Taxes and social insurance contributions for companies

What can you do if the advance income tax payments set by the tax office are too high or too low?

By submitting monthly or quarterly advance VAT returns, you as an entrepreneur make advance payments on your annual VAT.

Your main customs office can appoint a tax assistant at your request under certain conditions. This person can establish facts under customs or excise law that relate to your company's goods.

If you regularly receive goods under the transit procedure, you can simplify the customs procedure with the "Authorized consignee" status.

If you start a business activity, you will be given a business identification number (W-IdNr.).

Under certain conditions, you can apply for a certificate for universal postal service providers. With this certificate, you can apply for exemption from VAT for universal postal services at your local tax office.

If you import goods into the customs territory of the European Union and/or handle them there, you can apply for a comprehensive guarantee under certain conditions. The amount may be reduced or may not apply.

If you are of the opinion that your taxation violates a double taxation agreement, you can apply for a mutual agreement procedure under certain conditions.

If you want to use alcohol tax-free, you need a permit.

Alcopops can be used tax-free for certain commercial purposes. You need a permit for this.

If you produce, handle, process, store, receive or dispatch alcohol products that have not yet been taxed, you require a permit.

If you handle taxed or untaxed beer products for commercial purposes, you require a permit to do so. This includes manufacturing, processing, storing, shipping or receiving.

If you handle energy products that still have to be taxed, you need a permit. Handling means, among other things, the production, storage, use, distribution or receipt of energy products.

If you manufacture, process, receive or dispatch tobacco products or substitutes for tobacco products that have not yet been taxed, you require a permit.

If you wish to operate a customs warehouse, you must submit an application.

Entrepreneurs who operate a traveling trade must apply for a VAT register from the competent authority before starting their activity.

If you wish to participate in the movement of goods and services within the European Union, you must apply for a VAT identification number.

Foreign investment funds that generate taxable income in Germany can, under certain conditions, apply for a status certificate to reduce their tax burden.

Apply for a tax number to register and pay insurance or fire protection tax.

You can apply for a tax reduction for commercial watercraft moored in the port and using shore power while moored. You can obtain the permit from your local main customs office.

If you want to use denaturants other than the generally approved denaturants for the denaturing of alcohol products, you need an authorization.

If you want to make customs declarations by writing them down in the accounts, you must apply for authorization beforehand.

As an airline or shipping company, you can apply for a simplification of the transit procedure. With this simplification, it is possible to use an electronic transport document as a transit declaration in the Union transit procedure.

You can receive goods that are transported internationally by road using the TIR procedure as an "authorized consignee".

Do you want to declare goods for a customs procedure at a centrally responsible customs office, even though the goods are located elsewhere at the time? This is possible with an authorization for central customs clearance.

If you wish to sell tax-incentivized retirement provision or basic pension contracts, you must first apply for certification and receive approval from the certification body - the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

Do you want to use a deferment account to defer payments to customs? Among other things, you will need a deferment BIN with which you can identify yourself electronically.

When importing goods to Germany, the applicable customs duties and import sales taxes are always due, which generally have to be paid directly upon import. Under certain conditions, you as an importer or freight forwarder can apply for a deferment of payment.

As an agricultural or forestry business, you can apply for tax relief on your consumption of gas oil (agricultural diesel) under certain conditions.

If you make use of special official acts by the customs administration, you may have to pay fees and expenses.

If you owe remuneration for the transfer of rights or certain investment income, you can submit an application for authorization to apply the control reporting procedure in order to be able to refrain from withholding tax in whole or in part under certain conditions.

If you wish to act as a tax representative for one or more airlines, you must apply for a permit from the relevant main customs office.

Mail order companies from another EU country can deliver taxed alcohol products to Germany. If you wish to act as a tax representative for this person or company, you will need a permit.

If you as a company want to prove the origin of an export product yourself, you must submit a one-off application. There is also a simplified procedure for storing primary materials with or without origin together.

If you declare non-Union goods for the end-use procedure, you can claim reduced customs duties.

If you, as a public transport company, transport severely disabled people and their accompanying persons, guide, assistance or assistance dogs or objects carried free of charge on local public transport, you can apply for reimbursement of fare losses.

If your company is based in another EU member state, you can apply for a refund of input tax paid in Germany under certain conditions.

If you would like a refund of input tax (VAT) paid in another EU country, you can apply for a refund under certain conditions.

If sparkling wine or intermediate products have demonstrably been taxed, you can receive a refund, remission or reimbursement of these excise duties under certain conditions.

If you have withdrawn taxed electricity for business purposes, you can claim relief under certain conditions. You must apply for this at your local main customs office.

