Information on tax certificates and income statements for 2025

The tax certificate complies with the requirements for form and content specified by the legislator for the year 2025. For technical reasons, we sort your tax certificate behind the income statement.

Please note the following points regarding the information in the tax certificate:

Since January 1, 2016, new regulations have been in force regarding the tax creditability of capital gains tax levied on domestic dividend income and other income within the meaning of Section 43 (1) sentence 1 numbers 1 and 1a of the German Income Tax Act (EStG). Accordingly, full credit for the capital gains tax withheld on domestic dividend income is now only possible under certain conditions specified in Section 36a of the German Income Tax Act (EStG). Among other things, a holding period of 45 days around the dividend record date and the attribution of at least 70% of the economic risk of the underlying shares to the beneficial owner of the domestic dividend income during this holding period are required. Without these conditions, the full capital gains tax can only be credited if the shares are held in the beneficial owner's securities account for at least one year without interruption or if the domestic dividend income does not exceed EUR 20,000 in the calendar year. Since January 1, 2019, the EUR 20,000 limit has also been applied to the deduction of capital gains tax for corporations exempt from corporate income tax. This means that tax must be deducted if domestic dividend income exceeds EUR 20,000 and the shares have not been held continuously for at least one year at the time of receipt.
An exception to this rule applies to corporations within the meaning of Section 44a (7) sentence 1 nos. 2 and 3 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG). These are foundations under public law that exclusively and directly pursue charitable purposes. An exception to this rule applies to corporations within the meaning of Section 44a (7) sentence 1 nos. 2 and 3 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG). These are foundations under public law that serve exclusively and directly charitable or benevolent purposes, as well as legal entities under public law that serve exclusively ecclesiastical purposes. In this case, a corresponding certificate from the tax office responsible for the place of business must be submitted. For corporations within the meaning of Section 44a (7) sentence 1 no. 1 EStG, a residual tax rate of 15% applies if domestic dividend securities are held for less than one year and the allowance of EUR 20,000 is fully utilized. This also requires the submission of a corresponding certificate from the tax office responsible for the permanent establishment. According to the BMF letter dated May 14, 2025, margin number 295, the submission of an exemption notice, in contrast to the NV certificate, also leads to a complete waiver of tax deduction in the case of a corporation, association of persons, or estate pursuant to Section 44a (7) sentence 1 no. 1 EStG.

Since August 1, 2021, the waiver of tax deduction on domestic dividend income pursuant to Section 44a (10) sentence 1 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) has been excluded for permanent overpayment certificates pursuant to Section 44a (5) EStG.

Private investors who do not declare their investment income in their tax returns due to the final effect of the capital gains tax are generally not affected by these regulations. Details can be found in the letter from the Federal Ministry of Finance dated April 3, 2017. In cases of doubt, we recommend consulting a tax advisor.

From January 1, 2021, to December 31, 2023, losses from the total or partial irrecoverability of capital claims or the derecognition of worthless assets or transferring them to a third party or other loss of assets within the meaning of Section 20 (1) of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) and losses from worthless expiry (including knock-out certificates and warrants) could only be claimed via the assessment route. Loss offsetting was then limited to EUR 20,000 per calendar year. Similarly, losses from forward transactions could only be offset against gains from forward transactions and option writing transactions up to an amount of EUR 20,000. In both cases, losses that could not be offset could be carried forward to the following year and offset against income from capital assets up to an amount of EUR 20,000. Losses could only be offset via the assessment procedure. From January 1, 2024, the Annual Tax Act 2024 will allow losses to be offset without restriction in these products again. Losses incurred in 2024 were corrected retroactively and transferred to the general loss offset pool for 2024 at the bank level, where they were offset against tax transactions incurred. Since January 1, 2025, losses from the worthless expiry of shares have been placed in the share loss pool. This means that you have not been required to file a tax return in relation to the above change since the 2024 tax year. However, the tax authorities will not object if the technical implementation at the banks does not take place until 2026. Please discuss with your tax advisor how to deal with the loss assessments determined in the context of the tax assessment.

In accordance with margin number 131 in conjunction with margin number 325 of the BMF letter dated May 14, 2025, on specific issues relating to withholding tax, withholding tax has been retained at bank level on currency gains from foreign currency fixed-term deposits since January 1, 2024. Since September 2, 2025, withholding tax has also been retained on currency gains from USD overnight deposit accounts. In the case of USD call money accounts, the prolongation of daily maturing capital claims and the change in the interest rate do not in themselves constitute an acquisition or disposal event. Any currency losses incurred on the aforementioned investment options are allocated to the general loss offset pool.

No capital gains tax is withheld on foreign currency gains on interest-bearing foreign currency accounts; however, these must be reviewed and reported as speculative transactions in accordance with Section 23 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) as part of the assessment, as must foreign currency gains on non-interest-bearing foreign currency accounts.

The reform of investment taxation from 2018 onwards has fundamentally changed the way income from investment funds is determined and allocated.

