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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 take beer from a tax warehouse, consume it or are a "registered recipient", you must submit a written tax declaration:
    
 
    • Download the form "Beer Tax Declaration" (Form 2076) via the website of the Customs Administration or the Form Management System (FMS) of the Federal Tax Administration.
    • Fill out the form completely and send it by mail to the Main Customs Office in Stuttgart.
    • The main customs office in Stuttgart will check your tax return.
  • If these are regular supplies of beer from other European countries and you have a permanent permit to obtain them, you must declare these supplies in a written tax return:
    
 
    • For this purpose, use the form "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for beer" (Form 2074).
    • Fill out the form completely and send it by mail to the main customs office responsible for you.
    • The main customs office checks your tax declaration
      
 
      • If discrepancies are discovered during the check, you will be given the opportunity to correct incorrect information or complete incomplete information up to the due date of the levies.
      • 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 and inform you of this.
      • If the inspection does not result in any objections, the amount of duty due will normally be collected from your account by direct debit
      • in these cases, you do not need to take any further action.
  • If the beer tax related to irregularities,
    
 
    • Production without permission,
    • exceeding the tax-free quantity for home and hobby brewers, or
    • a disregarded prohibition
  • you must calculate it yourself and submit a written tax return:
    
 
    • Use the "Individual Case Beer Tax Filing" form (Form 2075).
    • Fill out the form completely and send it by mail to the main customs office responsible for you.
    • The main customs office will check your tax declaration.

The main customs office responsible is the one from whose district you operate your business or, if you do not operate a business, the one in whose district you are domiciled. If your business 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 locally responsible.

			
Legal bases
			
More information
Amount of beer tax 

The amount of beer tax is basically based on the original wort content 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. According to the mixing ratio of the beer content with other components, the degree Plato of the finished beverage is calculated from this. 

The original wort content refers to the proportion of substances dissolved from the malt in the still unfermented wort. These are primarily malt sugar, but also protein, vitamins, minerals, and aromatic substances. During fermentation, about one-third alcohol, one-third carbon dioxide, and one-third residual extract are produced with the help of yeast. 

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

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

Example: 

If you produce one hectoliter of full beer - for example, Pils, Kölsch or Alt - with an original wort content of 12 degrees Plato, EUR 9.44 beer tax is due. 

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 mixes or flavored beer, the original wort content of the beer used is also the basis for calculating the beer tax. According to the mixing ratio of the beer content with other ingredients, you can calculate the degree Plato of the finished beverage from it. 

Accordingly, you calculate the degree Plato of a beer mixture from the degree Plato of the beer times the hectoliters of beer divided by the hectoliters of the beer mixture. 

Examples of beer tax calculations can be found on the Customs Administration website. 

Exceptions and reduced tax rates 


  • Non-alcoholic beer: alcohol content below 0.5% by volume - not subject to beer tax.
  • Home brew: beer supplied free of charge by licensed brewers, within the company, as home brew to employees is exempt from tax.
  • 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 start of production and the place of production must be notified in advance to the competent main customs office. If the aforementioned quantity is exceeded, a tax declaration must be submitted on an 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 annual production, the standard tax rate can be reduced by up to 44 percent on the basis of 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 steps 


  • to 84 percent for an annual production of 40,000 hectoliters,
  • to 78.4 percent for an annual production of 20,000 hectoliters,
  • 67.2 percent for 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 beverages and flavored beers because these are not produced by 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. The submission of an official certificate of the previous year's production of the foreign brewery is required. 

Calculation of beer tax reduced rates 

For the calculation of beer tax, the customs administration uses its own data processing procedure. 

On the basis of the submitted data, this program calculates both the amount of beer tax to be paid monthly and the untaxed exits to EU member states and third countries. 

With the help of the data collection, you will receive a tax notice.