Nowhere is this more evident than in Germany, where the wealthiest can expect to pay up to 45% in 'Lohnsteuer', or income tax. Unemployment benefits, pension payments and ‘Kindergeld' (literally ‘child money') for parents are all significant benefits paid for by German taxpayers.
Filing a tax return in Germany is not compulsory (unless you fit into a few select categories). You'd be crazy not to however! With the tax-filing app Taxfix, a return typically takes under half an hour to complete – and the average person gets back more than €1,000. If you're an expat and unfamiliar with how German tax deductions work, you could easily be paying more than your fair share of tax. Here are five simple steps to help you make sure you get your return in on time – and get back all the money you're entitled to.
1. Gather your paperwork – and keep it in order
Germans prize organisation and good record keeping as a virtue, and if you follow them in this respect, you'll be well-prepared for tax season. Firstly, do you know the final deadlines for filing a tax return? The last chance to file for 2016 comes on December 31st this year, as part of a four-year rolling cycle.
Using a single folder for each tax year and a hole punch will often suffice to keep your receipts and invoices in order, with dividers for different categories, such as fuel receipts, energy bills, food expenses during business trips, and software.
If you're intent on reducing your paper waste, there are a number of apps, such as Simple Scan and Microsoft Office Lens, that allow you to photograph your paperwork, turning them into readable PDF files that you can store somewhere on the cloud. This can be handy and a major timesaver at tax time, when you're hunting down figures – new technology means that figures can often be copied and pasted from these files directly.
2. Keep up to date on what you can claim.
The federal government in Germany often updates legislation regarding what people can claim as deductions against their tax. There are always attempts to close loopholes and maintain tax revenues. Generally, your everyday, regular travel costs to work can be claimed, as can a percentage of home office costs such as internet and power bills.
Other common tax deductions for employees include business literature and work equipment. Personal deductions can be made for a variety of things, including health insurance premiums, childcare expenses up to the age of 14, and charity contributions.
Depending on what you do, professional insurance that you may have taken out can also be claimed. However, it pays to check websites such as the official federal government Make It In Germany site for updates in the lead up to tax season. If you're genuinely confused about what you can claim, any tax adviser should be able to help you for a minimal fee.
3. Get the help you need in an app (in English!)
Paradoxically, Germany's complex tax system has given rise to a number of apps, websites and services that streamline the process of lodging a tax return. Multiple popular services, including Taxfix, use a series of guided conversational questions to lodge your return, calculating your estimated return based on the answers and data that you provide.
The apps work with Elster, the German government's tax return software, to process your return speedily. While you can also file a paper return, and some prefer this method, electronic services save not only time, but a significant amount of paperwork.
Each of these electronic tax services have different strengths – Taxfix especially has been designed with the needs of expats in mind. All questions are in simple, direct English and have been drawn up to make sure you get back all the money you're due under German law. The app aims to make it simple for everyone to claim their full tax refund, even with no prior tax knowledge – so you won't be confronted with confusing jargon!
Photo: Taxfix
4. Don't rush it – time really is money
You can easily feel overwhelmed or confused by the rules of the German tax system. While the temptation may be to click through each question in an app as quickly as possible, you can save potentially hundreds of euros by reading each question carefully, and ensuring you can justify each answer with your records. Even doing so, it won't take anymore than an hour at the most – and isn't that worth a chunk of money landing in your account?
5. Avoid hidden costs with a transparent service
The amount tax accountants charge can vary wildly. With Taxfix, all costs are set and transparent. If your estimated return is under €50 and you're not obligated to make a return, submitting via Taxfix is free.
If your estimated refund is over €50 (or you're obligated to file), there's a single fee of €39.99. That's it. Furthermore, this fee can be claimed against your next return, as tax consulting fees.
Ready to find out if you're due a tax refund? Taxfix is available via their website and their app, which can be downloaded from both Google Play and the Apple App Store. Try it out today to see how much money you could get back.
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