Tax check for pensioners in Germany helps save cash

Do I need to file a tax return or not? That is the question more and more pensioners who have rarely had to have any kind of dealings with the Finanzamt (German tax department) until now are asking themselves.

However, the Alterseinkünftegesetz (German retirement income act) requires approximately 3.5 million pension recipients to file a return. The fact that the Department of Finance will in future know about pensioners’ income because it can exchange data with other departments has made this a particularly explosive issue. Many of those affected are unclear about the legal position – and hence also about the tax relief options that are often available to them.

Two strong partners

This is where a new co-operation between two strong partners comes into the picture. Germany’s largest income tax assistance society, Vereinigte Lohnsteuerhilfe e. V. (VLH), and Deutsche Post AG’s Pension Service have set up a joint online service. VLH’s experts have set up the so-called ‘tax check’ on the Pension Service’s service platform, www.rentenservice.de and it can be used by pensioners and helpful family members with internet access free of charge as of now.

VLH and Deutsche Post’s Pension Service have a special offer for pensioners who avail themselves of VLH’s advisory services if it transpires that they are required to file a return. When they present their pensioner’s identity card, the joining fee, which is currently EUR10, is waived.

Valuable and useful information

In addition to the ‘tax check’, pensioners receive useful information and tips on all aspects of pensioners’ tax liability and the Alterseinkünftegesetz in the latest issue of ‘topic of the month’ at www.rentenservice.de/steuern.

By expanding the portal, the Pension Service and various initiatives of the German federal government and the European Union are aiming to make using the internet simpler for pensioners.