(2022) What can I claim as special expenses in my tax return?

Special expenses are personal living expenses that are exceptionally eligible for tax relief. The special expenses you can declare in your tax return are divided into two groups: pension expenses and other special expenses.

The other special expenses referred to on this input page are automatically taken into account by the tax office with the special expenses allowance. The special expenses allowance is set very low at 36 Euro for single persons and 72 Euro for married couples. It is therefore relatively easy to exceed this amount. These include, in particular, church tax paid, donations, childcare costs, maintenance payments to an ex-spouse.

Pension expenses include contributions to basic health insurance and compulsory long-term care insurance, as well as private pension schemes and contributions to certain private insurance policies, such as private liability, accident, and disability insurance.

The special expenses allowance does not apply to pension expenses. These are not unlimited deductible special expenses, but are only deductible up to a maximum amount.

The second part of the special expenses, the pension expenses, are divided into pension contributions, contributions to basic health and long-term care insurance, and other insurance. Pension contributions mainly include contributions to the statutory pension insurance or a private Rürup pension (funded pension scheme).

Other insurance includes contributions to health and long-term care insurance (beyond basic cover), unemployment insurance, accident and liability insurance, term life insurance, disability insurance, as well as endowment life and pension insurance policies taken out before 2005.

Please enter the pension expenses in the “pension expenses” section of our tax return.