Start Your Business for Free with AVGS Coaching in Düsseldorf

That depends on your benefit. If you receive ALG I, the Employment Agency in Düsseldorf is responsible (Grafenberger Allee 300, 40237 Düsseldorf; phone 0800 4555500 (toll-free) / 0211 692-0 (landline)). If you receive basic income support (ALG II), your local Jobcenter Düsseldorf is responsible. In both cases your caseworker decides on the AVGS. In-person visits are only possible by appointment; we prepare you flexibly online for the conversation.

You can find an official list of AZAV-certified providers in the KURSNET of the Federal Employment Agency (Bundesagentur für Arbeit). We, UW Unternehmensweg GmbH, are an AZAV-certified provider (provider certificate Z-000392-2, area 1) based in Leverkusen that offers AVGS programs nationwide. Our programs are delivered entirely online; on request, an in-person meeting at our office in Düsseldorf is possible. We offer two programs: “Businessweg” (Z-000482-2) for start-up coaching and “JobWeg” (Z-001366-3) for applicant & job coaching.

The approval time depends on your caseworker and the current workload of the Employment Agency in Düsseldorf. It typically takes 2–4 weeks from application to approval. For well-prepared applications with a clear rationale and a viable concept, the approval rate is considerably higher. We prepare you for the conversation with your caseworker, online and at flexible times that suit you. You can reach the Düsseldorf Employment Agency at 0800 4555500 and the Jobcenter’s service center at 0211 91747-0.

For 2025, IT.NRW counted 7,366 business registrations in Düsseldorf, including 6,495 new establishments; in North Rhine-Westphalia, only Cologne and Essen had more. The economic development agency speaks of around 500 start-ups in the city and advises founders through its Startup Unit. Students and researchers can find help at CEDUS at Heinrich Heine University and at the Gründungszeit program of Hochschule Düsseldorf. This fall, the economic development agency will present the winners of the NEXT AWARD Düsseldorf on November 12, 2026.

That depends on your postal code. Nord location, Grafenberger Allee 300: 40235, 40237, 40239, 40468, 40470, 40472, 40474, 40476, 40477, 40479, 40489, 40625, 40627, and 40629. Mitte location, Luisenstraße 105: 40210, 40211, 40212, 40213, 40215, 40217, 40219, 40221, 40223, 40225, 40227, 40233, 40545, 40547, and 40549. Süd location, Reisholzer Werftstraße 42: 40229, 40231, 40589, 40591, 40593, 40595, 40597, and 40599. If you are under 25, the Jugend-Job-Center at the Nord location takes care of placement. If you want to become self-employed, the team for self-employed people at the Mitte location is responsible for the whole city.

Yes, with a dedicated team for self-employed people at the Mitte location, Luisenstraße 105. First, you talk to your contact person in the Beratung-Arbeit-Förderung team about your idea and your business plan. If they consider self-employment the right route, the team for self-employed people then advises you. During self-employment, the Jobcenter initially approves your basic income support provisionally for six months; for this, you estimate your income using the Anlage EKS (the form for estimating self-employment income). Questions about payments are answered by the team for financial assistance at 0211 91747-901. Whether you receive the entry allowance or an AVGS for start-up coaching is decided by the Jobcenter at its discretion; there is no legal entitlement.

€80 plus VAT; you receive the invoice once it has been prepared. The IHK writes the expert opinion if you are starting a business as your main occupation in Düsseldorf or the district of Mettmann and do not practice a skilled craft. Before arranging an appointment, you send the agency’s form, your CV with supporting documents, and the business plan with your private financial needs. In addition, you need a revenue and profitability forecast for three years, a liquidity plan for at least 24 months, and the capital requirements and financing. Everything must be complete no later than three working days before the appointment. The IHK does not write expert opinions for skilled crafts; for these, ask the business advice service of the Handwerkskammer Düsseldorf, phone 0211 8795-555. In principle, you may choose the qualified body freely; ask the agency beforehand whether it recognizes the body.

Online via the Wirtschafts-Service-Portal.NRW (the state’s online business service portal), for which you need a BundID account. You can also send the registration by post, fax, or email to the business registration office of the Ordnungsamt, Worringer Straße 111, phone 0211 89-23268. You can come in person on Mondays and Wednesdays to Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. or by appointment. The fee is €26 for sole proprietorships and GbR, €33 for GmbH and UG, and €13 for each additional managing person; payment is cashless only. Describe your activity precisely; the city does not accept descriptions such as “trade in goods of all kinds” (Handel mit Waren aller Art). Your tax office expects the questionnaire for tax registration, which you complete via ELSTER, no later than one month after you start.

Not the Employment Agency Düsseldorf; its area covers only the city of Düsseldorf. Neuss belongs to the Employment Agency Mönchengladbach, which also covers the Rhein-Kreis Neuss; read more on our page AVGS coaching in Mönchengladbach. The IHK is a different matter: the IHK Düsseldorf is also responsible for the district of Mettmann, including Ratingen, and writes the expert opinion for the start-up grant there as well.

Primarily ALG I recipients whose caseworker sees a need for counseling get an AVGS. People receiving basic income support (ALG II) can also receive an AVGS in certain cases. Issuing the AVGS is at the caseworker’s discretion; there is no legal entitlement to start-up coaching. Important: you must apply for the AVGS BEFORE the counseling begins, otherwise later funding is not possible.

With an AVGS voucher: 100% funded after written approval, so you pay nothing at all. The costs are billed entirely through your activation voucher. If you do not receive an AVGS, there are alternative routes: BAFA-funded consulting with a reduced personal contribution, or self-pay consulting. In the free initial consultation we clarify which route fits your situation.

AVGS coaching comprises up to 120 teaching units (UE), spread over 2–6 months. The exact number is stated in your AVGS voucher. We align the schedule flexibly with your availability, for example 2–3 sessions per week of 90 minutes, online via Zoom or Teams. Content: business plan, financial plan, marketing, and preparing the start-up grant application.

The AVGS is a COUNSELING voucher for coaching (for example start-up coaching). The start-up grant is direct FINANCIAL support for your living costs during the start-up phase (6 months of ALG I plus €300 per month). The two can be combined: AVGS coaching can be exactly the way to prepare your start-up grant application professionally.