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 an annex of the German income-tax return (Einkommensteuererklärung) used to declare income from German real estate you rent out. One Anlage V form per property. The numbers are summarized in your main return and taxed at your personal income-tax rate.

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

Yes. German real-estate income is German-sourced and taxed in Germany regardless of your residence. Non-residents are taxed under beschränkte Steuerpflicht (§49 EStG). The Grundfreibetrag does not apply, so from the very first euro of net rental income you owe tax — typically 15 to 25 % after AfA and expenses.

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 building portion over 50 (or sometimes 33 or 40) years. Under §7 Abs. 4 EStG: 2 % per year for buildings completed after 1925, 2.5 % for pre-1925, and 3 % for new construction after 2023. Land (Grund-und-Boden) cannot be depreciated — typically 20 % of the purchase price.

7. The ELSTER submission

ELSTER is Germany's online tax portal. You create an account, verify by postal code, receive a certificate file, and use it to log in. Select the correct tax year, open Einkommensteuererklärung, add Anlage V, copy the values from our PDF field-by-field, and submit. Receive a Bescheid within 4 – 12 weeks.

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. Late filing triggers a Verspätungszuschlag of 25 €/month plus 0.25 % of unpaid tax — file on time, even an approximation beats nothing.