- The reduced VAT rate for restaurant and catering services will expire on December 31, 2023.
- The three political parties supporting the government could not agree on extending the reduced tax rate.
- Starting from January 1, 2024, restaurants will have to charge 19% VAT on their services.
- It is uncertain whether restaurants will pass on the tax increase to their customers.
- The delivery of food will still be subject to the reduced tax rate.
- There are questions about how to tax restaurant services on the night of December 31, 2023, and January 1, 2024.
- The Federal Ministry of Finance has issued a non-objection regulation to avoid transitional difficulties.
- The regulation allows the continued application of the reduced tax rate for restaurant services, except for the sale of beverages, on the night of December 31, 2023, to January 1, 2024.
- This regulation is similar to previous simplifications during the expiration of reduced tax rates.
- There is expected to be little dispute in practice regarding the application of the reduced tax rate during this period.
Source: awb-international.de
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
