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Pay tax on sparkling wine and intermediate products

  • Steuern und Abgaben

If you produce or import sparkling wine or intermediate products, you must pay sparkling wine tax or intermediate product tax.

  • Basic information

    The German Customs Administration levies excise taxes on sparkling wine and intermediate products. The Customs Administration is responsible for collecting the taxes on sparkling wine and intermediate products.

    Sparkling wine

    Sparkling wines are fermented beverages 

    • in bottles with sparkling wine stoppers secured by a special retaining device, or are beverages
    • which, at +20 degrees Celsius, have an overpressure of 3 bar or more attributable to dissolved carbon dioxide, or beverages
    • which, depending on their alcohol content and composition, are classified under headings 2204, 2205, or 2206 of the Combined Nomenclature (CN)—the European Union’s list of goods, with eight-digit commodity codes. 

    The alcohol content must be more than 1.2 percent by volume and may not exceed 15 percent by volume. In the range of 13 to 15 percent by volume, the alcohol present must also have been produced exclusively by fermentation. Examples of sparkling wines include Champagne, Prosecco, and Sekt.

    Intermediate products

    Intermediate products are also fermented products to which distilled alcohol has been added. They must

    • have an alcohol content of more than 1.2 to 22 percent by volume,
    • may not be sparkling wine or wine, nor may they be taxed as beer, and
    • must, like sparkling wine, be classified under headings 2204, 2205, or 2206 of the Combined Nomenclature.
    • Liqueur wines or aromatized wines are examples of intermediate products.

    The tax becomes due as soon as the sparkling wine or intermediate product is removed from or consumed in a so-called tax warehouse.

    A tax warehouse is a location authorized by the main customs office where goods may be produced, processed, stored, received, or shipped. In addition, the tax becomes due, among other things, when you import sparkling wine or intermediate products from a third country.

    If you become liable for tax as the owner of a tax warehouse, you must file a tax return on an official form. In it, you calculate the tax amount yourself. The same applies if you receive the goods at your business as a registered consignee.

    Amount of Excise Tax on Sparkling Wine and Intermediate Products

    The excise tax on sparkling wine and intermediate products is calculated based on the volume of finished beverages, taking into account the respective alcohol content:

    • For sparkling wine with an alcohol content of up to 6 percent by volume, you must pay 51.00 EUR per hectoliter or 0.38 EUR for a 0.75-liter bottle
    • for sparkling wine with an alcohol content of 6 percent by volume or higher, you must pay 136.00 EUR per hectoliter or 1.02 EUR for a 0.75-liter bottle
    • For intermediate products up to 15% by volume, you must pay 102.00 EUR per hectoliter or 0.76 EUR per 0.75-liter bottle
    • For intermediate products with an alcohol content of up to 15 percent by volume (for bottles with sparkling wine stoppers and special retaining devices, or bottles that exhibit an overpressure of 3 bar or more at +20 degrees Celsius due to dissolved carbon dioxide) you must pay 136.00 EUR per hectoliter or 1.02 EUR per 0.75-liter bottle
    • For intermediate products with an alcohol content of 15 percent by volume or higher, you must pay 153.00 EUR per hectoliter or 1.15 EUR per 0.75-liter bottle

    Requirements

    You must pay the excise taxes on sparkling wine and intermediate products when the tax becomes due and you are the person liable for the tax under the law. This may be the case in various situations, for example, if

    • you are the owner of a tax warehouse from which the products were removed or in which they were consumed, 
    • you are a “registered consignee” and take the products into your business following their transport under tax suspension, or
    • you were involved in production without the required permit.

  • Procedure

    You can submit your return or registration for the sparkling wine tax and the intermediate product tax by mail or online.

