Employment Expenses

• Various properly documented and necessarily incurred income related expenses may be deducted by an individual unless they are - in cases of employment relationship - reimbursed by the employer.
• For employees’ common tax deductions include:

• • costs of travelling to and from work
  • business literature
  • professional dues, and
  • work equipment.

• There is a blanket employee allowance for business deductions of EUR 1,000 per year. 
• To the extent actual employment connected expenses exceed the lump sum of EUR 1,000, they are deductible if they can be substantiated.

Personal Deductions

Alimony Payments

• Individual taxpayers may take deductions up to EUR 13,805 for the alimony paid to a divorced partner.

Charitable contributions

• Contributions to German charities and certain international charities are deductible up to 20% of adjusted gross income. 
• Church tax is also fully deductible.

Childcare expenses

• Fulfilling certain requirements, the actual expenses for child care can be deducted up to a maximum of EUR 4,000 per year/child for children younger than 14 years or for handicapped children.

Education expenses

• 30% of tuition fees (except for housing, care, and food) of a recognized private school located in the EU/EEA countries or of German schools is applicable, if special tax relief for children is granted and if graduation is approved by the government. 
• The special expenses which can be claimed are limited to EUR 5,000 per annum per child.

Social security contributions

• Social security contributions and insurance premiums can be deducted up to specified limits, as follows.

Health insurance and long-term care contributions

• Contributions to a health insurance are completely tax deductible as far as these contributions are paid for primary basic healthcare.
• Contributions to a long-term care insurance are also tax deductible.

Unemployment insurance contributions

• Additionally, contributions paid to certain other insurance policies (e.g. unemployment insurance) can be deducted up to a maximum of EUR 2,800 per year (EUR 1,900 for employees and pensioners). 
• This only applies if these amounts have not already been utilized for health and long-term care insurance contributions.

Pension scheme contributions

• Contributions to old-age pension schemes are, in general, tax deductible up to an overall limit of EUR 25,046 (EUR 50,092 for married taxpayers filing jointly). 
• However, for a transitional period (2005 to 2025) only a reduced amount can be deducted. 
• In 2020, the tax deduction amounts to 90% of the actual contributions, at a maximum of 90% of EUR 25,046 (EUR 50,092), and increases by 2% in each of the subsequent years up to the year 2025. 

• For employees contributing to the state pension scheme, the deductible amount will be reduced by contributions paid by the employer to the state pension scheme, as those contributions are already tax exempt under the income tax act.

Mortgage deduction

• Mortgage interest is only deductible against income from the property (i.e. not deductible for privately used property).

Standard deductions

• A lump sum special expense deduction totalling EUR 36 for a single person or EUR 72 for married couples is provided without need for proof. 
• Furthermore, there are also a number of other specific allowances and reliefs, for example, for children, the elderly and the disabled.

Personal allowances

• Deductions are allowed for extraordinary burdens such as:

• • Subsistence for parents and children with low income (documentary evidence of low income is required) if entitled by law. 
  • The maximum deduction is EUR 9,408 and may be reduced by the standard of living of the country and the personal income situation of the beneficiaries.
  • Deductions for children who are being educated in Germany or abroad (within limitations), who are older than 18, and living outside the parents' household amounting to EUR 924 per year. 
  • If the child lives abroad, the amount may be reduced by the standard of living of the appropriate country.

• Further deductions may be granted, for example, for handicapped family members and expenses for household help.

Business deductions

• Fixed assets and intangibles are subject to depreciation or amortization.
• For businesses common tax deductions are:

• • interest expenses
  • personnel expenses
  • operating materials, and
  • work equipment

The allowances shown below are deductible in computing taxable income.