Second home tax - change of personal data

• You are of legal age
• You are the owner of a secondary residence in the city of Stuttgart (any residence in addition to the main residence for the purposes of recreation, work, education or other personal needs). It is irrelevant whether the secondary residence is located in the same municipality as the main residence and whether the owner of the residence is actually registered or is possibly not fulfilling his/her registration obligations.

After you have registered your secondary residence in Stuttgart, we will generally send you the secondary residence tax declaration form. Please fill it out completely, sign it and send it back to the city treasurer’s office with the required supporting documents.

If you have not registered your second home as a secondary residence or have not received a form within six months, you must submit the tax return without being asked. Please use the secondary residence tax return form provided for this purpose.

For tax assessment purposes, all information on the assessment basis must be completed in the tax return and supported by suitable documentation.

The statutes on the second home tax of the City of Stuttgart provide for the following tax exemptions:

• Secondary residences that married persons or persons living in a registered civil partnership who are not permanently separated have for reasons of gainful employment, their (vocational) training or their studies, and not only on an irregular or temporary basis, are exempt from tax if their jointly used main residence is located outside Stuttgart. Written proof of this, such as employment and training contracts or study certificates, must be submitted. Unmarried persons and persons not living in a registered civil partnership are always liable for tax, even if they maintain the second home for professional reasons and their main home is located outside Stuttgart.
• Second homes that are used to care for people in need of care or disabled people and are located in nursing homes or comparable facilities are also exempt from tax. Furthermore, apartments provided by public or non-profit organizations for therapeutic purposes or for educational purposes as a youth welfare measure are tax-exempt. The exemption also applies if the main residence is located in one of the aforementioned facilities.
• Exempt from tax are also secondary residences that students or persons still in training occupy with their parents or one of their parents, provided that the main residence is located at the place of study or training.

The tax exemption can be applied for in the tax return. Please do not forget to enclose the required evidence (see tax return form and instructions for completing the form) with your return.

Second home owners are obliged to submit a tax declaration form to the municipal treasury of the state capital

• submit a tax return form and provide supporting documents.
• The tax return must be signed in person by the taxpayer or their representative. If this declaration is only signed by the representative, a power of attorney must be enclosed.
• provide written evidence of the reasons for a tax exemption and notify us in writing within one month if a reason for tax exemption no longer applies.
• report all changes that affect the amount of tax (e.g. changes in the amount of rent, etc.) immediately in writing, provide information on the extent of the changes and submit written documentation on request.
•  Tax return (opens in a new tab)

Detailed information on the second home tax can be found in the  statutes on the levying of the second home tax in the state capital of Stuttgart dated December 3, 2009 (ZwWStS) (opens in a new tab) (PDF, 29.14 kb, 7 pages).

Please also refer to the information sheet  “Frequently asked questions about the second home tax (PDF, 264 kb, 2 pages)” (opens in a new tab) and the “Instructions for filling out the form (PDF, 504 kb, 1 page) (opens in a new tab)”.

Tax scale

The tax amounts to 10 percent of the annual net cold rent (= rent excluding ancillary costs).

Calculation example:
Monthly rent 200 euros x 12 months = 2,400 euros annual rent,
of which tax rate 10 percent = 240 euros second home tax per year.

All forms of a contractually agreed transfer fee count as rent, for example rent, lease, usage fee, ground rent, life annuity. If a gross cold rent (including ancillary costs without heating costs) has been agreed, a reduction of 10 percent is applied. If a gross warm rent (including ancillary costs and heating costs) has been agreed, a reduction of 20 percent will be applied.

For second homes that are provided rent-free or at a reduced rate or are owner-occupied, the local net cold rent is estimated on the basis of the rent index of the state capital Stuttgart for comparable apartments and used as the basis for assessment.

There are no reductions for certain groups of people, for example pensioners, students, people with no or low income. Personal circumstances do not play a role in the assessment of the tax. The only thing that matters is the existence of a second home in addition to the main home, regardless of by whom and with what means this special expense of a second home is financed.

Payment options

According to Article 105 (2a) of the German Basic Law (GG), the federal states have the power to legislate on local consumption and expense taxes. The federal states have regularly passed this sovereign right on to the municipalities.

Pursuant to Section 9 (4) of the Municipal Tax Act for Baden-Württemberg (KAG BW), the municipalities may levy local consumption and expenditure taxes as long as and insofar as they are not similar to taxes regulated by federal law, are levied by the state or are reserved for the urban districts and rural districts.

The legal basis for levying the second home tax in the state capital of Stuttgart is § 9 Para. 4 KAG BW in conjunction with the statutes on the levying of the second home tax (Second Home Tax Statutes - ZwWStS) in the state capital of Stuttgart dated December 3, 2009, as amended.

 Statutes on the levying of a second home tax (PDF, 29.14 kb, 7 pages) (opens in a new tab)