Double household management for singles
January 2, 2015 | 30,00 EUR | answered by Anton Pernitschka
Dear Sir or Madam,
I am planning to claim tax relief for a second household ("relocation") and I kindly ask for your support.
Since 2010, I have been living with my partner in Berlin. I myself live in Frankfurt am Main. We are not married and do not plan to be.
I regularly stay at my partner's place in Berlin. However, he only visits me in Frankfurt around 5 times a year. Due to our individual personal and family situations, Berlin has become my main place of residence, which I now want to claim for tax purposes. I am not sure if this meets the legal requirements.
Due to the Berlin registration law, as a single person, I am unable to legally change my main residence to Berlin. Therefore, my primary residence remains in Frankfurt.
We will keep our current apartments. My apartment is 49 sqm, with a rent of 383.47 € cold and 560 € warm. My partner's apartment is 64 sqm, with a rent of 348.70 € cold and 540 € warm (cooperative housing, hence very affordable).
My workplace is in Langen, which is 30 km from Frankfurt and 570 km from Berlin.
I request essential points to consider for my specific situation, so that I can assess the chances of success. Additionally, I would like you to answer the following questions:
• How many trips to Berlin must I make monthly/yearly at minimum? Will trips of my partner to Frankfurt be counted, even though they cannot be claimed for tax purposes?
• When traveling to Berlin with a Bahncard 100 or carpooling (I do not have a car), no tickets/receipts are issued. Therefore, how do I prove to the tax office that I was in Berlin on weekend XY? Is a simple statement from my partner and me enough, or does the tax office require an affidavit?
• Is it necessary for me to be included in my partner's lease agreement?
• I have read that I must contribute to the housing costs of the primary residence by more than 10%. Does this need to be proven with bank transfer receipts, or is a statement/receipt from my partner sufficient for cash payments?
• Do you recommend clarifying/approving my situation with the tax office in advance or only claiming it with the tax assessment?
Thank you for your support.
Kind regards
Dear questioner,
In the context of an initial consultation and your fee commitment, in accordance with the regulations of this forum, I would like to answer your questions.
Advertising costs are also necessary additional expenses for an employee due to a work-related double household management according to § 9 para. 1 no. 5 EStG. A double household management exists only if the employee maintains a separate household outside the location of his first place of work and also lives at the location of the first place of work.
According to this definition, the conditions for a double household management do not apply to you, because you live in Frankfurt and not in Langen (place of work). The expenses incurred - travel costs, additional meal expenses, accommodation costs - are therefore considered private and not work-related.
However, trips between the apartment in Berlin or the second home in Frankfurt and the workplace in Langen are deductible as advertising costs under the commuting allowance (0.30 € per kilometer of distance). Usually, own records (e.g. relevant notes in a calendar) are sufficient as proof. Keeping a mileage log is not required. Commuting to family home is not deductible in these cases.
According to LStR R 9.10 para. 1, any apartment of the employee that he regularly uses for overnight stays and from which he commutes to his place of work is considered as the starting point for the commute. If an employee has multiple residences, commutes to and from the residence that is further away from the first place of work can only be considered if the center of the employee's life interests is there and it is not visited only occasionally. For an unmarried employee, the center of life interests is at the place where the closer personal relationships exist (e.g. the life partner). The location is recognized as the center of life without further examination if the taxpayer visits this apartment at least twice a month.
Your further questions are unnecessary, as no double household management exists according to the above criteria.
It is sufficient to claim the commuting trips between home and workplace as advertising costs in the income tax return.
The answer was given based on your description of the situation. Missing or incorrect information about the actual circumstances can affect the legal outcome.
Best regards,
Anton Pernitschka
Tax consultant