Under certain circumstances, the main customs office can waive or refund your tobacco tax or tax stamp debt, for example if you destroy tobacco products or substitutes for tobacco products or do not use the tax stamps.

If you regularly ship dutiable goods within the European Union, you can simplify the customs procedure with the "Authorized consignor" status.

If you can prove that you have paid tax on alcopops, you can receive a refund, remission or reimbursement of the alcopop tax under certain conditions.

If you are not based in an EU member state and have provided certain services to private individuals in the EU, you can use the One-Stop-Shop (OSS), non-EU scheme under certain conditions.

If you provide certain services to private individuals in other member states of the European Union (EU), you can declare and pay tax on the resulting turnover centrally using the Mini-One-Stop-Shop (M1SS) taxation procedure.

If you have supplied certain services or goods to private individuals in other member states of the European Union, you can, under certain conditions, declare and pay tax on the resulting turnover using the One-Stop-Shop (OSS) procedure, EU regulation.

If you import goods with a material value of up to EUR 150 into the EU as an entrepreneur, you can declare and pay tax on the resulting turnover centrally using the Import-One-Stop-Shop (IOSS) procedure.

An authorization to use special seals is required for the shipment of certain goods.

Under certain conditions, the customs administration can waive or refund all or part of your claims arising from the tax debt.

If you wish to relocate your electronic bookkeeping, other required electronic records or both to a country outside the EU, you must apply to do so. This also applies if you want to relocate parts of your electronic bookkeeping or records.

In some cases, you must provide proof of the Union status of goods. By obtaining the status of an "approved exhibitor", you can simplify the verification procedure vis-à-vis the customs authorities.

If you would like to be exempt from German capital gains tax, you can obtain an exemption certificate under certain conditions.

Are you affected by a cross-border situation and want to avoid potential double taxation? Then, under certain conditions, you can apply for a apply for an advance ruling procedure.

Under certain conditions, foreign investment funds can have withheld capital gains tax refunded by the Federal Central Tax Office.

If you are a foreign recipient (creditor) of domestic investment income, you may be fully or partially exempt from capital gains tax under certain circumstances.

If you import goods into the European Union, you can have customs duties refunded or waived under certain conditions. You can submit an application to the customs authorities for this even without your own access to the ATLAS system.

If you can prove that you have paid tax on alcohol products, you can receive a refund, remission or reimbursement of alcohol tax under certain conditions.

If beer has been demonstrably taxed, you can receive a refund, remission or reimbursement of beer tax under certain conditions.

If you can prove that you have paid tax on coffee or goods containing coffee, you can receive a refund, remission or reimbursement of the coffee tax under certain conditions.

As a foreign corporation or association of persons without a registered office or management in Germany, you can have it checked whether your payments are tax-free for your German shareholders.

Enforcement against you can be temporarily suspended or restricted if there are equitable grounds. Inequity exists if enforcement would cause you an unreasonable disadvantage that can be avoided by waiting a short time.

If you are involved in activities relevant to customs law, such as the import or export of goods, you must apply for an EORI number.

Under certain conditions, tax-privileged foreign investors in investment funds can apply for an exemption certificate for full or partial tax exemption of the investment fund.

Embassies, consulates and their members in Germany can be exempt from VAT in other member states of the European Union under certain conditions.

If you believe that a transaction between your company and an associated company in another EU Member State is subject to double taxation, you can submit a request under the EU Arbitration Convention.

If you handle alcopops that are not taxed, you will need a permit in many cases. This is the case when producing, handling, processing, storing, receiving or sending alcopops.

If you produce, handle, process, store, receive or dispatch sparkling wine or intermediate products that have not yet been taxed, you require a permit.

If you handle untaxed coffee or wish to use it to manufacture goods containing coffee from another EU country on more than an occasional basis, you generally require a permit.

You can apply for a VAT refund for your company based outside the EU under certain conditions.

If you import goods from third countries into Germany, you can use lump sums in certain cases to determine the customs value of the goods. You need a permit from customs for this.

Your company's tax obligations can be fulfilled by tax representatives. You submit an application for the appointment of tax representatives to the main customs office responsible for you.

As an international organization, you can be exempt from VAT in other member states of the European Union under certain conditions.

If you want to exchange messages in EMCS as an IT service provider for economic operators, you must register. To enter or change your master data in EMCS for the first time, you must submit an application to the Directorate General of Customs.

If you are an economic operator and clear fresh bananas for free circulation, you can only issue the necessary weighing certificates yourself with an authorization from customs.

In order to better assess the tax consequences, you have the option of requesting binding information from the relevant tax office.

