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Pay beer tax

  • Steuern und Abgaben 



    	    

		    
Procedure

            			
You must submit the declaration or registration for beer tax in writing: 


  • If you withdraw beer from a tax warehouse, consume it or are a "registered recipient", you must submit a written tax return:
    
 
    • Download the "Beer Tax Declaration" form (Form 2076) from the Customs Administration website or the Federal Tax Administration's Forms Management System (FMS).
    • Complete the form in full and send it by post to the main customs office in Stuttgart.
    • The Stuttgart Main Customs Office will check your tax return.
  • If regular deliveries of beer from other European countries are involved and you have a permanent permit for the purchase, you must declare these deliveries in a written tax declaration:
    
 
    • Use the form "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for beer" (form 2074).
    • Complete the form in full and send it by post to the main customs office responsible for you.
    • The main customs office will check your tax declaration
      
 
      • If discrepancies are discovered during the check, you will be given the opportunity to correct incorrect information or complete incomplete information by the due date of the tax.
      • If the claim is already due or if you do not correct the information, the main customs office will assess the duties with a tax assessment notice and inform you accordingly.
      • If the check does not lead to any objections, the tax amount due will normally be collected from your account by direct debit, in which case you do not need to take any further action.
  • If the beer tax is related to irregularities,
    
 
    • Production without authorization,
    • exceeding the tax-free quantity for home and hobby brewers or
    • a disregarded prohibition
  • you must calculate this yourself and submit a written tax return:
    
 
    • Use the form "Tax declaration for beer in individual cases" (Form 2075).
    • Complete the form in full and send it by post to the main customs office responsible for you.
    • The main customs office will check your tax return.

The main customs office is responsible for the district from which you operate your business or, if you do not operate a business, the district in which you have your place of residence. If your company is operated from a location outside Germany or if you do not have a place of residence in Germany, the main customs office in whose district you first appear for tax purposes is responsible.

			
Legal bases
			
More information
Amount of beer tax 

The amount of beer tax is generally based on the original gravity of the beer. This is measured in degrees Plato. In the case of beer mixtures or flavored beer, the original wort content of the beer used is the basis for calculating the beer tax. The degree Plato of the finished beverage is calculated based on the mixing ratio of the beer content with other ingredients.  

The original wort content refers to the proportion of substances dissolved from the malt in the unfermented wort. These are primarily malt sugars, but also proteins, vitamins, minerals and flavorings. During fermentation, the yeast produces around one third alcohol, one third carbon dioxide and one third residual extract. 

The higher the original wort content, the stronger the beer produced. Most beers in Germany are full-bodied beers with an original gravity of between 11 and 16 degrees Plato. The alcohol content is between 4.5 and 5.5 percent by volume. 

The standard tax rate per hectoliter (hl), i.e. per 100 liters, is EUR 0.787 per degree Plato. The alcohol content is irrelevant. 

Example: 

If you produce a hectoliter of full beer - for example Pils, Kölsch or Alt - with an original gravity of 12 degrees Plato, you will have to pay EUR 9.44 beer tax. 

12 x EUR 0.787 = EUR 9.44. Converted to a 0.2 liter glass of beer, this is EUR 0.019 beer tax. 

Mixed beer drinks 

If you produce beer mixtures or flavored beer, the original wort content of the beer used is also the basis for calculating the beer tax. Depending on the mixing ratio of the beer content with other ingredients, you can use this to calculate the degree Plato of the finished beverage.  

The degree Plato of a beer mixture is therefore calculated from the degree Plato of the beer times the hectoliters of beer divided by the hectoliters of the beer mixture. 

You can find examples of how to calculate beer tax on the customs administration website. 

Exceptions and reduced tax rates 


  • Non-alcoholic beer: alcohol content of less than 0.5% by volume - not subject to beer tax.
  • Home-brewed beer: Beer supplied free of charge by licensed breweries to employees as a home-brew is tax-free.
  • Home and hobby brewers: Beer produced by home and hobby brewers is tax-free up to a quantity of 200 liters per calendar year. The competent main customs office must be notified in advance of the start of production and the place of production. If the aforementioned quantity is exceeded, a tax declaration must be submitted using the official form and the beer tax must be paid. The reduced tax rate of EUR 0.4407 per hectoliter and degree Plato applies to the taxable quantities.
  • Reduced tax rates: Smaller, legally and economically independent breweries can claim reduced beer tax rates for brewed beer if the total annual production is less than 200,000 hectoliters. Depending on the annual production, the standard tax rate can be reduced by up to 44% based on a volume scale. This is based on so-called graduated tax rates.

If the reduced graduated tax rates are applied, the standard tax rate is reduced evenly in 1,000-hectoliter increments to 


  • to 84 percent for an annual production of 40,000 hectoliters,
  • to 78.4 percent for an annual production of 20,000 hectoliters,
  • to 67.2 percent for an annual production of 10,000 hectoliters and
  • to 56 percent for an annual production of 5,000 hectoliters.

However, the reduced tax rates do not apply to mixed beer drinks and flavored beers, as these are not produced using the brewing process. This also applies to beer supplied to the tax territory by a foreign independent brewery with a total annual production of less than 200,000 hectoliters. An official certificate of the previous year's production of the foreign brewery must be submitted.  

Calculation of beer tax reduced rates 

The customs administration uses its own data processing procedure to calculate the beer tax. 

Based on the data submitted, this program calculates both the amount of beer tax to be paid each month and the untaxed exports to EU member states and third countries. 

You will receive a tax assessment notice based on the data collected.