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Any discrepancies in totals are due to rounding. ¹ Supplementary budget pursuant to the Act Adopting a Supplement to the Federal Budget for the 2021 Fiscal Year (Gesetz über die Feststellung eines Nachtrags zum Bundeshaushaltsplan für das Haushaltsjahr 2021) of 3 June 2021 (Federal Law Gazette I No 29, p. 1410). ² As per accounts. ³ With the exception of expenditure on the repayment of debt incurred on the credit market, allocations to reserves and expenditure made to cover a cash deficit. Excluding expenditure from internal offsetting. ⁴ With the exception of revenue from loans on the credit market, withdrawals from reserves, revenue from cash surpluses and seigniorage. Excluding revenue from internal offsetting.
⁵ Negative values denote accumulation of reserves.
⁶ (-) debt repayment; (+) borrowing.
Source: Federal Ministry of Finance
Federal revenue for the period from January to September 2021 totalled approximately €233.1bn, up by 4.4% (about €9.8bn) on the year, but still about €22.7 below the figure for the same period in 2019. Tax receipts (taking into account transfers of own resources to the EU) in the first nine months of the year were up by 7.0% (about €14.3bn) on the year. Revenue from income tax and corporation tax rose by 15.9% (about €15.4bn), while the yield from value added taxes increased by 14.5% (about €10.5bn) on the year. Revenue from the solidarity surcharge was down by 40.5% (about €5.5bn), largely due to the abolition this year of the solidarity surcharge for approximately 90% of wages tax and income tax payers. Tax revenue growth was also tempered by the trend in payments to the EU (GNI-based own resources and VAT-based own resources), which were up by about €7.8bn on the year.
The category of “other revenue” was down by 22.1% (about €4.5bn) on the year in the January–September period. This was mainly due to the fact that the Federation’s share (€2.5bn) of the Bundesbank’s net profits was not remitted. Fines collected by the Federal Cartel Office were also down by about €0.8bn on the year. Furthermore, the figures for the period reflect the absence of dividend payments by Deutsche Bahn. In 2020, Deutsche Bahn paid the Federation a dividend of €650m.
Measures to counteract the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects are having a significant impact on budget execution in 2021. Federal expenditure in the first nine months of 2021 totalled approximately €366.4bn, up by 23.9% (about €70.6bn) on the year. A breakdown by economic category shows that higher spending in the January–September period was driven mainly by consumption spending, which was up by 20.8% (about €56.4bn). Ongoing grants to public administrations and social security funds, along with subsidies to businesses, accounted for most of this increase. Grants to public administrations rose by 61.0% (about €18.8bn), due mainly to a €16.0bn grant that was allocated to the special fund for reconstruction aid (Aufbauhilfe 2021) in September 2021. Subsidies to businesses climbed by 46.1% (about €17.1bn) on the year. Most of this increase consisted of assistance to businesses affected by the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. About €31.2bn of the funds earmarked for this purpose were disbursed by 30 September 2021. Grants to social security funds were up by 15.6% (about €16.9bn) on the year in the first three quarters of 2021. This includes a €12.2bn year-on-year increase in disbursements to the health fund to cover pandemic-related costs. These grants also include €3.0bn in disbursements to the health fund’s liquidity reserves for a programme to future-proof hospitals, which was established this year; this is the full amount that was budgeted for this purpose.
Investment spending in the first nine months of 2021 totalled €39.5bn, an increase of 56.4% (about €14.2bn) over the same period last year. The main factor driving this increase was liquidity assistance provided to the Federal Employment Agency, which was booked in the form of loans and increased by approximately €13.0bn on the year. In contrast, fixed asset investment was down by 47.3% (about €3.4bn) due to a decline in spending on construction projects. The year-on-year decline in construction spending is due mainly to a special factor that will affect the entire year: since the beginning of 2021, investments in trunk road construction have been outsourced to Autobahn GmbH des Bundes (Federal Autobahn GmbH). The necessary funds are being provided to Autobahn GmbH des Bundes in the form of investment grants, which rose by approximately €2.4bn on the year in September 2021. Approximately €5.5bn has been earmarked for these investment grants in 2021. As a result, about €4.7bn less has been budgeted for construction investment in 2021 than in 2020 (and about €4.2bn less than the amount that was actually spent on construction investment in 2020).
The federal budget recorded a deficit of €133.3bn for the period from January to September 2021.
