thumb|[[Gesellschaft zur wissenschaftlichen Untersuchung von Parawissenschaften|GWUP,
Translated: <blockquote>An association the object of which does not consist of commercial business operations acquires legal personality by entry in the register of associations maintained by the competent local court.</blockquote>And section 58 of BGB regulates (). It requires registration of an with the association registry () either kept at the district court of its seat or, if directed by state law, as a centralized register for the its seat is located in.
Differences to other jurisdictions
In other German-speaking countries such a distinction does not exist. But there may be legal requirements which oblige an association to register itself; for example, in Switzerland there is no association registry, but an association must be listed in the commercial register if its yearly turnover is high enough to legally require an audit (). In Austria, all associations are registered in a special register, and having an in the name is not allowed.
References
Further reading
de:Verein#Eingetragener Verein