(2022) From when do you no longer have to pay church tax after leaving the church?

Church tax liability ends:

• at the end of the calendar month if the residence or usual place of abode in Germany is given up.
• at the end of the month of death if the church member dies.
• when the church member declares their resignation from the church. Different authorities are responsible for the declaration of resignation in the various federal states; in most cases, it is made at the registry office, otherwise at the district court; only in the federal state of Bremen also at the church. Depending on the federal state, the resignation from the church is effective from the calendar month in which the resignation was declared, or from the following calendar month.

In the past, there was a so-called "month of repentance" in some federal states, meaning church tax liability ended one month after the month of resignation. This applied to Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg, Hesse, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, Thuringia.

However, the month of repentance has now been abolished to standardise church tax regulations across the country, meaning the resignation from the church takes effect in the calendar month in which it is declared.

After resigning from the church, the registration office automatically informs the relevant tax office so that it can change the electronic wage tax deduction features (ELStAM). Therefore, no church tax will be deducted from your monthly salary after your resignation.

The cost of resigning from the church - resignation fees

In Berlin, Brandenburg and Bremen, resignation is free of charge. In other federal states, you must pay between 10 and 60 Euro for the certificate of resignation from the church.