Vorabpauschale Calculator
Work out in seconds how much tax Germany's advance lump-sum charge (Vorabpauschale) will take from your ETF, including the base rate, partial exemption, saver's allowance and church tax.
1Your holdings
€
The redemption price of your units at the start of the year. With several funds, calculate each fund separately.
€
Actual or expected year-end value, it caps the Basisertrag at the real gain for the year.
€
For accumulating ETFs: 0. Distributions are subtracted from the Vorabpauschale.
2Year, fund type & church tax
Tax year
Base rate (Basiszins) 2026: 3.2 %, set each year by the German Federal Ministry of Finance from the Bundesbank yield curve.
Fund type (partial exemption)
Partial exemption: 30 % of the Vorabpauschale stays tax-free (equity funds ≥ 51 % stocks: 30 %, mixed funds ≥ 25 %: 15 %).
Church tax
3Allowance & purchase timing
€
€1,000 per person, €2,000 for joint filers, minus any exemption orders already used elsewhere.
When you bought the units
Vorabpauschale 2026
0.00 €
Your exemption order fully covers the Vorabpauschale, nothing will be debited.
Basisertrag (value on 1 Jan × 3.2 % × 70 %)1,120.00 €
Vorabpauschale1,120.00 €
Taxable after partial exemption (30 %)784.00 €
Saver's allowance applied−784.00 €
Tax base0.00 €
Total tax (26.38 % incl. solidarity/church surcharge)0.00 €
Without an exemption order, 206.78 € would be due. Your saver's allowance saves you the entire debit.
With a 1,000 € exemption order, a portfolio in this fund class stays completely tax-free in 2026 up to roughly 63,776 €.
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How to
How to use the Vorabpauschale calculator
1
Enter the fund value on 1 January
What counts is the redemption price of your units at the start of the year. If you hold several ETFs, calculate each fund on its own, the Basisertrag and the gain cap apply per fund, not per portfolio.
2
Add the year-end value and distributions
The value on 31 December decides whether the Basisertrag gets capped at the actual gain. For distributing funds, also enter the year's distributions, they directly reduce the Vorabpauschale.
3
Pick year, fund type and church tax
The base rate is set fresh every year (2026: 3.20 %). Equity funds get a 30 % partial exemption, mixed funds 15 %. Church-tax payers choose 8 % (Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg) or 9 % (all other states).
4
Check your allowance and read the result
Enter how much of your saver's allowance is still unused. The result shows step by step how the Basisertrag turns into the tax your broker debits in early January.
Concepts
Understanding the Vorabpauschale: base rate, partial exemption & the January debit
What is the Vorabpauschale?
The Vorabpauschale is a notional minimum return that the German tax office has applied every year since the 2018 investment tax reform to funds and ETFs that don't distribute (or only partly distribute) their income. It makes accumulating funds taxable as you go rather than only at sale. Crucially, it is not an extra tax but a prepayment, every taxed Vorabpauschale is deducted from your gain when you eventually sell.
Basisertrag and the base rate
The Basisertrag is the calculation base: fund value on 1 January × base rate × 70 %. The Federal Ministry of Finance derives the base rate each January from the Bundesbank yield curve. Recent values: 2.29 % (2024), 2.53 % (2025), 3.20 % (2026). In 2021 and 2022 the base rate was negative, which is why no Vorabpauschale applied at all in those years.
When and how is it debited?
For tax purposes the Vorabpauschale counts as received on the first working day of the following year. Your broker calculates the tax automatically and debits it from your settlement account in early January, for tax year 2026, that means early January 2027. There is nothing to file or declare; just keep the account funded and your exemption order in place.
Accumulating or distributing?
Distributions are credited in full against the Vorabpauschale: if your fund pays out at least as much as the Basisertrag, no Vorabpauschale applies at all. That's why the rule mostly affects accumulating ETFs. With distributing funds you instead pay tax on the distributions themselves as they arrive, in the end, the law treats both variants roughly the same.
Partial exemption by fund type
To compensate for corporate tax already paid at fund level, part of the Vorabpauschale stays tax-free: 30 % for equity funds (at least 51 % stocks), 15 % for mixed funds (at least 25 %), 60 % for real-estate funds and 80 % for foreign real-estate funds. The partial exemption equally applies to distributions and capital gains, one reason a global equity ETF is tax-efficient in Germany.
Loss years: capped at the actual gain
By law, the Basisertrag is capped at the fund's actual gain for the year (including distributions). If your fund lost value, the Vorabpauschale is zero, nothing is debited. If it rose only slightly, at most that increase is applied. There is no catch-up in better years: each year stands on its own.
Credited at sale, no double taxation
All Vorabpauschale amounts you have paid tax on over the years are subtracted from your taxable gain when you sell the units. Your custodian bank tracks this automatically. Someone holding ETF units for decades doesn't pay more tax because of the Vorabpauschale, they just pay part of it earlier.
