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Transfer tax calculator
Calculate German Grunderwerbsteuer for your property purchase by state or postcode.
Transfer tax
€21,000
6 %Transfer tax rate
Calculations are indicative only and do not constitute a financing offer. No guarantee of accuracy. This tool does not replace professional legal, tax, or financial advice.
How do you calculate Grunderwerbsteuer (real estate transfer tax)?
Grunderwerbsteuer (real estate transfer tax) = purchase price × the rate of the federal state the property is in. On a purchase price of €350,000 at 6.0%, that is €21,000. The calculator sets the rate as soon as you pick a federal state or enter a postcode.
The tax base is the value of the consideration (§ 8 Abs. 1 GrEStG, the Transfer Tax Act). In an ordinary purchase that is the purchase price plus anything else you take on (§ 9 GrEStG), for example debts of the seller.
Agent, notary and land register fees are not part of the tax base. The calculator lists them separately and adds them to the tax to give the total closing costs.
How high is the transfer tax in each German federal state?
Each federal state sets its own rate (Art. 105 Abs. 2a GG, the German constitution). The calculator works with rates from 3.5% to 6.5%: Bavaria is at the bottom with 3.5%, and North Rhine-Westphalia, Brandenburg, Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein are at the top with 6.5%.
What counts is where the property is, not where you live. On €350,000 the gap between the lowest and the highest rate is €10,500: €12,250 at 3.5% and €22,750 at 6.5%.
The states change their rates from time to time. Before the notary appointment, check which rate applies on the day the contract is notarised.
When is no transfer tax due?
Exempt cases include purchases up to €2,500 (§ 3 Nr. 1 GrEStG), acquisitions from your spouse or registered partner (§ 3 Nr. 4 GrEStG) and from relatives in the direct line, for example from your parents (§ 3 Nr. 6 GrEStG). Inheritances and gifts are also exempt (§ 3 Nr. 2 GrEStG), although inheritance or gift tax may be due instead.
The calculator does not know these exemptions. It always applies the full rate.
The tax office sends the assessment after notarisation. Only once the tax is paid does it issue the Unbedenklichkeitsbescheinigung (clearance certificate), without which you are not entered in the land register as owner (§ 22 GrEStG).
Worked example
Purchase price €350,000, federal state Berlin, tax rate 6.0%.
Transfer tax: €350,000 × 6.0% = €21,000.
Agent commission 3.57%: €12,495. Notary & land register 2%: €7,000.
Total closing costs: €21,000 + €12,495 + €7,000 = €40,495.
Guide
How it works
Enter purchase price
Enter the planned purchase price of the property.
Choose location
Select the federal state or enter a postcode — the tax rate is applied automatically.
Read the result
See transfer tax and total closing costs instantly.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
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