EU Court Ruling Reshapes How German Employers Count Travel Time on Business Trips
Published on 07/27/2026 at 05:52 | Redaktion boerse-global.de
For millions of German workers, the daily commute to a construction site, a client’s home, or a care facility has long been a grey zone: travel time that wasn’t quite work, but wasn’t quite free time either. A landmark decision by the European Court of Justice (EuGH) now shifts the balance, forcing employers to count those journeys as working hours.
The ruling, issued in October 2025 under case number C-110/24, applies when an employer dictates the travel conditions and the employee cannot freely manage their time. That covers the morning drive to a changing work location and the return trip home. The decision directly challenges Germany’s long-standing “Belastungstheorie” (burden theory) used by the Federal Labour Court, which treated travel time differently from actual work.
Roughly 1.8 million workers in construction and building cleaning, 450,000 mobile nursing staff, and 130,000 landscape gardeners are among those affected. Yet being classified as working time does not automatically guarantee full pay. What it does guarantee is that the statutory minimum wage must be respected. With Germany’s minimum wage rising to €13.90 per hour in January 2026, some employees stand to gain significantly. A painter with an 80-minute daily round trip, for example, could see monthly earnings climb by up to €400.
New Recording Rules on the Horizon
While the courts are tightening definitions, the German government is pushing forward with legislative changes to the Arbeitszeitgesetz (Working Hours Act). A draft bill dated July 25, 2026, would require employers to electronically log the start, end, and duration of daily working hours — including for employees on trust-based working time arrangements. Small businesses with up to ten staff would be exempt, and medium-sized companies would receive transition periods.
At the same time, lawmakers are debating greater flexibility. Proposals to replace the rigid eight-hour day with a weekly-hours model have drawn sharp criticism from unions. They warn that allowing shifts of up to twelve hours would strain family life and increase health risks. Another proposed change would stretch the averaging period for weekly working time from four weeks to 16, and in the tourism sector to as long as 52 weeks.
Relief for International Business Travel
There is good news for companies with cross-border operations. EU negotiators have agreed that from 2028, short business trips — such as conferences, training sessions, or client meetings — will no longer require an A1 certificate. The exemption applies to assignments lasting up to three days within any 30-day period. However, it does not cover construction work, installation, maintenance, or repairs; those sectors must continue to prove social insurance coverage in the worker’s home country.
When Monitoring Crosses the Line
Employers retain the right to inspect work accounts if they suspect time fraud. But covert surveillance tools like keyloggers are only permissible when there is concrete evidence of a criminal offence, a standard set by the Federal Labour Court on July 27, 2017. Legal experts advise companies to first exhaust regular time-recording data before resorting to more intrusive measures.
Disclaimer regarding our articles: No investment advice, no buy or sell recommendation. Information on prices, companies, and markets is provided without guarantee; changes are possible at any time. Stock market transactions can lead to substantial losses. Our articles are created and reviewed in whole or in part automatically with the support of AI.