Revenue and expenditure are subject to strong fluctuations over the course of the fiscal year and thus have an uneven effect on cash funds in individual months. Net borrowing also tends to fluctuate considerably over the course of the year. This means that the fiscal balance at any given point in the year and the corresponding net borrowing figures are not reliable indicators of the end-of-year figures for the fiscal balance and net borrowing.
Trends in federal expenditure by function
Trends in federal expenditure by function
General public services
95,479
21.6
103,911
19.0
64,328
67,722
+5.3
Economic cooperation and development
12,127
2.7
12,324
2.3
5,910
6,782
+14.8
Defence
45,471
10.3
47,019
8.6
30,867
31,759
+2.9
Government, central administration
19,199
4.3
22,707
4.1
14,580
15,759
+8.1
Revenue administration
5,342
1.2
5,922
1.1
3,896
4,285
+10.0
Education, science, research, cultural affairs
28,645
6.5
31,829
5.8
15,668
17,318
+10.5
Support for school and university students and training programme participants
6,045
1.4
5,182
0.9
2,573
3,411
+32.5
Science, research and development outside of higher education institutions
15,236
3.4
18,207
3.3
8,623
8,995
+4.3
Social security, family affairs and youth, labour market policy
218,365
49.4
284,649
52.0
170,045
219,884
+29.3
Social security funds including unemployment insurance
129,829
29.4
134,149
24.5
103,173
122,610
+18.8
of which:
General pension insurance
93,004
21.1
97,401
17.8
76,065
79,682
+4.8
Health insurance
15,884
3.6
19,010
3.5
11,842
14,755
+24.6
Unemployment insurance
6,913
1.6
3,350
0.6
3,940
16,940
+330.0
Labour market policy
40,876
9.3
45,360
8.3
27,928
31,794
+13.8
of which:
Basic income support for jobseekers under Book II of the Social Code
20,658
4.7
23,700
4.3
15,810
16,938
+7.1
Government housing and heating allowances under Book II of the Social Code
10,097
2.3
11,200
2.0
5,092
7,725
+51.7
Family assistance, welfare services, etc.
10,343
2.3
11,395
2.1
7,766
8,353
+7.6
Social benefits for the consequences of war and political events
2,039
0.5
2,269
0.4
1,641
1,676
+2.1
Other social affairs
24,149
5.5
79,621
14.5
21,136
47,170
+123.2
Health, environment, sport, recreation
19,001
4.3
25,114
4.6
15,741
11,710
-25.6
Housing, urban development, regional planning and local community services
1,783
0.4
2,972
0.5
902
1,098
+21.7
Housing, home ownership savings premium
893
0.2
1,675
0.3
619
827
+33.6
Food, agriculture and forestry
1,469
0.3
2,611
0.5
537
974
+81.6
Energy and water management, trade and services
5,509
1.2
14,620
2.7
4,032
3,726
-7.6
Regional support measures
1,400
0.3
2,968
0.5
671
727
+8.5
Mining, manufacturing and construction
2,316
0.5
1,491
0.3
2,198
571
-74.0
Transport and communication
22,961
5.2
33,683
6.1
14,225
15,283
+7.4
Roads
9,791
2.2
9,815
1.8
6,018
4,768
-20.8
Railways and public transport
8,156
1.8
16,321
3.0
4,844
5,504
+13.6
Financial management
48,585
11.0
48,336
8.8
10,338
28,703
+177.6
Interest expenditure and borrowing-related expenditure
6,457
1.5
10,267
1.9
5,549
4,944
-10.9
Total expenditure²
441,798
100.0
547,726
100.0
295,816
366,419
+23.9
¹ Supplementary budget pursuant to the Act Adopting a Supplement to the Federal Budget for the 2021 Fiscal Year (Gesetz über die Feststellung eines Nachtrags zum Bundeshaushaltsplan für das Haushaltsjahr 2021) of 3 June 2021 (Federal Law Gazette I No 29, p. 1410).
² With the exception of expenditure on the repayment of debt incurred on the credit market, allocations to reserves and expenditure made to cover a cash deficit. Excluding expenditure from internal offsetting.
