English speaking income tax advice

Welcome to my small office for tax advice in Meerbusch and Düsseldorf. I offer comprehensive help mainly to individuals in all questions regarding German income tax.

Germany has one of the most complex income tax systems in the world. There is a saying that two thirds of the world wide literature on income tax are German. Our tax law is not only complex, but new laws, as well as amendments on income tax, are continually being made.

If you are a non-resident with German income, the first step is to assess whether there is an obligation for you to file an income tax return in Germany at all. Residents can be subject to either limited or unlimited taxability in Germany, in some cases you can choose. Even if you’re not obliged to file a tax return, it might be beneficial to do so pre-emptively in order to take advantage of possible income tax refunds. This can be advantageous e.g. if your personal circumstances have changed during the last year or if your work related expenses exceed the standard deduction amount of 1200 Euro/year.

Contact me and I will let you know at no costs, whether an annual income tax declaration makes sense for you or not.

Income Tax Services:

Preparation of the German income tax return considering all types of income in consideration of double tax treaty
Advice for expatriates working abroad (outbound) on German income tax
Advice for expatriates working in Germany (inbound) on German income tax
Advice on German income tax regarding rental, pension or any other income
Cash based accounting for certain small companies or freelancers as a basis for your income tax declaration
Preparation of corporate income tax return, trade tax return and VAT return (also MOSS)
Preparation and electronic filing of preliminary monthly VAT returns and annual VAT declaration

What clients say

Ms. von Herrmann was of great help when it came to getting back my tax return after having moved to Germany. Her instructions were clear and her organizational skills made a complicated process as simple as it could ever be. If you have no clue where to start, I would highly recommend starting with her.

Mircea AndronescuSenior Copywriter in Duesseldorf

Ms. von Herrmann registered my new online business with the German tax authorities and since then submits VAT declarations for all European countries on a quarterly basis (MOSS procedure) for me. Communication via email works just perfectly and I am very relieved to be able to concentrate on my business.

Daria AndronescuWonder-wardrobe.com

Very clear and hands-on approach. Wouldn’t have been able to tackle the difficult tax procedures without her great service.

Astrid de Raedt, Düsseldorf

“You are an amazing accountant. I’m really impressed”

Mirela KowalskaDüsseldorf / Toruń ; Poland, self-employed

Paying Income Taxes in Germany

Updated – October 2020

Expatriates working in Germany can be subject to German income tax. In Germany taxation rules are equal for everybody who is subject to limited or unlimited tax liability in Germany. There are no special rules for expatriates.

As an employee usually you pay income tax throughout the year, through an employer deducting the so-called “Lohnsteuer” from each paycheck.

Employees who are subject to the German wage tax withholding system might not be required to file an annual income tax return under several conditions (e.g. if they have no income from other sources amounting to more than EUR 410). However in many cases it is beneficial to do so. If you have worked for less than 12 months of a certain calendar year it is most likely that you will get a tax refund.

For 2023 a taxable income of up to €10,908 is tax-free for a single person (€21,816,- for a married couple). Income up to €62,809 for a single person will be taxed with a rate progressively increasing from 14% to 42%. from €62,810 up to €277,825 (single person) there is a flat rate of 42%. Income above that is taxed at 45%. In addition to this there is the „solidarity surcharge“ of up to 5.5% of the income tax amount starting at a taxable income of 61,718. Originally this was introduced to cover the costs of integrating the states of former East Germany.

As in other countries Germany allows a variety of deductions that can lower your taxable income. Deductions are granted children, specified insurance premiums, charitable and political contributions to European entities and unavoidable extraordinary expenses above a certain limit (such as illness). If you have paid invoices from craftsmen or service providers in your home (e.g. cleaning services), these amounts are also (partially) deductable from your income tax burden. Let me help you finding all your possible deductions to minimize your German income tax.

If you decide to or even must file a German income tax return, this has to be done after the end of the tax year – in Germany, the tax year is the calendar year. The deadline for the tax year 2022 is October 2nd 2023, but this deadline is automatically extended to 31 July 2024 if your tax return is transmitted by a tax consultant.
If your annual tax declaration results in a final payment the German tax authority (Finanzamt) will most likely issue a statement for quarterly prepayments for the following years.

English speaking income tax advice

What clients say

Paying Income Taxes in Germany

Office Meerbusch

Office Düsseldorf

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