Germany/Banking/Savings

Savings accounts pay interest on your money. There are two types:

• money market account (German: Tagesgeld) and
• fixed-term deposit account (German: Festgeld).

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Which type of saving account is right for me?

It depends on how accessible your money shall be:

• Money market (Tagesgeld) deposit accounts let you add and withdraw money all the time.
• Fixed-term or fixed deposits (Festgeld) let you access your money only after the term ends.

However, fixed deposits usually offer a higher interest rate.

Are the interest rates fixed?

• With money market accounts, the interest rate is not fixed. It can change from day to day.
• Fixed-term accounts offer a fixed interest rate.

However, you will notice that interest rates in the Eurozone are very low. If you consider investing into shares and ETFs, check the [[[Germany/Banking/Brokers|List of German Brokers]]].

Are interest payments taxed?

• Yes, in Germany capital gains from savings accounts are taxed with the Withholding Tax (Abgeltungsteuer).
• Basically, you pay 25% flat on your earnings.
• However, there's an allowance of €801 per year. It means that if you have earned less than €801 on interest payments in a year, you pay no Withholding Tax on this sum. Only earnings above will be taxed.
• When using a German bank for your savings, the bank automatically deducts your tax payments. If you want them to automatically respect your allowance, you can give them an exemption order (Freistellungsauftrag).

List of Money Market Accounts (Tagesgeld)

List of Fixed Deposit Accounts (Festgeld)

See also

• Withholding Tax (Abgeltungsteuer) on Capital Gains by germantaxes.de

Notes