Regarding the question of correspondence with the authorities by email or fax?

Especially in times of coronavirus, the need for digital communication has increased significantly. It should also not be overlooked that information via email, SMS, or WhatsApp is received in fractions of a second, thus accelerating the exchange of information. The fiction of receipt in Section 41 (2) Sentence 1 of the Administrative Procedure Act (VwVfG), according to which a postal item sent domestically by post is deemed to have been notified three days after it has been posted, seems somewhat antiquated. In this respect, the request of applicants to communicate with the authority by email or fax is understandable. Accordingly, communications to the authority by email are also valid, unless the law expressly requires a written form, i.e., a signature (Section 126 of the German Civil Code), or the sender is not identifiable. The German Civil Code (BGB) is based on the principle of freedom of form, meaning that declarations and contracts, even those concluded verbally or by telephone, are valid. If written form is not required and the sender is clearly identifiable from the email, for example because they have included their contact details at the bottom as if on a letterhead, notification to an authority by email is also possible in these cases. Written form (Section 126 of the German Civil Code) is generally required by law for applications or legal remedies, but not for supplementary declarations. Section 3 of the Genetic Engineering Procedure Ordinance (GenTVfV) stipulates that the notification, application, or application for approval under the Genetic Engineering Act (GenTG) must be submitted in writing by the operator in a number of copies to be determined by the approval authority. The written form requirement can also be met by electronic means, i.e., by a qualified electronic signature in accordance with the Signature Act. However, this option is unlikely to be available in most genetic engineering facilities. According to the case law of the Federal Constitutional Court (BVerfG) and the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), it is now recognized that legal remedies can generally be filed and substantiated by fax. If the origin of the fax message is clearly evident, a handwritten signature is not required. This should therefore also apply to other declarations that generally require a written form, such as applications under the GenTG. Furthermore, Section 3 of the GenTVfV only applies to notification, registration, and approval, but not to notifications under Section 21 GenTG. The interpretative guidelines of the Federal/State Working Group on Genetic Engineering (LAG-Gentechnik) also do not require written form for normal notifications or supplementary declarations within the scope of a corresponding application, meaning that a declaration sent by email is valid. Receipt can generally also be documented on both sides by saving the sent email after it has been sent and the received email.