National regimes

Kleinunternehmer (Germany, Austria)

Regime specific to Germany, Austria

The German and Austrian small business VAT exemption. Businesses under the national turnover limit issue invoices without VAT and file no VAT returns.

What Kleinunternehmer (Germany, Austria) means

Kleinunternehmerregelung is the name of the small business scheme in Germany (section 19 UStG) and Austria (section 6 UStG). A business whose turnover stayed under the national limit in the previous year and is not expected to exceed a higher limit in the current year does not charge VAT, does not deduct input VAT and, in Germany since 2025, does not file annual VAT returns. The invoice must state that the exemption applies.

The regime is optional; a business can waive it and is then bound to normal VAT for five years, which makes sense when customers are VAT registered or large investments are planned. Since 2025 both countries implement the EU cross-border variant, so a German or Austrian small business can use the exemption in other member states, and businesses from other countries can use it in Germany and Austria, subject to the EUR 100 000 EU-wide ceiling. Kontevia applies the exemption in invoicing and VAT summaries for users who select it.

This is a national regime of Germany, Austria. Other EU countries have their own equivalents; see small business scheme and flat-rate scheme.

Related terms

Small business scheme (VAT exemption)A simplification that exempts businesses under a turnover limit from charging VAT, filing regular VAT returns and deducting input tax.VAT registration thresholdThe annual turnover below which a business may stay outside VAT. Set nationally, so it differs widely across the EU.VAT (value added tax)A consumption tax charged on most goods and services in every EU country, collected by businesses and paid to the tax authority.XRechnungThe German national profile of EN 16931, mandatory for invoices to German public bodies and one of the accepted formats for the German B2B mandate.

This entry is general information, not tax advice. Rules change; check the current position with your adviser or the tax authority of your country.

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Kontevia applies these rules for you

Rates, thresholds and e-invoicing formats come from the jurisdiction data of your country. You send the document, Kontevia books it and keeps the VAT summary ready.

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