The transparent taxation regime has been replaced by a flat-rate income calculation that allocates cash distributions, the so-called advance lump sum (notional taxation based on a risk-free comparable investment without cash inflows) and any capital gains to the investor. Since January 1, 2018, investment funds have been required to pay tax on certain domestic income (in particular German dividends) themselves. As compensation for this tax burden and for the elimination of the creditability of foreign withholding taxes at the investor level, investors are granted a so-called partial exemption. Depending on the type of investor and the investment focus of the investment fund, the distribution, the advance lump sum, and the capital gain/loss from the shares (if incurred after January 1, 2018) are tax-exempt at a certain percentage (partial exemption rate). When calculating capital gains tax, banks take into account the partial exemption rate that applies to income from fund shares in private assets, regardless of the investor's actual tax asset type.

To ensure a smooth transition to the new law, all investment shares are deemed to have been fictitiously sold on December 31, 2017, and newly acquired on January 1, 2018.

For private investors, the grandfathering of old shares (acquired before January 1, 2009) is lost as a result of this fictitious sale, i.e., the increase in value of such shares between January 1, 2018, and the actual sale is subject to taxation. To compensate for this, affected investors can offset such capital gains against an allowance of EUR 100,000 as part of their tax assessment. Corresponding income from sales of old shares that were previously grandfathered is shown separately in this tax certificate. However, the allowance does not apply to capital gains from shares in an investment fund within the meaning of Section 21 (2a) of the Investment Tax Act 2004 (so-called millionaire funds). According to the guidelines of the tax authorities, an acquisition date between November 10, 2007, and December 31, 2008, and an acquisition value greater than EUR 100,000 are to be regarded as an indication of a millionaire fund. In this case, gains/losses from these shares are reported separately in the tax certificate for information purposes, regardless of whether this fund actually qualifies as a “millionaire fund.” This must be clarified during the assessment, so we recommend consulting a tax advisor in this case as well.

The Annual Tax Act 2019 introduced a fundamental change to the calculation of tax-free distributions of assets in section 17 (1) sentences 1 to 3 of the Investment Tax Act (InvStG). During the liquidation of an investment fund, distributions in a calendar year are considered tax-free capital repayments to the extent that the last redemption price set in that calendar year is below the amortized cost basis. 

In accordance with legal requirements, we always report current income and income from the sale of fund units within the meaning of the Investment Tax Act after applying the respective partial exemption rate.

In the event of an increase in value, the advance lump sum is calculated on the basis of an interest rate (known as the base rate) set annually for a risk-free comparable investment. The redemption price of the fund unit at the beginning of the year is compared with the redemption price at the end of the year. If the performance is positive, the base return is calculated by multiplying the redemption price at the beginning of the year by 70% of the base interest rate and comparing it with the amount of any distributions made by the fund during the calendar year. If the base yield calculated is higher than the distributions made in the calendar year, the advance lump sum corresponds to the base yield less the distributions. The advance lump sum is subject to the regular taxation rules relating to the taxation of capital gains. These are fund income, i.e., the partial exemption rates applicable to income from fund units in private assets apply in the capital gains tax deduction procedure. If you have any questions, we recommend consulting a tax advisor.

Remuneration from portfolio commissions is also considered fund income within the framework of the capital gains tax deduction procedure. Since January 1, 2019, the partial exemption rates applicable to income from fund units held in private assets must also be applied by credit institutions in the capital gains tax deduction procedure.

Since 2012, the framework conditions created by the legislator for delta correction have been mandatory. Delta correction is an official term used by the tax authorities. The procedure allows for the posting of a tax difference in the current tax year in the event of changes to many tax circumstances relating to private assets, without having to make cancellations for previous years. In most cases, this also eliminates the need to exchange tax documents from previous years, provided that these relate to private assets. Corresponding corrections are listed in the income statement. Corrections from investment income relating to periods prior to the investment tax reform coming into force on January 1, 2018, are also subject to the provisions of the Investment Tax Act in the version applicable in the respective tax years concerned in the delta correction procedure and are settled in accordance with the principle of transparency. The result is then carried over to the current tax year.

Excluded from the delta correction are, among others, investors whose investment income is operating income, non-residents for tax purposes, terminated business relationships, and corrections to the substitute assessment basis.

Income from so-called private sales transactions pursuant to Section 23 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) is not subject to capital gains tax deduction, but must be declared to the tax office as part of the income tax assessment. Private securities sales transactions are listed in the income statement. Private foreign exchange sales transactions are not shown in the income statement and must be determined independently. We recommend consulting a tax advisor.

The income tax attribution of capital income within the meaning of Section 20 (1) Nos. 1 and 2 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG) due to the creation of a usufruct should be made to the beneficial owner of the capital assets. The beneficial owner is determined in accordance with Section 39 (2) No. 1 of the German Fiscal Code (AO) and, in particular, with due regard to the letter from the Federal Ministry of Finance dated May 14, 2025 (Ref.: IV C 1 - S 2252/00075/016/070, margin number 117a) and the judgments of the Federal Fiscal Court issued in this context (including the judgment of February 14, 2022 – VIII R 29/18). No examination was made as to whom the capital income is attributable for income tax purposes, and this must be determined independently in the course of the assessment. The tax certificate was issued to the civil law owner of the securities account with the note that it is a usufruct securities account.

