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Closed business in Thuringia: Many companies are still getting through the corona crisis lightly
Photo: Martin Schutt / dpa
Closed shops, orphaned hotels, empty restaurants: Many companies are fighting for their existence because of the corona crisis.
Nevertheless, the number of bankruptcies in Germany continues to decline: From January to September 2020, the German local courts reported 12,491 corporate bankruptcies, around 13 percent less than in the same period of the previous year.
This was announced by the Federal Statistical Office.
According to preliminary data, fewer insolvency proceedings were opened in November than in the same month last year, according to the authority.
The economic hardship of many companies due to the corona crisis has so far not been reflected in an increase in reported corporate insolvencies.
"One reason for this is that the obligation to file for insolvency for insolvent companies was suspended from March 1 to September 30, 2020," it says.
For over-indebted companies, the application requirement was suspended until the end of the year.
The Bundestag recently extended the exception rule for over-indebtedness to the end of January.
This is to prevent companies from going bankrupt just because the state aid is not paid out until January.
The Federal Statistical Office recorded most bankruptcies in trade (2020 cases), followed by the construction industry (1987 cases).
In the hospitality industry, 1405 bankruptcy filings were reported.
According to the authority, the numbers in all other industries were also down in the first three quarters.
Private individuals also filed fewer bankruptcy applications: the number of consumer bankruptcies fell by 28.1 percent.
The Federal Office explains this decline with the legislative plans of the federal government, which plans to gradually shorten the residual debt discharge procedure from six to three years.
In view of the foreseeable changes, it can be assumed that "many overindebted private individuals will only file for insolvency after the new law has come into force."
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