Enlarge image
Home-brewed beer: There should be no registration requirement
Photo: Stefan Sauer/dpa
Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner wants to relieve hobby brewers of the beer tax that also applies to home use in Germany. With a change to the beer tax law, home and hobby brewers will in future be able to produce 500 liters tax-free instead of the current 200 liters exclusively for their own consumption. This emerges from a draft bill to amend the 2024 annual tax law, as the “Augsburger Allgemeine” reported on Monday. In addition, the obligation to register private beer brewing with the responsible main customs office should no longer apply.
Home and hobby brewers have so far had to declare their expected annual production volume to the main customs office. According to the planned new regulation, you will have to submit a tax declaration using an official form if you produce more than five hectoliters, the newspaper reports. From five hectoliters onwards, the beer tax obligation applies as before; Depending on the original wort, it is usually between eight and 15 euros per hectoliter.
The beer tax is one of the oldest taxes on consumer goods. It was already levied in medieval German cities under various names such as beer money, beer penny or malt surcharge. Today the beer tax is levied by the customs administration, and the tax revenue goes to the states.
According to the federal government, beer tax revenue from private home and hobby brewers amounted to around 11,000 euros in 2021.
mic/AFP