Writing a File Memo (Aktenvermerk): Structure, Content and Template

A file memo (Aktenvermerk) is quick to write and is sometimes read only years later, for example when a client asks a question or a dispute arises over advice. It therefore has to make sense without the author's memory. This article shows the structure and wording and provides a Word template. How a file memo differs from minutes and a client letter is covered in the guide Documenting client meetings.

What is a file memo?

A file memo is an internal note for the client file (Handakte) that records an event so that someone who wasn't there can understand it. § 66 StBerG, part of the German Tax Advisory Act, prescribes no particular form. It requires client files to give an "orderly and accurate picture" of how the engagement was handled. In its non-binding notes on computer-assisted tax audits, the German Federal Chamber of Tax Advisors (BStBK) lists file memos on calls and meetings as an example of what belongs in the client file.

When should I write a file memo?

Write a file memo as soon as something was said or decided that may matter later. Typical cases are calls with information relevant for tax purposes, oral warnings about risks or deadlines, and client decisions against your recommendation. After an annual accounts meeting, for example, the memo records the client's instructions on accounting options.

It matters most in cases of doubt. The BStBK's notes on liability under tax criminal law consider a short file note useful when a client raises a doubtful arrangement and the firm explains the limits. According to these notes, a memo stating that the return was prepared solely on the taxpayer's information can reduce the risk of liability, but cannot rule it out.

How is a file memo structured?

Nine fields are enough for almost every memo, and you can copy them straight into your own template:

The same fields are in the Word template for the file memo (.docx). It is neutral and fits on one page.

How do I word a file memo?

Keep it brief and factual, so that a third party can follow the event without asking. Separate statements from assessments. "Client stated that the invoice was paid in December" reports the conversation. Mark any assessment of your own as such. Give specific dates, amounts and documents rather than phrases like "soon" or "the documents".

Avoid memos written mainly to exonerate. The BStBK warns that such so-called whitewash notes (Persilscheine) can also be read the opposite way by the courts. So record what was said and done, and leave blanket confirmations out of the memo.

How long is a file memo kept, and does the client get it?

German tax advisors keep it for ten years and generally do not have to hand over a purely internal memo. The period starts at the end of the calendar year in which the engagement ended (§ 66(1) StBerG). For German lawyers it is six years under § 50 BRAO.

§ 66(2) StBerG excludes working papers prepared for internal purposes from handover. The limits of this exception, for example for memos on conversations with third parties, are described in the guide Documenting client meetings. According to the BStBK, a memo on cautioning a client about whom there is a well-founded suspicion should go only into the client file and should not be handed to the client.

May AI draft a file memo?

Yes, if the firm meets the professional-law requirements. The BStBK FAQ on AI expressly names file memos as an example of dictation AI and considers its use permissible in principle. If a conversation is recorded for this purpose, everyone involved must consent beforehand (§ 201 StGB), and consent given afterwards is not sufficient. Record the consent in the client file. The other requirements are in the article May an AI tool transcribe client meetings?, and the chamber's overall position is in The BStBK FAQ in 12 points.

The professional checks the draft, because under the FAQ they remain responsible for the result. One example of such a tool is TaxMeet (Next Intelligence GmbH, Berlin). No meeting bot joins the call, capture happens per participant on the device, and the conversation yields minutes, a file memo, a client letter and an email draft. Nothing is executed without human approval. More is on the product page.