Granting of a licence for commercial activity as a real estate loan intermediary

1. Application for permission
   In order to work as a real estate loan intermediary, you must submit an application to the competent authority on presentation of the necessary documents. Individuals (natural persons) apply for permission themselves or through authorized third parties. In the case of legal persons, the application is made by their legal representatives or by third parties authorised in writing.
2. Notification of permission
   The permission will be granted to you in the form of a permission notice.
3. Entry of permission
   After taking up your activity as a real estate loan broker, you must immediately submit an application for entry in the register in accordance with § 11a paragraph 1 of the Industrial Code.

The competent licensing authorities in Lower Saxony are the Chambers of Industry and Commerce in the respective chamber district.

Permission to operate commercially as a real estate loan intermediary is granted to you if you:

• are reliable,
• live in orderly financial circumstances,
• can prove professional indemnity insurance,
• have successfully passed an examination of competence at a chamber of industry and commerce or can prove this required competence by means of an equivalent professional qualification.

For the examination to obtain permission to act as a real estate loan intermediary, you must submit the following documents:

• a certificate of good conduct for submission to an authority
• an excerpt from the Central Trade Register
• if applicable, a certificate in tax matters from the tax office
• if applicable, a clearance certificate from the municipal tax office
• an extract from the register of debtors of the central enforcement court
• if applicable, information from the insolvency court on freedom from insolvency and on the rejection of the opening of proceedings due to lack of assets
• proof of professional indemnity insurance
• proof of the required expertise
• for legal entities and commercial partnerships: an extract from the commercial register
• Information from the Federal Central Register for submission to an authority

For the permission as a real estate loan intermediary, fees are regularly to be expected. In Lower Saxony, the amount of the costs results from the fee statute of the respective Chamber of Industry and Commerce.

Deadlines for the applicant are not regulated. It is advisable to submit a timely application with sufficient lead time for the planned start of the activity (discuss in detail with the responsible IHK in advance). For the rest, see the explanations on processing time.

A processing period is not regulated. If the application is complete and legible and all mentioned documents are complete, a decision on the application will be made as soon as possible. If an application for permission that is capable of being decided upon is not decided within a reasonable time without sufficient reason, the instrument of an action for failure to act is normally available after three months.

Written form is not specified.

In Lower Saxony, preliminary proceedings are not provided for by § 80 Nds. Therefore, no objection is admissible. Rather, an action must be brought directly before the administrative courts.

When registering, you must decide whether you want to be registered as a real estate loan broker or as a fee-based real estate loan advisor.

Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour, Transport and Digitalisation

The text was automatically translated based on the German content.