Administrative services A-Z

Forms: yes
Online procedure possible: no
Written form required: yes
Personal appearance required: no

• "Application - Tax warehouse keeper for beer" (Form 2000)
• "Business declaration - tax warehouse for beer" (form 2001)
• "Application - registered consignor" (form 2736)
• "List of goods - registered consignor" (form 2737)
• "Application for permission for tax-free use" (Form 2740)
• "Application - registered recipient, permanent permit" (Form 2745)
• "List of goods - registered consignee"(Form 2746)
• "Application/permission - registered recipient in individual cases" (Form 2728)
• "Application - Authorized representative of a mail order company" (Form 2753)

The permit entitles you to handle beer that has not yet been taxed, for example as a producer or importer from European Union (EU) states.

Before granting a permit, the tax authorities generally check whether certain requirements are met, for example with regard to

• tax reliability
• accounting and
• the spatial and technical set-up of your business.

The check can relate to you personally - for example, as a managing director - or to other persons in your business who are relevant to the tax.

Depending on the constellation, you may need one of the following permits:

• Permit for a tax warehouse: you operate a tax warehouse for untaxed goods. A tax warehouse is a place approved by the main customs office where beer may be produced, processed, stored, received or dispatched.
• Permit as a "registered consignor": you ship goods from the place of importation for which beer tax is suspended.
• Permit for tax-free use: you use beer tax-free for commercial purposes.
• Permit as "registered consignee", one-time or permanent: You receive beer from abroad for which beer tax is suspended.
• Permission as an agent of a mail order company

Permission to handle untaxed beer products is usually only granted to traders. For all permits, you must be fiscally reliable. In addition, you must meet the following requirements:

For a tax warehouse permit:

• To the extent you are required to do so, keep proper commercial books and prepare timely financial statements.
• You may be required to deposit a security.
• If the tax warehouse is to be used exclusively for storage, you must
  • the annual stock turnover is expected to exceed 5,000 hectolitres, or
  • the storage period exceeds 1.5 months on an annual average.

For permission as a registered consignor:

• To the extent that you are required to do so and are not a body governed by public law, keep proper commercial accounts and prepare annual accounts in a timely manner.
• For transport to or via other member states: you provide a security, which depends on the amount of tax incurred.

For permission to use tax-free:

• The expected annual requirement must be more than 75 hectolitres of beer.
• Do you want to
  • Goods from a tax warehouse in another EU member state or
  • received from the place of importation in another member state under tax suspension,

you need a permit as a tax warehouse keeper or registered consignee.

For permission as a registered consignee for not only occasional receipt:

• To the extent that you are required to do so and are not a body governed by public law, keep proper commercial accounts and prepare financial statements in a timely manner.
• For permission to receive under suspension of excise duty: you provide a security in the amount of the tax incurred during one month.

For permission as a registered recipient to receive once:

• To the extent you are required to do so and are not a public law entity, you keep proper commercial books and prepare timely financial statements.
• You provide security, which is dependent on the amount of tax incurred.

For permission to act as an agent of a mail order company:

• To the extent that you are required to do so and are not a body governed by public law, you keep proper commercial books of account and prepare timely financial statements.
• You provide a security that is dependent on the amount of tax incurred.

As a rule, you need the following documents in duplicate for a permit:

• for registered companies: a current excerpt from the commercial or cooperative register
• for non-registered companies: a current copy of the business registration
• for civil law companies: a current copy of the articles of association, if available.

In addition, you will need the following documents in duplicate for your corresponding type of permit:

For a tax warehouse permit:

• Operating return for a tax warehouse (Form 2001).
• Site plans of the premises of the tax warehouse applied for with details of the addresses as well as the functions of the rooms, areas and facilities.

For permission as a "registered consignor":

• List of goods for registered consignors (Form 2737).
• List showing the places of importation on receipt of the excisable goods from third countries or third territories
• Presentation of the accounts of the dispatch and whereabouts of the excisable goods.

For permission as a user:

• Declaration of operation (Form 2741)
• Site plans showing the requested places of storage and use of the goods, including addresses
• Description of the bookkeeping, e.g. indication of the bookkeeping system.
• If no official usage book is to be kept, a description of the company's records of the usage transactions.

For permission as a "registered consignee for more than occasional receipt":

• List of Goods for Registered Recipients (Form 2746).
• Site plan of the premises showing the requested receiving location on the premises with address information
• Record of the receipt and whereabouts of the goods.
• List of tax classes of the beers to be received at the premises
• where appropriate, documentation to show that you are allowed to apply reduced rates of taxation

For permission as a "registered recipient for single receipt":

• An account of the receipt and whereabouts of the goods
• where appropriate, documentation to show that you are entitled to apply reduced rates.

For permission as an agent of a mail order company

• If you regularly supply beer on behalf of a mail-order company, you can apply for simplifications in your permit application with regard to the obligation to notify individual supplies and the submission of the tax return. To do this, you must submit a list of goods for agents of a mail-order company (Form 2754) as an attachment.

There are no costs for you for the issuing of permits.
A security deposit may be required.

You must apply for the permit in writing:

• Download the appropriate form for you from the website of the Generalzolldirektion:
  • "Application - tax warehouse keeper for beer" (Form 2000).
  • "Application - registered consignor" (Form 2736)
  • "Application - registered user" (Form 2740)
  • "Application - Registered Consignee, Permanent Permit" (Form 2745)
  • "Application - registered consignee in individual case" (Form 2728)
  • "Application - Agent of a Mail Order Merchant" (Form 2753).
• Complete the forms in full and send them by post to your local main customs office.
• The main customs office will examine your application.
• You will receive a decision in the form of a permit or a refusal.

The main customs office responsible is the one from whose district you operate your business or, if you do not operate a business, the one in whose district you are resident. If your business is operated from a location outside Germany or if you do not have a place of residence in Germany, the main customs office in whose district you first appear for tax purposes is locally responsible.

You must always obtain permission before starting the requested activity. This means that you must apply for permission well in advance.

• § Section 5 (1) of the Beer Tax Act (BierStG)
• § Section 6 (2) of the Beer Tax Act (BierStG)
• § Section 7 (2) of the Beer Tax Act (BierStG)
• § Section 21 (4) of the Beer Tax Act (BierStG)
• § Section 23a (1) of the Beer Tax Act (BierStG)
• §§ Sections 4 to 9 Ordinance on the Implementation of the Beer Tax Act (BierStV)
• § Section 11 Ordinance on the Implementation of the Beer Tax Act (BierStV)
• §§ Sections 13 to 14 Ordinance on the Implementation of the Beer Tax Act (BierStV)
• § Section 37 Ordinance on the Implementation of the Beer Tax Act (BierStV)
• §§ Sections 39 to 39d Ordinance on the Implementation of the Beer Tax Act (BierStV)

Not applicable

• Information on beer tax on the website of the customs administration
• Information on the tax warehouse keeper on the website of the customs administration
• Information on the registered consignor on the website of the customs administration
• Information on the user on the website of the customs administration
• Information on the registered consignee on the website of the Customs Administration
• Information on mail order on the website of the customs administration

Federal Ministry of Finance