Software Hosted in Germany Hosted in Germany
Secure. Fast. Reliable.  
Digital data transmission - in accordance with sect. 87c of the German Fiscal Code
Digital data transmission

 

The entire world of tax knowledge

Lohnsteuer kompakt FAQs

 


AI power for your tax:

With IntelliScan KI beta
for effortless refund!

No more tax stress!
Learn how to use IntelliScan to complete your tax return faster and more efficiently. Simply upload your documents – our AI recognises and processes all the important information for you.

Private sales transactions

Gains from private sales transactions are treated as tax-free if they are below the exemption limit of 1.000 Euro. If the total capital gain is above 999 Euro, it becomes taxable in the full amount.



What is included in private sales transactions?

Private sales transactions are classified as other income and are regulated by Section 23 of the Income Tax Act (EStG). This involves the sale of certain assets where profits become taxable under specific conditions.

What counts as private sales transactions?

Private sales transactions particularly include the following types of sales:

1. Sale of non-owner-occupied property

If you sell a property that is not owner-occupied (e.g. rented out) within ten years of purchase, the profit from the sale is taxable.

2. Sale of other private assets

Private assets sold within one year of purchase may also be taxable. These assets include:

  • Gold bars and coins
  • Foreign currencies
  • Rented transport vehicles

If you earn income from these assets (e.g. through renting), the speculation period is extended to ten years.

Exceptions: Other types of income and capital assets

Profits or losses that can already be attributed to another type of income are not considered private sales transactions. In particular, sale of securities and capital assets are not subject to this regulation. These profits are taxed at the withholding tax rate.

Cryptocurrencies and private sales transactions

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are considered private sales transactions according to Section 23 (1) No. 2 EStG. The key regulations are:

  • Sale within one year: If you sell or exchange cryptocurrencies within one year of purchase, the profit is taxable if it exceeds 600 Euro.
  • Tax exemption after one year: If you hold the cryptocurrencies for more than one year, the sale is tax-free, even if they were used for purposes such as lending or staking.
Special regulations for cryptocurrencies

The Federal Ministry of Finance clarified the taxation of cryptocurrencies and digital tokens in a letter dated 10 May 2022. Key points include:

  • Private sales transactions: Cryptocurrencies sold within one year are taxable if the profit exceeds 600 Euro.
  • Business assets and commercial trading: If cryptocurrencies are traded regularly or used intensively, they may be considered business assets, changing their tax treatment.
  • Block creation through mining or forging: These activities are not considered private asset management and are regarded as commercial activity.
  • Income from block creation: Income from block creation is taxable if it exceeds 256 Euro per year.
Legal rulings on cryptocurrencies

The Federal Fiscal Court (BFH) ruled on 14 February 2023 that profits from the sale of cryptocurrencies made within one year are taxed as private sales transactions (BFH ruling of 14.2.2023, IX R 3/22). Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Monero are considered assets and are taxable on speculative gains.

What is included in private sales transactions?



How is the speculation period calculated?

Profits and losses from private sales transactions are only taxable if the speculation period has not yet expired between the purchase and sale of the goods. Once the speculation period has expired, profits are no longer taxable, regardless of the amount. Losses are also not relevant for tax purposes.

The date of acquisition is the date on which the purchase contract came into effect (this is usually the date the notarial purchase contract was signed), not the date of delivery (transfer of ownership, benefits, and burdens). The same applies to the date of sale of the goods to a third party.

How is the speculation period calculated?


Field help

Did you sell land, flats, houses or similar land rights in 2024?

Select "yes" if you have sold land and similar land rights for which the period between acquisition and sale is no more than ten years.

The calculation of the period between acquisition and sale is generally based on the obligatory transaction underlying the acquisition or sale (e.g. notarised purchase agreement). Please enter the corresponding data in line 32.

The contribution to the business assets is also deemed to be the sale of a property or a right equivalent to a property if the sale from the business assets takes place within ten years of the acquisition of the property or a right equivalent to property. In such cases, however, the gains or losses shall not be recognised until the calendar year in which the proceeds from the sale of the business were received. The hidden contribution of a piece of real estate or rights equivalent to real property into a corporation is also deemed to be a sale. The declaration on sales transactions must also include buildings and outdoor facilities to the extent that they have been constructed, expanded or extended within the ten-year period. This applies mutatis mutandis to independent parts of buildings, condominiums or partly owned rooms.

Excluded from taxation are buildings, independent parts of buildings, condominiums or partly owned rooms (assets) to the extent that they

  • in the period between acquisition or completion and disposal or
  • in the period between acquisition or completion and disposal or
  • were used exclusively for own residential purposes in the year of sale and in the two preceding years.
  • were used exclusively for own residential purposes in the year of sale and in the two preceding years.

If you have sold a property where only part of the property is subject to taxation (for example, a home office, rooms rented out to third parties), enter only information on the taxable portion in lines 34 to 40.