Source: Federal Ministry of Finance
Trends in federal expenditure by economic category
Trends in federal expenditure by economic category
Consumption expenditure
391,450
88.6
461,191
84.2
270,587
326,950
+20.8
Human resources expenditure
35,409
8.0
35,960
6.6
26,726
28,087
+5.1
Salary payments
26,249
5.9
26,817
4.9
19,438
20,719
+6.6
Pensions
9,160
2.1
9,144
1.7
7,289
7,368
+1.1
Operating expenditure
36,370
8.2
44,823
8.2
22,472
23,831
+6.0
Maintenance of immovable property
1,801
0.4
1,164
0.2
1,215
712
-41.4
Military procurement
16,833
3.8
18,155
3.3
9,340
9,425
+0.9
Other
17,736
4.0
25,504
4.7
11,917
13,695
+14.9
Interest expenditure
6,413
1.5
10,261
1.9
5,506
4,919
-10.7
Ongoing grants and subsidies
312,053
70.6
366,125
66.8
214,892
268,992
+25.2
to public administrations
75,607
17.1
40,670
7.4
30,819
49,608
+61.0
to other areas
236,446
53.5
325,455
59.4
184,073
219,384
+19.2
of which:
Companies
49,569
11.2
104,429
19.1
37,044
54,108
+46.1
Pensions, benefits, etc.
30,735
7.0
36,535
6.7
23,469
25,210
+7.4
Social security funds
134,613
30.5
153,495
28.0
108,844
125,786
+15.6
Other asset transfers
1,205
0.3
4,022
0.7
991
1,121
+13.1
Investment expenditure
50,348
11.4
59,268
10.8
25,229
39,469
+56.4
Financial assistance
38,756
8.8
51,165
9.3
18,105
35,716
+97.3
Grants and subsidies
30,652
6.9
39,856
7.3
13,673
16,525
+20.9
Loans, guarantees
7,630
1.7
6,680
1.2
4,424
18,867
+326.5
Acquisition of holdings; capital contributions
473
0.1
4,628
0.8
9
323
-
Fixed asset investment
11,592
2.6
8,103
1.5
7,124
3,753
-47.3
Construction projects
8,192
1.9
4,554
0.8
5,111
2,288
-55.2
Acquisition of movable assets
2,816
0.6
3,412
0.6
1,638
1,419
-13.4
Acquisition of real property
585
0.1
137
0.0
375
45
-88.0
General reduction/increase in expenditure
0
0.0
27,267
5.0
0
0
X
Total expenditure²
441,798
100.0
547,726
100.0
295,816
366,419
+23.9
¹ Supplementary budget pursuant to the Act Adopting a Supplement to the Federal Budget for the 2021 Fiscal Year (Gesetz über die Feststellung eines Nachtrags zum Bundeshaushaltsplan für das Haushaltsjahr 2021) of 3 June 2021 (Federal Law Gazette I No 29, p. 1410).
² With the exception of expenditure on the repayment of debt incurred on the credit market, allocations to reserves and expenditure made to cover a cash deficit. Excluding expenditure from internal offsetting.
Source: Federal Ministry of Finance
Income tax and corporation tax
(incl. final withholding tax on interest and capital gains)
140,012
45.0
134,358
43.7
97,188
112,604
+15.9
of which:
Wages tax
89,075
28.6
84,651
27.5
60,685
63,810
+5.1
Assessed income tax
25,067
8.1
24,814
8.1
18,205
21,313
+17.1
Non-assessed tax on earnings
10,761
3.5
9,200
3.0
7,919
9,744
+23.0
Final withholding tax on interest and capital gains
2,976
1.0
2,794
0.9
2,252
3,279
+45.6
Corporation tax
12,134
3.9
12,899
4.2
8,127
14,458
+77.9
Value added taxes (VAT)
94,391
30.3
114,323
37.2
72,786
83,333
+14.5
Trade tax apportionment paid to Federation and Länder
1,574
0.5
1,789
0.6
869
1,132
+30.3
Energy duty
37,635
12.1
39,850
13.0
23,068
22,375
-3.0
Tobacco duty
14,651
4.7
14,190
4.6
10,164
10,274
+1.1
Solidarity surcharge
18,676
6.0
9,950
3.2
13,530
8,055
-40.5
Insurance tax
14,553
4.7
14,890
4.8
12,188
12,531
+2.8
Electricity duty
6,561
2.1
6,880
2.2
4,793
4,950
+3.3
Motor vehicle tax
9,526
3.1
9,545
3.1
7,426
7,417
-0.1
Alcohol duty including alcopops duty
2,249
0.7
2,102
0.7
1,533
1,440
-6.1
Coffee duty
1,060
0.3
1,070
0.3
753
779
+3.5
Aviation tax
292
0.1
630
0.2
226
320
+41.6
Sparkling wine duty and intermediate products duty
428
0.1
394
0.1
289
247
-14.5
Other taxes accruing to the Federation
1
0.0
2
0.0
1
2
+100.0
Deductions
Consolidation assistance for the Länder
