In Germany, certain household-related services can be claimed against tax. These include, among other things, the cost of household help. However, in order to be able to deduct these costs from tax, certain requirements must be met:
The household help must work in your household and submit a proper invoice.
Payment must not be made in cash, but by bank transfer or other electronic means of payment.
You must be able to claim and substantiate the expenses on your tax return.
The tax rebate you can receive is 20 percent of the labor costs, up to a maximum of 4,000 euros per year. This means that you can deduct up to 20 percent of the expenses for household-related services, including the cost of a domestic helper, from your tax liability.
It is important to note that the tax rebate is only available if the household help is legally employed. This means that the domestic help must either be registered with you or arranged through an agency that pays the appropriate social security contributions.
In order to receive the tax rebate for private domestic help, you must declare the costs in your income tax return. There are different attachments for this, depending on whether you are required to file an income tax return or wish to file one voluntarily. In the annex "Household-related expenses" you can declare the costs for the household help and claim the tax rebate.
For more information, feel free to read through Quitt's article.