In the case of sale transactions, the acquisition or production costs are reduced by deductions for wear and tear, increased deductions and special depreciation, provided that they have been deducted when determining income from employment, capital assets or rental and leasing. When you sell an asset you have built, the cost of production is reduced by deductions for wear and tear, increased deductions and special depreciation.

Insofar as such depreciation has been deducted when determining other income, the acquisition or production costs are reduced if you acquired or completed the asset after 31.12.2008.

Have you sold any other assets (e.g. gold, antiques, paintings, etc.)?

Select "yes" if you have sold other assets for which the time period between acquisition and disposal does not exceed ten years.

The sale of assets held as private assets is only taxable if the period between acquisition and sale does not exceed one year. Once the one-year speculation period has expired, profits no longer have to be taxed, regardless of the amount. They are tax-free and do not have to be stated in the tax return.

Other assets to be included in the tax return in connection with private sales transactions include, for example, sales of

  • gold bars
  • gold coins
  • silver bars
  • silver coins
  • antiques
  • canvases
  • vintage cars

Exception: Sale transactions with items of daily use, on the other hand, are not taxable within the one-year period - and consequently losses can no longer be offset against tax. Reason: The salesman did not expect to achieve a higher price than he had to spend himself.

Did you sell company shares in 2024?

Select "yes" if you have sold shares in income determined separately and uniformly.

Private sales transactions of shares in companies refer to the sale of shares in partnerships or other companies the income of which has been determined separately and uniformly. Gains or losses must be declared in the tax return.

Examples:

  1. Sale of shares in a limited liability company (GmbH & Co. Limited partnership): Gains or losses must be declared in the tax return.
  2. Sale of shares in a partnership (GbR): Gains or losses must also be declared in the tax return.

Note: The sale of shares is also a private disposal transaction. However, gains or losses from this must always be declared in the capital income section (Form KAP - income from capital assets).

I request for Partner A to waive a loss carryback according to sect. 10d of the Income Tax Act (EStG) into the year 2023.
I request for Partner B to waive a loss carryback according to sect. 10d of the Income Tax Act (EStG) into the year 2023.
Do you want to provide information about the loss carryback according to sect. 10d of the Income Tax Act (EStG)?

You can request that a loss carryback from 2024 to 2023 is not applied automatically.

If you incur a loss from a private sale transaction, you can offset this loss against profits from other sale transactions in full. However, losses cannot be offset against positive income from other types of income in the same year.

However, loss carryback is an option:

(1) If you have incurred a loss from sale transactions, the tax office will automatically carry back this loss in full to the previous year. However, this only applies if speculative gains were also made in the previous year. If this is not the case, the tax office will issue a loss assessment notice.

(2) If you do not wish the automatic loss carryback to be applied, you can reject the loss carryback. Limitation as in previous years is no longer possible from 2022 onwards.

Have you earned income from the sale of virtual currencies and/or other tokens?

Select "yes" if you have sold virtual currencies and/or other tokens for which the time period between acquisition and sale was no more than one year.

The most important virtual currencies include:

  • Bitcoin (BTC)
  • Ethereum (ETH)
  • Binance Coin (BNB)
  • Cardano (ADA)
  • Solana (SOL)
  • Ripple (XRP)
  • Polkadot (DOT)
  • Dogecoin (DOGE)
  • Litecoin (LTC)
  • Chainlink (LINK)
  • Stellar (XLM)
  • Bitcoin Cash (BCH)
  • Tezos (XTZ)
  • EOS (EOS)
  • Monero (XMR)

Cryptocurrencies can be the subject of a private sale transaction in accordance with section 23 para. 1 no. 2 of the Income Tax Act (EStG). This means for transactions that take place in private assets: Capital gains arising from the exchange or re-exchange of bitcoins etc. into Euro or another cryptocurrency are deemed to be a taxable speculative transaction if the acquisition and exchange take place within one year. A profit remains (only) tax-free if it remains below the exemption limit of 1.000 Euro.

For private individuals, the sale of acquired Bitcoin etc. is tax-free after one year. The time period is not extended to ten years even if, for example, bitcoins were previously used for lending or the taxpayer has provided Ether to another person as a stake for their block creation.

The Federal Ministry of Finance has published a letter that comprehensively regulates the income tax treatment of virtual currencies and other tokens (letter of the Federal Ministry of Finance dated 06.03.2025).


Focus Money

"Das übersichtliche Design passt die Darstellung optimal an PCs, Macs, Tablets und Mobilgeräte an. [...] Es gibt umfassende Steuertipps und Hilfen sowie hohe Datensicherheit."

FOCUS Money 02/2023

ComputerBild

"Die beste Alternative für Smartphone, Tablet und Browser ist Lohnsteuer kompakt."

ComputerBild 03/2022

BÖRSE Online

"Die Dateneingabe im Interview-Stil und weitere Features [...] wurden vom Pionier der Online-Steuererklärungen optimiert."

BÖRSE Online 02/2022

Focus Money
€uro am Sonntag
€uro
c't Magazin
Chip
Die Welt am Sonntag
Stern
Handelsblatt
netzwelt
WirtschaftsWoche
MacWelt