1,067
X
800
X
1,067
800
-25.0
Supplementary grants to Länder
8,751
X
9,179
X
6,530
7,653
+17.2
EU own resources (GNI-based)
25,616
X
33,280
X
16,399
22,814
+39.1
EU own resources (VAT-based)
2,473
X
4,430
X
1,975
3,326
+68.4
Grants to Länder for public transport
11,457
X
9,268
X
9,217
6,951
-24.6
Grants to Länder for motor vehicle tax and HGV toll
8,992
X
8,992
X
6,744
6,744
-
Other revenue
27,831
8.9
23,290
7.6
20,418
15,899
-22.1
Revenue from economic activity
7,263
2.3
5,352
1.7
5,055
2,175
-57.0
Interest revenue
364
0.1
385
0.1
251
249
-0.8
Loan repayments, holdings, privatisation proceeds
1,342
0.4
1,253
0.4
913
852
-6.7
Total revenue²
311,085
100.0
307,314
100.0
223,301
233,071
+4.4
¹ Supplementary budget pursuant to the Act Adopting a Supplement to the Federal Budget for the 2021 Fiscal Year (Gesetz über die Feststellung eines Nachtrags zum Bundeshaushaltsplan für das Haushaltsjahr 2021) of 3 June 2021 (Federal Law Gazette I No 29, p. 1410). ² With the exception of revenue from loans on the credit market, withdrawals from reserves, revenue from cash surpluses and seigniorage. Excluding revenue from internal offsetting.
Source: Federal Ministry of Finance
2021 trends in tax revenue (excluding local authority taxes)
2021 trends in tax revenue (excluding local authority taxes)¹
Joint taxes
Wages tax²
16,727
33.6
155,494
2.6
211,300
+1.0
Assessed income tax
16,876
20.5
50,146
17.1
61,150
+3.7
Non-assessed taxes on earnings
1,475
48.1
19,498
22.8
21,400
-0.5
Final withholding tax on interest and capital gains
(including the former withholding tax on interest income)
803
71.7
7,451
45.6
7,500
+10.9
Corporation tax
8,745
54.4
28,916
77.9
28,150
+16.0
Value added taxes
22,117
21.3
181,957
10.9
245,400
+11.8
Trade tax apportionment paid to Federation and Länder
2
15.4
2,657
26.7
4,419
+16.3
Increased trade tax apportionment
0
X
0
X
0
X
Total joint taxes
66,744
28.6
446,119
12.1
579,319
+6.4
Taxes accruing to the Federation
Energy duty
3,434
-1.8
22,375
-3.0
39,150
+4.0
Tobacco duty
1,145
10.5
10,274
1.1
14,460
-1.3
Alcohol duty
182
-3.2
1,438
-5.6
1,935
-13.5
Insurance tax
743
6.1
12,531
2.8
14,890
+2.3
Electricity duty
555
22.6
4,950
3.3
6,740
+2.7
Motor vehicle tax
747
-3.3
7,417
-0.1
9,545
+0.2
Aviation tax
80
262.4
320
41.7
450
+54.1
Solidarity surcharge
1,473
-28.6
8,055
-40.5
10,050
-46.2
Other taxes accruing to the Federation
117
-2.7
1,031
-2.1
1,401
-6.6
Total taxes accruing to the Federation
8,477
-4.2
68,391
-7.5
98,621
-6.6
Taxes accruing to the Länder
Inheritance tax
730
-12.8
6,940
8.5
8,500
-1.2
Real property transfer tax
1,551
22.3
13,518
14.4
16,700
+4.0
Betting and lottery tax
187
9.2
1,632
10.6
2,170
+6.2
Beer duty
52
-28.2
438
8.0
585
+3.3
Other taxes accruing to the Länder
41
4.0
439
5.3
522
+2.4
Total taxes accruing to the Länder
2,561
7.2
22,968
12.0
28,477
+2.5
EU own resources
Customs duties
429
7.4
3,556
2.3
4,950
+5.3
EU own resources (VAT-based)
370
113.1
3,326
68.4
4,430
+79.1
EU own resources (GNI-based)
2,584
62.0
22,814
39.1
33,290
+30.0
Total EU own resources
3,382
56.1
29,696
35.9
42,670
+30.1
Federation³
32,349
19.9
219,398
6.2
293,760
+3.8
Länder³
36,499
23.7
253,620
9.7
324,596
+2.6
EU
3,382
56.1
29,696
35.9
42,670
+30.1
Local authorities’ share of income tax and value added tax
5,980
23.0
38,320
5.5
50,341
+0.5
Total tax revenue (excluding local authority taxes)
78,211
23.1
541,034
9.1
711,367
+4.3
¹ Methodology: Total cash income from the various taxes is recorded and allocated to the various government levels as stipulated by law. Tax amounts actually received in the current month by individual government levels may differ from the target amounts for technical reasons.