Worked example for an equity ETF in 2026
Base rate 3.20 %, partial exemption 30 %, accumulating, no exemption order: on €10,000 of holdings the Basisertrag is €224.00, €156.80 is taxable, and the tax is €41.36. On €25,000 it's €103.39, on €50,000 about €206.78, on €100,000 about €413.56, and on €250,000 about €1,033.90. With the full €1,000 saver's allowance, an equity-ETF portfolio stays completely tax-free in 2026 up to roughly €63,800.
Tips
How to minimise the January debit
Set up an exemption order
The biggest lever: with the full €1,000 saver's allowance, an equity ETF triggers no Vorabpauschale tax at all in 2026 up to roughly €63,800 of holdings. Split your exemption orders sensibly across your banks.
Fund the settlement account in January
The debit arrives automatically in early January. Keep the tax amount ready on the settlement account, this calculator shows you in advance how much it will be.
Don't fear double taxation
Every taxed Vorabpauschale is automatically deducted from your gain at sale. Long term you don't pay more tax, just earlier. The Vorabpauschale is no reason to sell an ETF.
Joint filers get €2,000
Married couples and registered partners filing jointly have double the saver's allowance. That keeps a joint equity-ETF portfolio free of Vorabpauschale tax up to roughly €127,600 in 2026.
Low income? Check the NV certificate
If your income is below the basic tax-free threshold, a non-assessment certificate (NV-Bescheinigung) exempts you from withholding tax entirely. Alternatively, the Günstigerprüfung in your tax return reclaims any excess tax paid.
Re-check the base rate every year
The base rate changes annually and is published in early January. Use the calculator's year selector, or enter the new figure via the Custom option as soon as it's announced.
FAQ
What is the Vorabpauschale, in simple terms?+
The Vorabpauschale is Germany's annual minimum taxation for funds and ETFs that don't distribute their income. The tax office pretends your accumulating ETF paid out a small return and taxes that notional amount. Everything taxed this way is credited back when you sell, so you don't pay more, you pay earlier.
How is the Vorabpauschale calculated for 2026?+
Fund value on 1 January 2026 × base rate of 3.20 % × 70 % gives the Basisertrag, capped at the actual gain for the year. For an equity ETF, 70 % of that remains taxable after the 30 % partial exemption, taxed at 26.375 % withholding tax including the solidarity surcharge. Example: €10,000 of holdings → €224.00 Basisertrag → €41.36 tax (without an exemption order).
When is the Vorabpauschale debited?+
In early January of the following year: the Vorabpauschale for 2026 counts as received on the first working day of 2027, and your broker automatically debits the tax from your settlement account in the first days of January. You don't need to declare or transfer anything yourself.
What is the base rate (Basiszins) for 2026?+
For 2026 the base rate is 3.20 %. For comparison: 2025 was 2.53 %, and 2024 was 2.29 %. The Federal Ministry of Finance publishes the figure each year in early January based on the Bundesbank yield curve.
What happens if my ETF is down for the year?+
Then no Vorabpauschale applies. The Basisertrag is legally capped at the fund's actual gain for the calendar year, with zero or negative growth, nothing is applied and nothing is debited. Loss years are not caught up in later years either.
Does the Vorabpauschale also apply to distributing ETFs?+
In principle yes, but distributions are credited in full. If the fund distributes at least as much as the Basisertrag, the Vorabpauschale is zero. In practice it therefore almost only affects accumulating funds and funds with very small distributions.
What if my settlement account doesn't have enough money?+
That depends on the broker: some let the account go negative, others ask you to top it up. If the tax cannot be collected, the custodian bank reports the case to the tax office, which then collects the tax from you directly. Easiest: fund the account in time or use your exemption order.
Is the Vorabpauschale credited when I sell?+
Yes. All Vorabpauschale amounts taxed in previous years reduce your taxable gain at sale. Your custodian bank handles this automatically. There is no double taxation, economically, the Vorabpauschale is just a tax prepayment.
What is the twelfth rule for mid-year purchases?+
If you buy units during the year, the Vorabpauschale shrinks by one twelfth for every full month before the month of purchase. A purchase in July, for example, means only 6/12 of the full Vorabpauschale. The calculator models this via the purchase-timing option.
Why was no Vorabpauschale debited in 2022 and 2023?+
Because the base rate for 2021 and 2022 was negative, without a positive base rate there is no Basisertrag and hence no Vorabpauschale. Only with rising interest rates was a positive base rate (2.55 %) set again for 2023, so the first debit in years happened in early 2024.
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Calculated per § 18 InvStG: Basisertrag = fund value on 1 January × base rate × 70 %, capped at the calendar year's gain including distributions; distributions reduce the Vorabpauschale. For mid-year purchases the twelfth rule applies (§ 18 (3)). Partial exemption per § 20 InvStG (equity funds 30 %, mixed funds 15 %). Tax rate: 25 % withholding tax plus 5.5 % solidarity surcharge; with church tax the withholding rate is reduced to 25 % ÷ (1 + 0.25 × church tax rate). No guarantee of accuracy.
§ 18, § 20 InvStG · base rate: annual BMF circular · illustrative, not tax advice