The income statement includes a detailed breakdown of all taxable investment income received under the specified master number during the certification period, such as interest, dividends, income from investment funds, and gains from sales, redemptions, repurchases, and forward transactions. In addition, the statement also contains information on domestic and foreign withholding tax deductions and fee payments.

The information in the income statement is for informational purposes only. Please note that the income data and/or master data taken into account is based on data published by WM Datenservice, Frankfurt am Main. We consider this source of information to be reliable, but do not subject this data to constant and separate review. We therefore cannot accept any liability for the accuracy and completeness of the externally sourced data.

For technical reasons, you will also receive an income statement if you were not credited with any income in 2024 and were not charged any debit interest or other fees.

If your personal income tax rate is below the flat tax rate of 25%, you can obtain a (partial) refund of the flat tax from your tax office as part of your tax assessment (known as a “favorable tax assessment”). You can also apply for a refund of the withholding tax on capital gains if you have not (fully) utilized your personal allowance of EUR 1,000 for single persons or EUR 2,000 for married couples at the bank level in your private assets.

If another credit institution has certified losses from capital gains for the year 2024 that you would like to offset against the capital gains reported in the tax certificate, this is only possible by way of assessment. Any transfer of existing losses at Bethmann Bank to the assessment must be applied for by December 15 of each year and is made by means of an entry on the annual tax certificate.

The income statement may include a disclosure of the creditable withholding tax that was not taken into account in the capital gains tax deduction. This applies in particular to withholding tax retained on Norwegian and Belgian dividend payments, for which a refund claim may exist in the source country and which therefore could not be credited at the credit institution level. A separate refund application must be submitted to the foreign tax authority for a (partial) refund of the withholding tax retained. If this does not result in a full exemption from foreign withholding tax, the remaining amount can be credited against German capital gains tax as part of the assessment.

Despite the fundamentally final effect of capital gains tax, there may be an assessment obligation if

• You received income in 2025 that is not subject to withholding tax on capital gains but is materially taxable. This applies, for example, to income from personal investment funds, interest-bearing additional payments from squeeze-out payments, or foreign exchange transactions that fall under Section 20 of the German Income Tax Act (EStG).
• You are a member of a tax-collecting religious community and have applied for a so-called blocking note from the Federal Central Tax Office. In this case, however, there is only an obligation to pay tax if the investment income exceeds the saver's allowance or
• a flat-rate assessment basis had to be used for withholding capital gains tax, e.g., in the absence of acquisition data for securities sold.

If you have any questions regarding the tax treatment of investment income and expenses in connection with your investment, we recommend that you consult a tax advisor.

Please check the amounts shown on the tax certificate and in the income statement for completeness and accuracy. In addition, you have the option of checking that the taxation is correct as part of the assessment.

We are legally obliged to automatically pay church tax, which is subject to withholding tax, to the tax office on behalf of church members. However, this only applies if your investment income exceeds the saver's allowance (single persons: EUR 1,000, jointly assessed persons: EUR 2,000) or if you have not issued us with an exemption order.

If we have a non-assessment certificate from your tax office, we will also not deduct church tax. The church tax rate is 8 percent in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, and 9 percent in the other federal states, as a surcharge on the capital gains tax of 25 percent. In order to be able to deduct church tax, we are legally obliged to request your religious affiliation in the form of an encrypted code from the Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt). The BZSt transmits your data to us in accordance with data protection regulations in the form of an encrypted code. The so-called church tax deduction code (KiStAM) provides information about your membership in a tax-collecting religious community and the applicable church tax rate. The query is made as an ad hoc query for new customers and as a regular query once a year between September 1 and October 31. The response to the regular query from the BZSt is valid from January 1 of the following year at the earliest. In a few cases, due to a lack of data consistency, it may happen that the Federal Central Tax Office does not inform us of your church tax liability despite your religious affiliation, even though you have not objected to the data transfer. Please note that in such cases we cannot withhold church tax on your investment income and you are obliged to pay church tax to your local tax office.

Ihr Vorteil: Ihre Kirchensteuerpflicht für Kapitaleinkünfte ist durch das vorgenannte Verfahren vollständig abgegolten. Weitere Angaben in der Einkommensteuererklärung  entfallen.

If you do not want the Federal Central Tax Office to transfer your church tax data, you can object to the transfer of data by June 30 of each year. Please send your objection directly to the Federal Central Tax Office. The official form for this can be found at www.formulare-bfinv.de under “Declaration of blocking note § 51a EStG”. The Federal Central Tax Office will then block the transfer of your church tax deduction status. If you have already objected to the transfer of data, you do not need to submit the objection again. An objection is valid until it is revoked. We will then not pay any church tax on your behalf. The Federal Central Tax Office will then report the objection to your tax office. Church members will be asked by the tax office to submit a tax return for the collection of church tax on the flat-rate withholding tax.