² After deduction of child benefit refunds by the Federal Central Tax Office.
³ After supplementary grants; any discrepancies with the table on trends in federal revenue are due to the methodology used (see footnote 1).
⁴ Results of the Working Party on Tax Revenue Estimates of May 2021.
Source: Federal Ministry of Finance
Total tax revenue (excluding local authority taxes) was up by 23.1% on the year in September 2021. This increase was largely due to higher revenue from joint taxes, which rose by 28.6% on the year. The strong growth in revenue from wages tax and value added taxes must be viewed in light of the very low baseline from the previous year. Tax revenue in September of last year was significantly lower due to (a) revenue shortfalls caused by the coronavirus crisis and (b) measures adopted as part of the Second Coronavirus Tax Assistance Act (Zweites Corona-Steuerhilfegesetz). Wages tax revenue in that month reflected payments of a one-time bonus for families with children (child bonus), and VAT revenue was significantly reduced by the temporary cut in VAT rates in the second half of 2020. Revenue trends for assessed income tax and corporation tax were also very positive in September 2021, due in particular to major increases in prepayments. Revenue from taxes accruing solely to the Federation was down by 4.2% on the year in September, while receipts from taxes accruing to the Länder rose by 7.2%.
Transfers of own resources to the EU, including customs duties, were up by roughly €1.2bn (56.1%) on the year in September 2021. Drawdowns of GNI- and VAT-based own resources were higher than in the same month of 2020 due to the settlement of Germany’s contribution to the EU’s amending budget no 2/2021 (including financing for measures in connection with the Covid-19 pandemic and adjustments following the final adoption of the multiannual financial framework). In general, monthly requisitions are based on the annual EU budget that is in force for the respective year.
Cumulative overview of the January–September 2021 period
In the nine months from January to September 2021, total tax receipts (excluding local authority taxes) were up by 9.1% over the same period in 2020. Revenue from joint taxes rose by 12.1%, while receipts from taxes accruing solely to the Federation fell by 7.5%. Revenue from taxes accruing solely to the Länder grew by 12.0%.
Distribution among the Federation, Länder and local authorities
The Federation’s tax receipts (after accounting for supplementary federal grants to the Länder) were up by 19.9% on the year in September 2021. The Federation’s take from joint taxes grew by 33.0%. This was higher than the increase in overall revenue from joint taxes, which was up by 28.6%. This discrepancy is due to the fact that the Federation’s share of VAT revenue increased by 32.2%, even though overall VAT revenue was up by only 21.3%. Under section 1 (1) of the Fiscal Equalisation Act (Finanzausgleichgesetz), the Federation receives 52.81% of overall VAT revenue. This share is reduced by annual fixed amounts that the Federation allocates to the Länder and local authorities. Because the amounts of these allocations are fixed for a given year, this means that when VAT revenue goes up, the Federation’s share of VAT revenue goes up as well. Furthermore, the fixed amount that the Federation paid to the Länder in September 2021 was lower than the amount it paid in September 2020. Revenue from taxes accruing solely to the Federation were down by 4.2%. Transfers of own resources to the EU and supplementary federal grants to the Länder were both up sharply.
Länder tax receipts surged by 23.7% on the year in September 2021. Due to the above-described mechanism for distributing VAT revenue, the Länder posted lower rates of growth for VAT revenue (+15.4%) and revenue from joint taxes (+26.0%) than the Federation. The yield from taxes that accrue exclusively to the Länder posted a robust gain of 7.2%. In addition, supplementary federal grants to the Länder increased by 48.8% on the year, and federal subsidies to the Länder for public transport rose by 3.5%. Local authorities’ take from their share of joint taxes was 23.0% higher than in the same period last year.
