Working in Germany, especially in a field like Finance, often feels like stepping into a strange paradox. On one hand, you’re in one of the most advanced economies in the world—known for its precision, engineering, and efficiency. On the other hand, daily tasks can feel like they belong in the 1990s. If you’ve ever had to send invoices to customers who insist they be mailed physically—yes, by post—you’ll understand the frustration and disbelief. In an age where everything from dating to banking happens online, it’s hard to grasp why so many German businesses are stuck on paper.
In my role within the Finance department, my team is responsible for collecting overdue accounts receivable (ARs) from a wide range of clients: hospitals, clinics, pharmacies, distributors, and wholesalers. What should be a streamlined digital process often turns into a sluggish mess of paper trails. It starts with something as basic as sending an invoice. Many of our German customers still expect invoices to arrive by mail. Even when we email them, which should be a faster and more sustainable option, they print them out—just to physically verify or validate the information. After that, the printed invoices are usually filed in thick folders, placed in cabinets, and stored indefinitely. This isn’t just inefficient—it’s an environmental nightmare.
The problem goes beyond just invoices. For example, orders are still often sent via fax. Yes, you read that right—fax machines are alive and well in Germany. While the rest of the world has long since moved on from clunky hardware and replaced it with digital communication platforms, the humble fax machine still holds a place of honor in many German offices. It’s almost surreal when you think about it. Hospitals and clinics—places where cutting-edge medical technology saves lives every day—still rely on a piece of 20th-century equipment to communicate with suppliers.
Cash is another area where Germany resists digital change. Walk into any shop, and you’ll find people pulling out bills and coins rather than tapping their phones or cards. While many other European countries have nearly gone cashless, Germany remains loyal to physical currency. There are restaurants that don’t even accept card payments. You either have cash or you go hungry. This same preference for physical transactions spills into businesses too, where invoices, receipts, and even signatures are often expected to be “wet”—handwritten with a pen, not digitally signed.
Why is Germany, a country known for its innovation, so behind when it comes to digitalization? The answer isn’t as simple as blaming technology. It’s more about culture, habits, trust, and in many cases, generational resistance to change. In many of the organizations we deal with, particularly hospitals or clinics, the decision-makers often come from older generations. They are experienced and competent professionals, but many of them are simply more comfortable with paper. They grew up with it, built their careers using it, and trust it far more than anything on a screen. The thought of switching to something like electronic invoicing or EDI (Electronic Data Interchange) feels unnecessary and risky to them.
This reluctance isn’t always about lack of exposure either. Even when training is offered, or when portals are made available for easier document submission or retrieval, there’s pushback. You’ll often hear things like, “It’s easier to handle with paper,” or “We need a hard copy for our records.” It becomes clear that the issue isn’t technical capability—it’s behavioral inertia. Once people form habits around doing things a certain way, especially if they believe that way works, it’s extremely difficult to convince them to adopt new tools.
Another factor is legal and bureaucratic conservatism. Germany has strict regulations around data protection and document authenticity. In many cases, physical documents are still considered the most secure and official format. Businesses worry that digital records might not hold up in audits or legal disputes. So they stick with what they know will be accepted, even if it means being inefficient. The fear of non-compliance or legal uncertainty often outweighs the appeal of modernization.
It’s not all doom and gloom, though. Change is on the horizon. Government mandates are beginning to push businesses toward digital solutions. For example, electronic invoicing (EDI) will become mandatory in the near future for B2B transactions. Companies will be required to adopt portals and digital document exchanges instead of relying on email or postal mail. This will be a game-changer, but it also means there’s going to be a learning curve—and likely a fair bit of resistance at first. The good news is that once digital processes are in place and working well, even the skeptics start to see the benefits.
We already see glimmers of progress. Some of our clients have begun using invoice portals. These platforms allow for automatic uploads and processing of invoices, reducing the need for physical storage and speeding up payment cycles. But even here, things move slowly. It often takes months of follow-ups, testing, and reassurance before clients fully transition. Sometimes the issue isn’t just on their end—our systems also have to adapt. When integrating EDI, for instance, we need to make sure formats align, tax rules are applied properly, and the communication protocols are stable.
A big challenge is that these digital processes aren’t yet standardized across industries. A pharmacy might use one portal, while a hospital uses another. There’s a lack of harmony in how data is exchanged, which complicates things further. When systems don’t talk to each other easily, teams like mine in Finance end up doing more manual work, which is exactly what digitalization is supposed to avoid.
Then there’s the issue of mindset. In many companies, especially smaller or family-run businesses, the attitude is “if it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” Digital tools may offer efficiency, but unless there’s a clear and immediate benefit, many businesses don’t feel the urgency to change. This leads to a fragmented digital landscape where some players are fully online while others are still swimming in paper. That inconsistency adds friction to what should be seamless processes.
Cultural attitudes toward privacy also play a big role. Germans value data privacy deeply—a legacy of both World War II and the Cold War, where surveillance was a real and present danger. This collective memory makes people cautious about sharing data online. Even today, many Germans are reluctant to use cloud services, and prefer local data storage—even if it’s just physical paper in a locked cabinet.
Interestingly, digitalization isn’t just slow in Finance or Healthcare. Even schools lag behind. Many classrooms still rely on chalkboards and overhead projectors. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the sudden need for remote learning exposed just how unprepared the education system was. While other countries quickly transitioned to Zoom classes and cloud-based homework platforms, many German schools struggled with internet access, outdated hardware, and unclear policies around digital tools.
Public services aren’t much better. Trying to register a residence, get a driver’s license, or renew a passport often requires in-person appointments and multiple paper forms. In contrast, many other countries offer these services entirely online. In Germany, you still have to print out forms, sign them manually, and in some cases, even fax them.
So what’s the path forward? It’s going to take more than just legislation. There needs to be a cultural shift in how people perceive digital tools—not as threats, but as enablers. Education will play a big role, especially in helping older generations become more comfortable with technology. At the same time, businesses and government agencies need to simplify digital platforms. If portals are confusing or buggy, people will revert to paper. Digital tools should be as intuitive as possible to drive adoption.
Also, success stories need to be shared more widely. When one hospital successfully switches to electronic invoicing and sees faster payments and reduced errors, others are more likely to follow. Peer pressure works—especially in professional circles where no one wants to be seen as falling behind.
Lastly, support and patience will be key. Digital transformation isn’t just about installing software or switching to cloud storage. It’s about changing habits, challenging assumptions, and sometimes letting go of systems that have “worked just fine” for decades. This is not easy, especially in a society that values structure, reliability, and rules as much as Germany does.
There’s hope, though. Slowly but surely, the tide is turning. New generations entering the workforce are digital natives. They expect—and demand—digital processes. They don’t understand why invoices can’t be signed electronically or why orders need to be faxed. They’re used to apps, automation, and instant communication. As these younger professionals take on more decision-making roles, the pressure to modernize will increase.
For now, though, those of us working in Finance—and many other departments—continue to navigate a hybrid world. One foot in the digital age, the other stuck in a filing cabinet. We send invoices via email, only to be asked for a paper copy. We propose digital workflows, only to be told that a fax will suffice. It’s frustrating, but it’s also a reminder that change, no matter how inevitable, takes time.
Germany has everything it needs to lead in digitalization—resources, talent, and infrastructure. What it lacks is the momentum to break old habits. But once that changes, the progress will be hard to stop. Until then, we’ll keep emailing invoices—and maybe, just maybe, stop printing them.
