Germany Income Tax Calculator (Splitting, Einkommensteuer)

About the Germany Income Tax Calculator (Splitting, Einkommensteuer)

Work out German income tax (Einkommensteuer) for a year from your taxable income: the § 32a EStG tariff with its basic allowance, the splitting tariff for married couples and civil partners assessed jointly, the solidarity surcharge with its exemption limit and taper, and church tax. With children it compares, for each child, the child benefit (Kindergeld) with the tax its child allowances (Kinderfreibeträge) save, and when the allowances save more it applies them and adds the child benefit to the tax, as § 31 EStG says.

For severance pay and other extraordinary income it applies the one-fifth rule (Fünftelregelung) of § 34 EStG and shows what it saves. A chart shows the marginal and average rate across incomes, and the tax years the calculator knows can be compared. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.

The income tax tariff

The tax is worked out on the taxable income rounded down to whole euros. Up to 12.348 € (the basic allowance, Grundfreibetrag) there is none; above it the rate starts at 14 % and rises steadily to 42 % at 69.879 € and 45 % from 277.826 €. The tariff table under the calculator gives the exact formula of each zone for each tax year, from the Income Tax Act and the Tax Development Act.

Couples assessed jointly pay twice the tax on half their joint income (splitting, § 32a (5)), which lowers the tax most when one earns much more than the other.

Child benefit or child allowances

For each child you get either child benefit, 259 € a month (§ 66 EStG), or, when it saves more tax, the child allowances: 3.414 € for the child’s subsistence and 1.464 € for care and education per parent, doubled for joint assessment (§ 32 (6) EStG). The tax office checks which is better; when the allowances win, the child benefit you were paid is added to the tax. The solidarity surcharge and church tax are always worked out with the allowances.

Solidarity surcharge and church tax

The solidarity surcharge is 5,5 % of the income tax, but only when that tax is above 20.350 € (40.700 € jointly); just above the limit it is at most 11,9 % of the excess (§ 3 and § 4 SolZG). On 100.000 € single that is 1.251,16 € instead of 1.697,52 €. Church tax is 8 % (Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg) or 9 % (elsewhere) of the income tax after child allowances (§ 51a EStG).

The one-fifth rule for severance pay

Extraordinary income such as severance pay (Abfindung) or pay for several years is taxed at five times the extra tax that one fifth of it would cost on top of your other income (§ 34 (1) EStG). It lowers the rate most when your other income in that year is low; with a high other income it saves little.

Limitations

• You enter the income after deductions (Einkommen); the calculator does not work out income, work expenses or special expenses from your gross pay. For wage tax on a salary use the gross-to-net salary calculator.
• Income under the progression clause (benefits such as parental allowance or unemployment benefit, § 32b EStG), the flat tax on capital income, tax credits and the reduced rate for business sales are not included.
• Children are taken with the same months and share; for children with different months enter them as separate calculations or use the months of most of them.
• Church tax can be capped at a share of the taxable income (Kappung), depending on the Land and the church; that cap is not applied.
• An estimate from the published rules, not tax advice: your tax assessment decides what you pay.

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