Germany Property Transfer Tax Calculator (Grunderwerbsteuer)

About the Germany Property Transfer Tax Calculator (Grunderwerbsteuer)

Work out the real estate transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer) on a property in Germany and what buying it costs in all. The tax is a percentage of the purchase price set by each federal state (Land), from 3,5 % in Bavaria to 6,5 % in Brandenburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, the Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein, rounded down to whole euros (§ 11 GrEStG). Each Land’s rate comes from its own law or tax authority, linked below.

Add movable items bought with the property, such as a fitted kitchen, which are not taxed, the exemptions for buying from your spouse or your parents, and your own figures for notary, land registry and broker, and the calculator shows the purchase costs (Kaufnebenkosten), the total and what the same purchase would cost in tax in every Land. Nothing you enter leaves your browser.

Transfer tax rates of the federal states

The federal law sets 3,5 % (§ 11 (1) GrEStG), and each Land may set its own rate. The rate of the Land where the property lies applies:

• Baden-Württemberg: 5 % (Baden-Württemberg: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG BW))
• Bavaria (Bayern): 3,5 % (Bavarian State Tax Office: real estate transfer tax FAQ)
• Berlin: 6 % (Berlin Senate Department for Finance: real estate transfer tax)
• Brandenburg: 6,5 % (Brandenburg: Act on the transfer tax rate)
• Bremen: 5,5 % (Bremen: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG BR))
• Hamburg: 5,5 % (Hamburg: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG HA))
• Hesse (Hessen): 6 % (Hesse: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG HE))
• Lower Saxony (Niedersachsen): 5 % (Lower Saxony State Tax Office: frequently asked questions)
• Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania: 6 % (Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania tax portal: real estate transfer tax)
• North Rhine-Westphalia: 6,5 % (North Rhine-Westphalia tax offices: real estate transfer tax)
• Rhineland-Palatinate: 5 % (Rhineland-Palatinate: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStSatzG))
• Saarland: 6,5 % (Saarland: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG SL))
• Saxony (Sachsen): 5,5 % (Saxony: Transfer Tax Rate Act (SächsGrEStSatzG))
• Saxony-Anhalt: 5 % (Saxony-Anhalt: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStFestG ST))
• Schleswig-Holstein: 6,5 % (Schleswig-Holstein: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStSatzG))
• Thuringia (Thüringen): 5 % (Thuringia: Act on the transfer tax rate (GrEStSatzG TH))

What is taxed

The tax is charged on the consideration (§ 8 GrEStG): the purchase price in the notarised contract, debts the buyer takes over and, when land and house are bought in one linked deal, the building costs. Movable items bought with the property, such as a fitted kitchen, are not part of it, nor are the notary’s fees. Acquisitions up to 2.500 €, inheritances and gifts, purchases between spouses or registered partners and from relatives in a direct line are exempt (§ 3 GrEStG).

Broker’s commission for flats and houses

When a consumer buys a flat or a single-family house, a broker who works for both sides can only charge both parties the same amount (§ 656c BGB). If only the seller hired the broker, the buyer can be made to pay at most as much as the seller, and only after the seller has paid (§ 656d BGB). The commission itself is agreed freely; take the percentage from your broker’s offer, including VAT.

When the tax is paid

The tax arises when the contract is notarised; the notary reports the sale to the tax office, which sends the assessment, and the tax is due one month after it (§ 15 GrEStG). Buyer and seller owe it jointly, but the tax office first asks the party the contract names, usually the buyer. The land registry enters the new owner only once the tax office has issued its clearance certificate (Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung), normally after payment (§ 22 GrEStG).

Limitations

• Notary and land registry fees follow the court and notary fees act (GNotKG) and depend on the price, a mortgage and the work involved; the percentage here is your own planning figure.
• Share deals, transfers of shares in property-owning companies and leasehold (Erbbaurecht) have their own rules and are not covered.
• Land subsidies for first-time buyers are not included.
• An estimate from the published rates, not tax or legal advice: the tax office’s assessment and your notary’s invoice decide.

Privacy

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