Gross revenue from wages tax was up by 5.8% on the year in September, despite the reductions in revenue caused by tax relief measures for taxpayers in the current year (i.e. the increase in the basic personal allowance and the related shift in the other tax thresholds). This upward trend reflects the improvement in conditions on the labour market compared with last year.
Child benefit payments – which are financed from wages tax receipts – declined by 44.2% on the year. In September of last year, the disbursement of initial €200 instalments of the child bonus nearly doubled the overall amount of child benefit payments for that month.
Overall, cash receipts from wages tax posted a year-on-year gain of 33.6% in September. In cumulative terms, cash receipts from wages tax were up by 2.6% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
Gross receipts from corporation tax were up by 54.4% in September (a month when prepayments are due). Prepayments were up by 38% over the figure for September 2020, when prepayments were significantly lower due to prepayment reductions granted as part of the tax measures to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. Thanks to the positive performance of the economy, prepayments were about 7% higher than the pre-crisis levels recorded in September 2019. The gross figure for corporation tax revenue was then modified to account for small outgoing payments of the tax allowance for research and small incoming repayments of investment allowance. On balance, these amounted to roughly €1.3m and thus had only a marginal impact on cash receipts from corporation tax. Cumulatively, cash receipts from corporation tax were up by 77.9% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
As in the case of corporation tax, September is a month when prepayments of assessed income tax are due. Overall, receipts from this tax rose by 17.3% on the year in September. Here too, prepayment reductions granted in the context of last year’s crisis mitigation measures had led to significantly lower prepayment totals in September 2020. Prepayments in September 2021 were thus up by about 16% on the year, and up by about 9% over the pre-crisis levels of September 2019. Employee refunds, which are subtracted from the gross figure, were 32.1% lower on the year in September. Investment allowance payments, research allowance payments and owner-occupied homes premiums, which are insignificant in terms of amount, are also subtracted from the gross figure. Altogether, cash receipts from assessed income tax posted a year-on-year gain of 20.5% in September 2021. In cumulative terms, cash receipts from assessed income tax were up by 17.1% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
Gross receipts from non-assessed taxes on earnings were up by 37.7% on the year in September 2021. Refunds by the Federal Central Tax Office, which are financed from gross revenue, totalled about €44m (down by 59.2% on the year). Overall, cash receipts from non-assessed taxes on earnings recorded a year-on-year gain of 48.1% in September 2021. Cumulatively, cash receipts from non-assessed taxes on earnings were up by 22.8% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
Final withholding tax on interest and capital gains
Revenue from final withholding tax on interest and capital gains was up by 71.7% on the year in September. Cumulative cash receipts from this tax were up by 45.6% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
Revenue from value added taxes was up by 21.3% on the year in September 2021. Receipts from domestic VAT rose by 11.4%, while receipts from import VAT were up by 62.1%.
Companies are regularly granted permanent extensions for filing VAT returns and paying VAT. As a result, VAT revenue from July is not remitted by companies to the government until September. This means that, in 2020, September was the first month when the effects of the temporary reduction in VAT rates (which took effect on 1 July 2020) showed up in the cash statistics. Last year’s low baseline figure due to the VAT rate reduction accounts for the bulk of the revenue growth recorded in September 2021.
Cumulatively, cash receipts from value added taxes were up by 10.9% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
In September 2021, revenue from taxes accruing solely to the Federation was down by 4.2% compared with the same month last year. Energy duty, motor vehicle tax and alcohol duty all posted significant declines in revenue, falling by 1.8%, 3.3% and 3.2%, respectively. Revenue from the solidarity surcharge was down by 28.6% on the year, a decline driven by the surcharge’s partial elimination from 1 January 2021 onwards. In contrast, revenue was up sharply in the case of insurance tax (+6.1%), tobacco duty (+10.5%) and aviation tax (+262.4%). The surge in aviation tax revenue indicates that air traffic at German airports is growing again following a sharp contraction during the coronavirus crisis, although it still remains far below pre-pandemic levels. Trends in revenue from other taxes had only a minor impact on overall receipts from federal taxes. In cumulative terms, cash receipts from taxes accruing solely to the Federation were down by 7.5% on the year in the January–September period.