If you handle energy products such as petrol or heating oil, you must pay energy tax. To do this, you submit a tax return to the relevant main customs office in which you calculate the tax yourself. This is known as a tax declaration.

If you receive income from capital assets from a bank, the bank must generally withhold capital gains tax (so-called withholding tax). You can avoid this by submitting an exemption order or a non-assessment certificate.

If you want to offer software for the ATLAS, AES or EMCS IT procedures, you must have it certified.

If you are an intermediary or user of a cross-border tax arrangement, you must report this to the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) promptly under certain conditions.

Have you paid fees to self-employed persons for journalistic or artistic services? Then the Künstlersozialkasse (KSK) will check the correct declaration of these fees in your company.

If you have an equalization association with the Künstlersozialkasse (KSK), the KSK updates the data of its members annually, carries out the settlements, collects the artists' social security contribution and carries out a regular review of the equalization association.

If you as an individual or your company have business relationships or shareholdings relating to a non-cooperative tax jurisdiction, you must provide certain information to the tax office and, if applicable, the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

Corporations must pay corporate income tax on their taxable income, and nonprofit organizations receive their tax exemption.

If you are moving to the European Union from a third country, you can generally import household goods and other household effects duty-free. However, you must declare this to customs.

If you cease or relocate a business or freelance activity, you must inform the tax office.

As the owner of property subject to property tax, you will receive a property tax assessment notice from the tax office, on the basis of which the municipality entitled to levy property tax will set the property tax.

Do you want to have your tax number or tax identification number, on which the ELSTER certificate used for registration in the Internet Export Declaration Plus (IAA Plus) is based, re-entered or changed in your EORI master data? Then you need to submit an application.

If you wish to register or change your tax number or tax identification number for use with the Internet EMCS application, you must submit an application to the Directorate General of Customs.

If you have to pay electricity tax, you submit a tax return to the relevant main customs office in which you calculate the tax yourself. This is known as a tax declaration.

If you set up a company in Germany, you must comply with certain regulations and requirements. Here you will find information on your rights and obligations, particularly on the subject of excise duties.

If you show cinema films as a television broadcaster or program marketer, you must pay a film tax under certain conditions.

If you exploit cinema films as a video program provider or video-on-demand provider, you must report your monthly net turnover and, under certain circumstances, your cinema film share. Above a certain turnover, you must pay a film tax.

If you show films in your cinema, you must report your turnover and attendance figures and pay a film tax if your turnover exceeds a certain level.

If you are not sure how much VAT you have to pay for deliveries or an intra-Community acquisition of goods, you can request non-binding information on this.

If you transport excise goods under duty suspension and have to use EMCS, you can commission an IT service provider to exchange messages for you via this program. You will need approval from the Directorate General of Customs for this.

If you wish to trade in goods and services within the EU, you must apply for a VAT identification number.

Relief for long-distance commuters from the 21st kilometer for the journey from the home to the first place of work or business as well as for weekly family trips home in the case of double household management instead of the increased distance allowances for the years 2021 to 2026.

As a member of a foreign mission or professional consular post, have you purchased a new vehicle in another EU country and are importing it into Germany? You will have to pay German VAT for this within the framework of individual vehicle taxation.

If you want to operate a so-called settlement distillery, you need a permit to do so.

If you are an entrepreneur based outside the European Union (EU) and provide certain services to private individuals in the EU, you can declare and pay tax on the resulting turnover centrally in the VAT on e-Services (ECOM) taxation procedure.

If you produce or import alcohol or goods containing alcohol, you must pay alcohol tax under certain conditions.

If you produce or import alcopops, you must pay alcopop tax and additional alcohol tax under certain conditions.

If you produce or import beer or mixed beer drinks, you must pay beer tax.

If you produce or import sparkling wine or intermediate products, you must pay sparkling wine tax or intermediate product tax.

If you deal with tobacco products or substitutes for tobacco products, you must pay tobacco tax in certain cases.

Does your company bottle wine products and sell them to resellers or buy products for bottling? Then you must pay an annual levy to the German Wine Fund.

If you produce alcohol in so-called settlement distilleries, you must pay alcohol tax.

If you have commercial dealings with coffee or goods containing coffee, you must pay coffee tax under certain conditions.

If the customs authorities determine that import or export duties were not claimed in the legally stipulated amount, you may receive an additional claim.

If you run a commercial business in Germany, you are liable for trade tax. You can find out more here.

If you as a company transport passengers across borders at German seaports or across the border to Switzerland with buses and coaches that are not registered in Germany, you must pay VAT.

Property tax is linked to the ownership of land. It must be paid regularly by the property owner.

