | Yes | Accounting voucher, scan is sufficient |
| Annual accounts, opening balance sheet | No | Original required under § 147 (2) AO |
| Notarial deeds, contracts requiring written form | No | Civil-law evidence only in the original |
| Customs documents, proofs of origin | No | Customs law requires the original |
| Securities, sealed certificates | No | Authenticity can only be checked on the original |
When in doubt, keep the original. One extra binder for a handful of documents is cheaper than a dispute with the tax office.
Note: This article is general guidance, not tax advice. The law, official guidance and the information you receive from your tax office or tax advisor (Steuerberater) take precedence.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a process document as a small business owner?
The GoBD apply to everyone who has to keep books or records, including small businesses using cash-basis accounting (Einnahmenüberschussrechnung). The scope may match your size, though. For a one-person business, a single page describing who scans, when, with what, how scans are checked and where they are filed is usually enough. What matters is that you follow what it says.
Is a photo in my phone's gallery GoBD-compliant?
A single photo in the camera roll is problematic because it can be edited or deleted at any time and is not linked to a booking. It becomes compliant once it is filed as an unchangeable PDF in a place where changes are logged, with a file name or number that leads back to the booking.
What if I already threw away receipts without a process document?
The tax office may question whether your bookkeeping is proper. If the scans are readable, complete and can be matched to bookings, they are usually accepted in practice anyway. Write the process document now, describe accurately how you have worked so far, and stick to it from here on.
May I store scanned receipts in the cloud?
Yes, provided the provider guarantees immutability and availability and you can access everything during an audit. For servers outside the EU an approval under § 146 (2a) AO may be required. Belego keeps receipts only on your device; archiving is done with the ZIP export into your own system.