How to file your German Anlage V in English, step by step

1. What Anlage V actually is

Anlage V (“V” for Vermietung und Verpachtung — rent and lease) is the rental-income annex of the German income-tax return. A standard non-resident with German rental income starts from Hauptvordruck ESt 1 C and adds one Anlage V per rented property. Anlage V is not a standalone return, and Anlage V Easy prepares values rather than filing them.

2. Do I have to file if I'm a non-resident?

Yes. German real-estate income is German-sourced and falls under beschränkte Steuerpflicht for a standard non-resident case (§49 EStG). ELSTER provides ESt 1 C for this limited-tax-liability return. A separate option can move an eligible taxpayer to ESt 1 A treatment under specific conditions; do not choose that form merely because it is the familiar resident return.

3. What you need before starting

Prepare: purchase contract (for purchase price and acquisition date), notary invoice, bank proof of rental income (12 months of Kaltmiete + Nebenkosten), utility bills if borne by you as landlord, property-tax notice (Grundsteuerbescheid), insurance invoices, and interest statements for any mortgage. If you bought mid-year, AfA is pro-rated to the months of ownership.

4. Mieteinnahmen — how to compute gross rent

Declare the cash rent actually received during the calendar year (Zuflussprinzip — cash basis). Include the warm-rent allocations you collect from the tenant (heating, water, Hausgeld reimbursement). Exclude deposits (Kaution). If a tenant defaulted or the flat was vacant, declare only what you received.

5. Werbungskosten — every deductible expense

Deductible against rental income: Grundsteuer, property insurance, landlord liability insurance, property management fees (Hausverwaltung), repairs (Erhaltungsaufwand), bank fees for the rent account, travel to the property, your share of Hausgeld that is not apportioned to the tenant, and mortgage interest (but not principal).

• Grundsteuer (property tax)
• Insurance (Gebäudeversicherung, Haftpflicht)
• Repairs (Erhaltungsaufwand) — distinguish from anschaffungsnaher Herstellungsaufwand
• Mortgage interest (not repayment)
• Hausverwaltung / property-management fees
• Travel to the property (0.30 €/km)
• Legal and advisory fees connected to the rental

6. AfA — the depreciation that usually saves you tax

You cannot deduct the purchase price in year 1, but you can depreciate the documented building portion at the applicable linear rate. Under §7 Abs. 4 Nr. 2 EStG: 3 % applies from completion year 2023 (letter a), 2 % to buildings completed from 1925 through 2022 (letter b), and 2.5 % before 1925 (letter c). Land is never depreciable, and 80/20 is not an automatic default.

7. The ELSTER submission

ELSTER is Germany's official online tax portal. For a standard non-resident filing, select the income-tax return for limited tax liability (ESt 1 C), add Anlage V, and copy the prepared rental values field by field. If you are applying for treatment as subject to unlimited tax liability, ESt 1 A is a different route with its own eligibility evidence. Anlage V Easy never selects or submits the main return for you.

8. Deadlines and penalties

Regular deadline (§ 149 AO): 31 July of the following year if you file yourself, or the last day of February of the second following year if a Steuerberater files for you. The 2020–2023 tax years had COVID-era extensions; from tax year 2024 onward the standard deadlines apply again. Always check elster.de or the BMF letter for the year you're filing. For calendar-year returns, § 152(5) AO generally calculates the Verspätungszuschlag at 0.25 % of the assessed tax remaining after relevant advance payments and withholding for each started month of delay, with a minimum of 25 € per started month.