Property tax is a municipal tax that is levied on property located in the municipal area.

To simplify the clearance of goods when importing into the European single market, you can apply for binding tariff information (BTI) in advance.

The IT procedures ATLAS and AES are used for electronic customs clearance. You must participate in EMCS in order to be able to electronically declare and process your excise goods consignments under duty suspension.

If you wish to submit applications and returns electronically via the online portal of the Federal Central Tax Office, you must register in advance to use it.

If you as an insurer receive fees for fire insurance, residential building or household contents insurance, you must calculate the fire protection tax yourself and register it with the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

If you receive insurance premiums, you must calculate the insurance tax yourself and register it with the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt).

Use of tronc revenues from Saarland casinos.

If you set up a company, take a stake in a company or become self-employed, you must inform the tax office.

If you, as an obligated person, wish to report indications of money laundering or terrorist financing online, you must register on the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) web portal.

Information on entertainment tax.

If you supply new vehicles from Germany within the European Union to recipients without a VAT identification number (VAT ID no.), you must report this to the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) .

You can report the conclusion of foreign endowment or pension insurance contracts electronically.

Foreign investment funds whose domestic income was wrongly not taxed or taxed too low must report this and pay the tax arrears.

As a company, you must submit your employees' wage statements digitally.

If you have received benefits or relief for electricity or energy tax, you must report these to the customs administration in certain cases.

If you want to transport untaxed alcohol products, you need a special permit and registration to participate in the computerized transport and control system.

If you want to transport untaxed alcopops, you need a special permit and registration to participate in the computerized Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS).

If you want to transport untaxed beer, you need a special permit and registration to participate in the EMCS computerized transport and control system.

If you want to transport energy products under duty suspension, you need a permit and must register for the IT-based Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS).

If you want to transport untaxed sparkling wine, intermediate products or wine, you generally need a special permit and registration to participate in the EMCS computerized transport and control system.

If you want to transport untaxed tobacco products, you need a permit and must register for the computerized Excise Movement and Control System (EMCS).

If you want planning certainty for your future business in Germany, you can submit an application for binding information to clarify the tax assessment.

If your company is multinational, you must submit a country-by-country report under certain conditions.

If you export goods or other services from an EU member state to other EU member states, you must submit a recapitulative statement.

If you are a shipping company based in the EU, you can apply for a liner service for customs purposes. In liner shipping, you transport EU goods from one EU port to another EU port without the goods having to undergo customs clearance again there.

As the holder of an authorization for the submission of simplified customs declarations for the export of goods, you can also release the goods for the export procedure outside the opening hours of the customs office of export.

Under the inward processing procedure, you can have non-Union goods processed in the customs territory of the European Union. You do not initially have to pay any duties on import.

Under the outward processing procedure, you can have goods processed in third countries. You then pay reduced or no import duties on re-importation.

For non-Union goods that you import into the customs territory of the Union only temporarily and for a specific purpose, you have to pay less import duties or none at all.

Do you have a tax-related concern that is not covered by the other customs services listed on the federal portal? Then you can still submit an inquiry or an application to the customs administration.

Financial institutions must report financial account information to the BZSt if there is a reportable connection to a foreign country.

Foreign special investment funds must submit a declaration of their turnover and distributions so that their tax bases can be determined.

If there is a dispute between the authorities of several EU Member States regarding the interpretation and application of a treaty or convention to eliminate double taxation, you can submit a complaint under certain conditions.

Financial institutions must report financial account information if there is a reportable connection to tax liability in the United States of America.

If certain personal or legal requirements are met, it may be fair to waive tax claims in individual cases. The waiver may cover the entire debt or only part of it. The applicant is obliged to provide evidence of the reasons.

If, as an eligible organization, you receive, import or make an intra-Community acquisition of goods and use them for humanitarian, charitable or educational purposes in a third country, you can receive a tax refund.

You can submit your income tax return and many other returns electronically to the tax authorities via ELSTER.

If you as an individual or company pay for services from a service provider based in a non-cooperative tax jurisdiction, under certain circumstances you must withhold, declare and pay a portion of your payments as income or corporation tax.

You can use the customs Internet status information service to call up online information on consignments that you have posted as part of the EU-wide Union transit procedure.

If you are obliged to deduct capital gains tax in Germany, you must submit certain data.

If you want to transport coffee tax-free, you must inform the customs administration or be able to provide appropriate proof.

If you set up a company in Germany, you must comply with certain regulations and requirements. Here you will find information on your rights and obligations, particularly with regard to VAT.

Travelers from a non-EU member state can make VAT-free purchases in Germany under certain conditions.