Anyone who owns a vehicle in germany has to pay taxes for it: the so-called motor vehicle tax (kfz-steuer). But how expensive is the vehicle tax?? How is it calculated? To whom is the vehicle tax payable??
- The vehicle tax is a compulsory tax on all vehicles subject to registration and is automatically levied by the customs office.
- It serves in particular for road construction and maintenance.
- The amount of vehicle tax depends on the type and technology of the vehicle.
Here’s how to proceed
- Register your vehicle at the registration office, from or around.
- Wait for the tax assessment notice. Check it for correctness.
- Arrange to pay the tax annually or participate in the direct debit system.
Vehicle tax for all vehicles
The vehicle tax is a statutory tax, levied on all vehicles. Motorcycles, cars, trucks, light vehicles, recreational vehicles, commercial vehicles: have to pay all vehicle owners. The basis is the motor vehicle tax law (kraftstg). Most of the revenue from the tax goes to road construction and maintenance.
The tax liability starts with the registration of a vehicle in your name and ends with the deregistration. It therefore exists as long as a vehicle is registered in your name.
The motor vehicle tax law was last amended on 01.07.reformed in 2009. This reform also included the transition of the motor vehicle tax from a previous state responsibility to the federal task. Since then, the vehicle tax has been levied by the federal government, or more precisely by the customs, levied and administered. The tax rates and thus the calculation have also changed with this reform.
The collection of the vehicle tax
The vehicle tax is automatically collected by customs. You do not have to do this yourself. If you register a motor vehicle with the local registration office If you register or re-register your vehicle in your name, the registration office will automatically forward your data to customs.
The customs receives your personal data and the vehicle data and then creates an tax notice. This will be sent to you by mail. It reaches them about two weeks after registration of the vehicle. the amount of the tax is determined by the notice of assessment. Payment must be made within the payment deadline set in the notice and is valid for the next year in advance.
When is the vehicle tax always due??
In the future, vehicle tax will be payable annually on the same date due for the following year. So if you register your car in november, the car tax will always be due in november from now on. After the first notice, you will not receive any further reminders of this date. If you wish to pay by bank transfer, you must make the annual think of it yourself. Otherwise you will receive a reminder sooner or later.
Alternatively you can direct debit benefit. The tax will then be collected from your account at the same time each year. The first notice a direct debit mandate is enclosed for the vehicle tax.
Is it also possible to use a different payment frequency??
The vehicle tax is basically annually and you cannot choose between different payment methods. This is only possible if the tax amount exceeds a certain amount.
- If the annual payment amount is over 500 EURper vehicle, a half-yearly payment is also possible.
- If the annual payment amount is over 1000 EUR per vehicle, quarterly payment is also possible.
However, with this payment frequency, the customs incurs a additional administrative costs, why they charge a fee on non-annual payment methods. levied at the
- Semiannualpayment method a surchargefrom3 %
- Quarterlypayment method a surcharge of 6
it is possible to combine the payment dates for several cars?
If you own more than one vehicle, you will usually also have different payment dates. the date of registration is always decisive. So if you have not registered all your vehicles on the same day, you will also have different payment dates.
If you do not wish to do this, you can combining the due dates apply for all your vehicles. You will then pay once a year for all your vehicles at the same time. You can cancel the combination at any time informally at the responsible main customs office or directly at the registration of a vehicle via the registration office.
Do you get the vehicle tax back when you deregister the vehicle??
The tax obligation for your vehicle ends with the deregistration of the vehicle. If you decommission or sell your vehicle, you no longer have to pay the tax. The decisive factor here is also the deregistration or re-registration with the responsible registration authority.
Since you have usually paid the vehicle tax for one year in advance, the deregistration or re-registration usually results in a refund of the overpaid vehicle tax. Analogous to the registration, the registration office will pass on all data to the main customs office. Within about two weeks you will receive a notice of change or deregistration with a corresponding calculation.
note: in case of theft, the registration office must be informed
If your vehicle is stolen, your tax liability ends. However, this requires a notification to be made to the relevant registration authority. The mere reporting to the police or the information to the main customs office is not sufficient.
The amount of vehicle tax
You should inform yourself about the costs of the vehicle tax before you purchase a vehicle. Depending on the type of motor vehicle, the tax amount can be very different to be charged. this is also due to the fact that the population is to be brought over the tax height to the acquisition of pollution free vehicles. Therefore, it can be basically said that environmentally friendly cars more favorable taxation are classified as cars with very high consumption, powerful engine or large displacement.
The following factors therefore determine the amount of tax to be levied:
- The motorization or. The drive type of the vehicle (gasoline, diesel, electric, hybrid, wankel)
- The cubic capacity in cc
- The emission key or. The emission class (euro standard)
- The date of first registration (before or after the 2009 reform)
Particularly polluting vehicle factors can have an additional tax-increasing effect. For example, for the absence of a soot particle filter an additional charge is levied. Vehicles in poorer emission classes (below euro 3) are also still taxed according to the old, more expensive basis of calculation prior to the 2009 reform.
Tip: you can tell the emission class by your environmental badge
If you want to know which emission class your vehicle has, you can see this in the registration certificate part I in field 14.1 (in the old vehicle registration certificate under field 1). You can also recognize the emission class by its environmental badge, which must be attached to the vehicle.
How the car tax is calculated for cars first registered before the 2009 reform?
The vehicle tax is calculated on the basis of tax rates set by law calculated. The current tax rates are precisely defined in § 9 kraftstg. The respective tax rate depends on the emission class and is then applied to petrol and diesel engines per 100 cc engine capacity or part thereof charged.
The following table shows the tax rates for vehicles registered up to 30.06.registered in 2009
Vehicles with a wankel engine are taxed depending on their permissible total weight and per 200 kilograms or part thereof.
You can easily calculate your vehicle tax yourself:
Example: calculation of your vehicle tax
you own a vehicle with a diesel engine and 1.500 cc engine capacity. The emission class is euro 3. The tax rate is therefore 15,44 EUR. It is to be applied per 100 ccm or part thereof, i.e. 15 times.
15 x 15,44 EUR = 231,60 EUR.
the tax amount is 231,60 EUR per year.
How is the car tax calculated for cars first registered after the 2009 reform??
The taxation of cars registered as from 01.07.registered in 2009 CO2-oriented. the less CO2 a vehicle emits, the lower the tax rate. In this way, the purchase of environmentally friendly vehicles is to be fiscally favored.
The tax is based on otto- and wankel engines together with
- One basic amount in the amount of EUR 2.00 per 100 cc displacement or part thereof and
- A CO2-dependent surcharge in the amount of 2,00 EUR per g/km emission
The tax is calculated for diesel engines together
- A basic amount in the amount of 9,50 EUR per started 100 ccm cubic capacity and
- A CO2-dependent surcharge in the amount of 2,00 EUR per g/km emission
Note: calculation depends on the respective tax-free value
The calculation may vary due to changes in the tax exemption limits for CO2 emissions. Here again it depends on the date of the first registration. If you want to know it as exactly as possible, you can use the tax calculator of the federal ministry of finance.
Are there exemptions and discounts?
The Motor Vehicle Tax Act also provides for exemptions and discounts in vehicle tax before for:
- Vehicles for agriculture and forestry
- show vehicles
- Electric vehicles
- Vehicles to support combined transport
- Motor vehicle trailers
- foreign motor vehicles
- People with a recognized severe disability and the corresponding registration mark
Tip: the main customs office is available to answer questions
if you have questions about your car tax, the main customs office can give you detailed answers. contact details can be found on the homepage of the customs office.