OTTO marketplace requirements: who gets accepted as a seller?

Who can sell on the OTTO marketplace?

OTTO Market is for businesses, not private sellers. According to the "Formalien" page on otto.market (as of October 2026), your company needs:

• a registered office in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, France or Denmark,
• an approved legal form from one of these countries,
• its own VAT ID from one of these countries.

Companies from the five countries outside Germany must also take part in the OSS scheme, using the VAT ID of their home country. The country list can change – check the current terms with OTTO before you apply.

Which legal forms are accepted?

For Germany, OTTO lists among others GmbH, UG (haftungsbeschränkt), GmbH & Co. KG, AG, KG, OHG, e.K., GbR and the sole proprietorship without a commercial register entry. There are fixed lists for the other countries too, such as B.V. for the Netherlands or SARL and SAS for France.

All other legal forms are excluded, and explicitly small businesses under § 19 UStG. According to OTTO, tax groups (Organschaften) sharing one VAT ID can't be connected either – the parent company's VAT ID can't be used.

What does OTTO expect once you're selling?

The seller FAQ lists further conditions: you act as the seller towards end customers, offer German-language customer service and ship from a warehouse in Germany or the EU. Returns must be accepted in Germany or one of the EU countries OTTO names.

On top of that there are assortment rules for all sellers, for example bans on real fur, angora and mohair wool, and PVC in packaging and textiles. By accepting the terms of use, you also accept the "Business Partner Declaration on Sustainability".

Which details and documents do you need?

• People: details of the applicant, the legal representatives and beneficial owners holding more than 25% of the shares. According to OTTO, holders of Prokura (authorised signatories) don't count as legal representatives.
• Company: full company name including legal form, and company address. OTTO checks these against the German Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).
• Bank account: a business account in the SEPA area.
• Mandatory disclosures: including take-back of electrical equipment under the ElektroG, packaging system participation and registration under the Packaging Act, and WEEE and FSC numbers if you have them.
• Documents: for example proof of account, a power of attorney for the application or the articles of association.

How does admission work?

1. Apply via the registration form. OTTO says every application is reviewed individually.
2. Access to OTTO Partner Connect by email if your application succeeds, with two-factor authentication.
3. Contracts with Otto GmbH & Co. KGaA and a payment framework contract with OTTO Payments GmbH.
4. Identity check by OTTO Payments: company and personal identification, credit check, risk classification. According to OTTO, up to 15 working days; legal representatives verify their identity by video with an ID document.
5. Add company and logistics data and create at least one shipping profile.
6. Add products, optionally place a test order, then click "Jetzt mit dem Verkauf starten" (start selling).

The individual steps in the portal are covered in How to sell on OTTO.

Where do applications often fail?

OTTO doesn't publish detailed rejection reasons. But the stated requirements point to typical stumbling blocks:

• small-business VAT status or a legal form that isn't on the list,
• registered office or VAT ID from a country that isn't listed,
• a tax group sharing one VAT ID,
• company name or address not matching the BZSt records,
• no registration under the Packaging Act,
• an application filed by someone without authority to represent the company.

What does it cost, and what comes next?

Applying is just the start; according to OTTO, the monthly base fee only begins once you're successfully connected to OTTO Payments. On top of that comes a commission per sale – details in OTTO marketplace fees.

Once admitted, your products can be ordered, but they aren't automatically visible. In the first weeks, check which position your products hold for your key search terms, for example with MarktRank – see Visibility of new products on otto.de.

Frequently asked questions