    Submitting a return by mail:

    • If you remove sparkling wine or intermediate products from a tax warehouse, consume them, or are a “registered recipient,” you must calculate the tax yourself and submit a written tax return:
      • Download the appropriate form from the Customs Administration’s website:
        • "Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Sparkling Wine" (Form 2401) with the accompanying Form 2402, or “Monthly Tax Return/Refund Application for Intermediate Products” (Form 2451) with the accompanying Form 2452
      • Fill out the forms completely and mail them to your local main customs office.
      • The main customs office will review your tax return.
    • If these are regular shipments of sparkling wine or intermediate products from other European countries and you hold a permanent authorization as a certified consignee, you must report these shipments in a written tax declaration:
      • To do so, download the forms “Monthly Tax Return/Exemption Declaration for Sparkling Wine” (Form 2401) or “Monthly Tax Return/Exemption Declaration for Intermediate Products” (Form 2451) from the Customs Administration’s website.
      • Fill out the forms completely and mail them to the main customs office responsible for your area.
      • The main customs office will review your tax return.
    • If the tax on sparkling wine or intermediate products arose in connection with irregularities or a violation of a prohibition, you must also calculate it yourself and submit a written tax return:
      • To do so, download the form “Tax Return for Sparkling Wine Tax in Individual Cases” (Form 2404) or “Tax Return for Intermediate Products (Form 2453) in Individual Cases” from the Customs Administration’s website.
      • Fill out the form completely and mail it to your main customs office.
      • The main customs office will review your tax return.

    Submitting a Return Online:

    • You can also fill out and submit the forms for sparkling wine tax or tax on intermediate products online.
    • Access the online application on the Customs Portal. It will guide you step by step through the required information, which you can enter electronically.
    • Upload the required documents as files and submit the application.
    • The Main Customs Office will review your information and documents.
    • You will receive a tax assessment notice.

    If any discrepancies are found during the review of the tax return or credit return, you will have until the due date of the taxes to correct any errors or complete any missing information. If the tax liability is already due or if you do not correct the information, the Main Customs Office will assess the duties via a tax assessment notice and notify you accordingly.

    If the review does not result in any objections, the amount of duties due will normally be collected from your account via direct debit; in such cases, you do not need to take any further action.

    If you import sparkling wine or intermediate products from a third country, you must file the tax return as part of the customs declaration.

    The competent authority is the main customs office in whose district you operate your business or, if you do not operate a business, in whose district you reside. If your business is operated from a location outside Germany or if you do not reside in Germany, the main customs office with local jurisdiction is the one in whose district you first become subject to taxation.

    More information

    Appeal

    • Objection
    • Lawsuit before the Tax Court

  • Necessary Documents
    • If you remove or consume sparkling wine or intermediate products from a tax warehouse, or if you are a "registered recipient":
      • Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Sparkling Wine (Form 2401) or
      • Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Intermediate Products (Form 2451)
    • If you receive regular shipments of sparkling wine or intermediate products from other European countries and you have a permanent authorization as a certified consignee:
      • Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Sparkling Wine (Form 2401) with attached Form 2402 (Appendix to the Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Sparkling Wine) or
      • Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Intermediate Products (Form 2451) with attached Form 2452 (Appendix to the Monthly Tax Return/Credit Return for Intermediate Products) 
    • If the tax on sparkling wine or intermediate products arose in connection with irregularities or a violation of a prohibition:
      • Sparkling Wine Tax Return for Individual Cases (Form 2404)
      • Tax Return for Intermediate Products in Individual Cases (Form 2453)

  • Online Services

  • Fees / Costs

    Basically, there are no costs for you.
    Late payment penalties are possible.

  • Deadlines & processing time

    What deadlines must be paid attention to?

    Monthly tax return for sparkling wine or intermediate products (Forms 2401 or 2451):
    Filing: by the 10th day of the month following the month in which the tax liability arose
    Payment: by the 5th day of the second month following the month in which the tax liability arose

    Ad hoc tax return (Forms 2404 or 2453) due to irregularities or a violation of a prohibition:
    Filing: You must file immediately
    Payment: Immediately

    How long does it take to process

    6 days bis 7 days

  • Legal Bases

  • More Information

This page has been automatically translated by DeepL. We cannot guarantee that the translation is correct.

The official information in German is complete and correct. 31.07.2026

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