German federal budget revenues continue to rise, with a moderate 2.6 percent increase in May compared to the same month last year, according to the latest monthly report from the Federal Ministry of Finance, published on Friday morning.
While the two most significant revenue sources, income tax and value-added tax, both recorded a 9.2 percent increase, exceeding the average growth, the tax on capital gains and interest, for the first time since May 2023, showed no significant increase in the year-on-year comparison. The revenue from other community taxes was lower than in the same period last year.
Among the federal taxes, there was a slight decline in revenue in May compared to the same month last year. The revenue from the solidarity surcharge, tobacco tax, motor vehicle tax and electricity tax was lower than in the same period last year, while the revenue from the energy tax and insurance tax showed an increase.
The revenue from state taxes was approximately 4.5 percent higher in May than in the same month last year, mainly due to the real estate transfer tax. The revenue from this tax, like in the previous months, was in the range of 1.2 to 1.3 billion euros, representing a nearly 20 percent increase compared to the lower base of the previous year. Transactions subject to taxation in the real estate market are again stronger in the current year’s development than in the two previous years. In contrast, the inheritance tax, the second most significant state tax, showed a decline of almost 9 percent in May compared to the same period last year, which is typical of this type of tax, according to the Finance Ministry.