While many administrative obligations also apply to legal entities, they cannot be punished because they cannot be culpable in the event of non-fulfillment. There is no corporate responsibility in administrative offense law as in judicial criminal law (see VbVG), but only liability of natural persons. Therefore, the VStG provides that generally the person authorized to represent externally can be held responsible for offenses unless otherwise specified in the subject-specific laws.
The person authorized to represent externally can also appoint so-called “responsible agents,” who are then responsible under administrative offense law. The prerequisite for the culpability of the person authorized to represent externally and the agent is culpability.
