German municipalities achieved a record high in trade tax revenues for 2024, totaling approximately 75.3 billion euros, according to data released Thursday by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis). This represents a slight increase of around 0.2 billion euros, or 0.2 percent, compared to the previous year.
The rise continues a trend of growth observed since 2021, following a decline in 2020 attributable to the initial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. This marks a new peak in trade tax income since record-keeping began in 1991.
Regional variations were notable, with Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and Rhineland-Palatinate experiencing the most significant increases in trade tax revenue, at 9.8 percent and 9.0 percent respectively. Among the city-states, Bremen saw a 13.5 percent rise.
However, more than half of Germany’s federal states reported a decline in trade tax revenues compared to the previous year. Saxony-Anhalt registered the steepest decrease at -9.9 percent, followed by Saarland and Thuringia, each experiencing a -5.0 percent reduction. Hamburg (-9.3 percent) and Berlin (-3.2 percent) also saw declines among city-states.
Alongside trade tax, revenues from property tax also increased. Municipalities collected a total of 0.4 billion euros in property tax A (levied on agricultural and forestry assets), a 2.9 percent increase year-on-year. Property tax B, levied on properties outside of agriculture and forestry, generated 15.6 billion euros in revenue, up 3.8 percent.
A reform of property tax rules came into effect January 1, 2025, featuring newly established assessment rates. This follows the introduction of a clause allowing individual states to adjust rates within the framework of the property tax reform, a provision several states have now utilized.
Overall, German municipalities generated approximately 91.4 billion euros in real estate tax revenue in 2024, combining trade and property taxes. This represents an increase of 0.8 billion euros, or 0.8 percent, compared to 2023.
The assessment rates set by municipalities for trade and property taxes (A and B) are key determinants of their overall real estate tax revenue. In 2024, the average municipal trade tax assessment rate was 409 percent, two percentage points higher than the previous year. The average assessment rate for property tax A rose by seven percentage points to 362 percent, while the average assessment rate for property tax B increased by 13 percentage points to 506 percent over the same period.
