# Can I claim Firmenfahrzeug (Company Vehicle) as a business expense in Germany?

**Yes, fully claimable.** Yes: company vehicles used exclusively for business are fully deductible. For mixed private/business use, either the 1% rule (Fahrtenbuch Pauschale) or an actual logbook (Fahrtenbuch) must be used to calculate and tax the private-use benefit. The most tax-efficient method depends on the vehicle's list price and extent of private use.

Typical amount: 1% rule: monthly private-use benefit = 1% of gross list price (including VAT). A €40,000 car creates €400/month benefit-in-kind, taxed at the employee's marginal rate. Plus 0.03% per km of home-to-work commute if applicable.

## What Federal Central Tax Office (BZSt) & Finanzämter says

§6 Abs. 1 Nr. 4 EStG (1% rule) and R 8.1 LStR (benefit-in-kind). For GmbH company cars, the benefit is taxed at the employee/Geschäftsführer level.

## When you can claim

- 100% of vehicle costs (depreciation, leasing, insurance, fuel, maintenance) for vehicles used exclusively for business
- Business portion of costs for mixed-use vehicles determined by Fahrtenbuch (logbook) method
- Electric vehicles (BEV): only 0.25% monthly of list price as private-use benefit (vs 1% for combustion). Plug-in hybrids: 0.5%
- Leasing costs fully deductible as operating expenses in the period incurred

## When you cannot claim

- Private use portion under the 1% rule: this is charged as a benefit-in-kind subject to income tax and social insurance on the employee/Geschäftsführer
- Vehicles stored predominantly at the owner's home without a Fahrtenbuch are presumed to be privately used: Finanzamt often challenges this

## Good to know

**Pro tip:** For expensive vehicles with high private use, the Fahrtenbuch (logbook) method often results in lower tax if documented correctly. For electric vehicles, the 0.25% rule makes company car provision extremely attractive, particularly for BEVs with list prices under €70,000.

**Important:** A Fahrtenbuch must be kept contemporaneously and in detail: date, departure point, destination, distance, business reason, and business contact for every trip. Incomplete logbooks are regularly rejected by the Finanzamt, reverting to the 1% default.

Source: https://www.bundesfinanzministerium.de/Content/DE/FAQ/2021-09-10-firmenwagen.html

## Related expenses

- [Reisekosten (Business Travel)](https://accounts-os.com/de/expenses/travel-expenses-de)
- [GWG und Computer (Equipment and Computers)](https://accounts-os.com/de/expenses/equipment-computers-de)