Shortly after Adolf Hitler's seizure of power, Hoffmann gave up his profession, entered full-time party work and held functions in the NSDAP's Bremen District Leadership, until he was appointed a Political Leader on Rudolf Hess's staff in July 1934 and went to work at the Brown House in Munich. In November 1936, Hoffmann joined the SS. He was appointed "Stillhaltekommissar" for Austria and later also in the Sudetenland and the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia, which mainly involved taking care of property law matters. At the same time, he was responsible for building up the Party in the aforesaid areas.