It is well known that land and real estate owners have many opportunities to convert the current tax benefits into hard cash. But even hobby gardeners can ask the tax authorities to pay with their annual tax return and save a lot of money completely legally. The basic requirement is that the tax return must be submitted by the deadline and that any refunds can only be claimed for the previous tax year.

Gardening expenses may be tax deductible

Starting this year, you have until July 31st to submit the documents for 2022 to the tax office, if a tax consultant is commissioned, or even until the end of February 2022. In addition, from 2022 there will no longer be any obligation to provide documents. The documents such as receipts, invoices and account statements only have to be kept and sent to the tax office upon written request.

How garden design becomes an "extraordinary burden".

The tax benefits are available to homeowners and their tenants as soon as they commission gardening. It is immaterial whether it is a matter of redesigning the garden or creating a new one. However, there are a few important principles that must be observed so that you can actually count on a refund:

  • The owner must live in the house belonging to the garden himself. It can also be a holiday home that is not usually used all year round and the property can even be in another European country as long as the main residence is in Germany.
  • The garden work that is taken into account must not take place at the same time as the construction of a new house or a conservatory.
  • A maximum of 20 percent of the wage costs incurred per year plus a maximum of EUR 1,200 are tax deductible.

In addition, the legislature defines important differences in the definition of household-related services and a craftsman's service, which must also be broken down on the tax return according to the type actually incurred.

Craftsmanship & household-related: the difference

Household-related services can recur at certain time intervals. A good example of this is mowing your lawn, which is done periodically by household members or commercial helpers. 20 percent of 20,000 euros would be deductible from your annual tax, which corresponds to a reimbursement amount of 4,000 euros per year. Craft services provided by companies, on the other hand, are of a one-off nature, such as repairing a boiler, building a new terrace on the house or constructing a well for the water supply. The invoiced wage costs, the material and the rental costs for construction machinery can be recorded for this purpose. The maximum amount per year is 2,000 euros. If higher costs are incurred, you can work with partial invoices or deductions over two years.

What else is important for tax relief

Please note that neighborly help cannot be taken into account here, since manual work must always be carried out by a registered company. Costs that arise outside your property, for example when clearing snow on the sidewalk or when trimming hedges on communal land, do not have a tax-reducing effect. Keep both the invoices AND the associated bank statements for at least two years. Avoid paying cash on receipts and instead use bank transfers to pay your handyman bills. For larger construction projects on the property or in the garden, a consultation with the tax advisor can be helpful.

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