German restaurant VAT at 7% from January 2026
Since 1 January 2026 restaurant and catering services are taxed at the reduced rate of 7%, under section 12(2) number 15 of the Umsatzsteuergesetz. The exclusion is the important half: the reduced rate covers the food and not the drinks, so a bill with both has to be split and taxed at two rates. Unlike the 2020 to 2023 reduction, which was temporary and expired, this one is written into the Act with no end date.
The same amount in each German band
| Standard | 19.00% | 19/119 | €35.97 | €6.83 | €42.80 |
| Reduced | 7.00% | 7/107 | €40.00 | €2.80 | €42.80 |
| Solar installations | 0.00% | 0 | €42.80 | €0.00 | €42.80 |
An estimate, not legal advice. Rules vary by jurisdiction and change over time. Check the current position with a qualified professional before relying on it.
Food served in a restaurant is 7% from 1 January 2026; beverages served alongside it remain at 19%.
A mixed bill is two calculations, not one — run the food total and the drinks total separately.
Milk-based drinks with a high enough milk content are treated as dairy and follow the 7% food rate rather than the drinks rate.
How it works
The formula
Adding VAT to a netto price:
vat = round(netto x rate / 100)
brutto = netto + vat
Removing VAT from a brutto price:
vat = round(brutto x rate / (100 + rate))
netto = brutto - vat
German bands and their VAT fractions:
standard 19% 19/119 does not reduce
reduced 7% 7/107 does not reduce
solar 0% no tax
round = to the nearest cent, half up. There is no
round-down option, because German invoicing
grants no equivalent of the British concession.
Only the VAT is rounded. The third figure is derived from
the other two, so netto + vat = brutto to the cent, always.
What it assumes
- The three bands are the rates in force under section 12 of the Umsatzsteuergesetz. Which band a supply falls in is a published list in the annex to that Act, not a judgement about whether something is essential, so this tool applies a rate rather than classifying goods.
- Rounding is half up to the cent, always, and there is no option. German invoicing gives no equivalent of the British concession that lets an invoice trader round the tax down, so offering the choice would be inventing a rule.
- The 7% rate on restaurant and catering services from January 2026 is a reclassification rather than a new rate — the supply moved into the existing reduced band. Beverages were deliberately left out of it, so a single bill can carry two rates.
- Historic rates are not held here. The standard rate was 16% until 1 January 2007 and 16% again temporarily between July and December 2020, and both go in the "Another rate" field, which starts on 16.
- Figures are in euros because German VAT is denominated in euros. Nothing is converted and no exchange rate is applied anywhere.
Common questions
Does the 7% rate cover takeaway food as well?
Food sold to take away was already reduced-rated as a supply of goods, so the change matters for food consumed on the premises, which had been a standard-rated service. From January 2026 both sit at 7%, which removes the long-standing gap where the same dish was taxed differently depending on whether you sat down.
Is this the same as the reduction during the pandemic?
No. The 2020 to 2023 measure was a temporary relief with an expiry date, and the rate returned to 19% when it lapsed. The 2026 change is a permanent amendment to section 12(2) of the Umsatzsteuergesetz, so there is no scheduled end and no reversion built into the legislation.
Sources
Method written and checked by Tessalor on Jul 31, 2026.
The full method, worked example and every assumption behind this figure are on German VAT Calculator.