Receipts from taxes accruing solely to the Länder were up by 7.2% on the year in September 2021. Taxes posting revenue gains included real property transfer tax (+22.3%), fire protection tax (+4.0%) and betting and lottery tax (+9.2%). Beer duty revenue was down by 28.2%, while inheritance tax revenue fell by 12.8%. In cumulative terms, cash receipts from taxes accruing solely to the Länder were up by a total of 12.0% on the year in the first nine months of 2021.
Borrowing trends for the Federation (budget and special funds, excluding loan financing) in September 2021
Borrowing trends for the Federation (budget and special funds, excluding loan financing) in September 2021
in €m
Total
1,324,416
43,433
-42,448
1,325,400
985
1,256
broken down by purpose
Federal budget
1,280,617
38,377
-37,196
1,281,798
1,181
1,355
Financial Market Stabilisation Fund (loans for expenses pursuant to section 9 (1) of the Stabilisation Fund Act
22,769
2,047
-2,060
22,756
-13
-47
Investment and Redemption Fund
16,069
1,598
-1,598
16,069
-
-57
Economic Stabilisation Fund (loans for recapitalisation measures pursuant to section 22 of the Stabilisation Fund Act)
4,961
1,410
-1,593
4,777
-183
5
broken down by debt type
Conventional federal securities
1,234,287
39,568
-42,448
1,231,407
-2,880
965
30-year federal bonds
267,911
7,280
-
275,191
7,280
1,184
10-year federal bonds
574,405
7,068
-15,969
565,505
-8,901
-439
Federal notes
162,543
3,850
-
166,392
3,850
118
Federal Treasury notes
87,607
3,076
-10,885
79,798
-7,809
44
Treasury discount papers issued by the Federation
141,821
18,294
-15,595
144,520
2,700
58
Inflation-linked federal securities
63,185
667
-
63,851
667
217
30-year inflation-linked federal bonds
10,112
84
-
10,196
84
51
10-year inflation-linked federal bonds
53,073
583
-
53,656
583
167
Green federal securities
16,626
3,198
-
19,824
3,198
122
30-year green federal bonds
5,575
-
-
5,575
-
-
10-year green federal bonds
6,390
3,198
-
9,588
3,198
122
Green federal notes
4,661
-
-
4,661
-
-
Securitised loans
5,845
-
-
5,845
-
-48
Loans through repurchase transactions
-
-
-
-
-
-
Other loans and ordinary debts
4,474
-
-
4,474
-
-
Additional information
Liabilities from the indexing of inflation-linked federal securities
5,457
5,456
-1
-
Reserves in accordance with the Final Payment Financing Act (Schlusszahlungsfinanzierungsgesetz)
4,240
4,281
42
-
Liabilities resulting from indexing include the amount by which the original issuance price has increased due to inflation between the start date and the specified reference date.
In contrast, reserves include only the increases that are noted on coupon payment dates (15 April of every year) (section 4 (1) of the Final Payment Financing Act) and on reopening dates for inflation-linked securities (section 4 (2) of the Final Payment Financing Act).
Borrowing trends for the Federation (loan financing) in September 2021
Borrowing trends for the Federation (loan financing) in September 2021
in €m
Total
86,906
3,606
-2,100
88,413
1,506
69
broken down by purpose
Financial Market Stabilisation Fund (loans for resolution authorities pursuant to section 9 (5) of the Stabilisation Fund Act)
52,500
2,600
-2,100
53,000
500
72
Economic Stabilisation Fund (loans for KfW pursuant to section 23 of the Stabilisation Fund Act)
34,406
1,006
-
35,413
1,006
-3
Any discrepancies in totals are due to rounding.
Under section 9 (5) of the Stabilisation Fund Act, the Federal Ministry of Finance is empowered to borrow up to €60bn for the Financial Market Stabilisation Fund so that the Fund can grant loans to resolution authorities for the purpose of refinancing (as per section 8 (10) of the Stabilisation Fund Act) assets that they have taken over.
Such borrowing is neutral overall in terms of debt, because it replaces the funds that resolution authorities would otherwise have to borrow on the market. However, it does increase the debt level in federal securities.
Under section 24 (1) in conjunction with section 23 of the Stabilisation Fund Act, the Federal Ministry of Finance is authorised to borrow up to €100bn for the Economic Stabilisation Fund for the purpose of granting loans. Under section 23 of the Stabilisation Fund Act, the Economic Stabilisation Fund can grant loans to KfW for the purpose of refinancing the special programmes assigned to it by the federal government in response to the coronavirus crisis.