We constantly hear that there are huge taxes in Germany. Let's figure out if they are so huge and what they depend on
There are two types of employee deductions:
Social payments.
Income tax.
Social payments (part of the Angestellter employee is indicated):
9,3% - Pension Fund (Rentenversicherung), but not more than 7'100 € per month, in the eastern states from 6'700 €. We are, of course, talking about mandatory deductions. No one limits voluntary contributions to private pension funds.
7,3% – 8,65% – State health insurance (Gesetzliche Krankenversicherung), varies in different states. The maximum amount that must be paid into insurance in 2021 is 4 € per month or, accordingly, 837 € per year.
1,525% – Disability insurance (Pflegeversicherung). In Saxony, workers pay slightly more – 2,025%.
1,2% – In case of unemployment (Arbeitslosengeld)
Total: from 19,325%
SOCIAL DECLARATIONS from wages in most cases are paid 50% by the employee and 50% by the employer.
Income tax:
It is similar to the Russian personal income tax, depending on the composition of the family and the amount of income. Each taxpayer is entitled to a certain amount, with which no tax is required.
An adult living alone has a tax deductible amount of 9'408 €
Family of two adults – 18'816€
Family with 1 child - 27'204 € (Child adds 7'388 € to the non-taxable amount)
Family with 2 children – 35'592€
It can be seen that having a family and children makes it possible to avoid paying taxes from a larger amount. Conversely, one living working adult pays significantly more income tax on the same income than a family.
The graphs show the difference in the calculation of income tax for different family composition:
Consider 2 cases:
Example
Ivan Musterman earns 60'000 € per year. No family and children
Example
Mikhail Schmidt earns the same 60'000 € per year. Has a wife and 2 children
Total: Non-family Ivan will pay 27% of the tax, which is 16'236 €. The father of the family, Mikhail, will pay 9% of the tax, which is 5'119 €.
The difference is 11'117 € per year!
Of course, there are a lot of nuances, but in this case, the main approach is considered.
Well, are the taxes really that high?