Deduct Internet Costs in Germany 2026: Share, VAT & Example
How self-employed people deduct internet costs in Germany: the realistic business share, why the home-office allowance does not cover your connection, and how to claim input VAT.
- Category
- Taxes
- Updated
- Author
- Diana
Fibre for €50 a month, maybe a second line for the office: your internet connection runs all year and adds up to €500–€700 for most self-employed people. You deduct the business share in full as a business expense, plus the input VAT if you are standard-rated.
Yet many leave money on the table here: they set the business share too cautiously, confuse the connection with the home-office allowance, or forget input VAT entirely. Over ten years that easily becomes a four-figure sum that stays with the tax office for no reason.
This guide covers how high the business share can realistically be, why the daily home-office allowance does not cover your internet contract, and how to claim the input VAT correctly.
In short: As a self-employed person you deduct the actual business share of your internet connection, not the €20 employee flat rate. Realistic shares are usually 40 to 70%, or 100% for a dedicated business line. If you are standard-rated, you also claim the proportionate input VAT. Justify the share in a short written note; the tax office does not demand an hour-by-hour log. The daily home-office allowance does not cover the connection – you deduct that on top.
Can you deduct your internet at all?
Yes: as soon as you use your internet for business too, the proportionate cost is a business expense. That applies to fixed lines (DSL, fibre) as well as mobile internet (data plans, mobile routers, dongles) and office connections. Unlike a laptop, which runs through immediate write-off or depreciation, an internet connection is a running cost: you book it month by month at the business share.
Watch the line to telephony: a combined mobile contract with data counts as telecommunications and belongs in Deducting phone costs. Here we cover the pure data connection, the line you actually work over.
How much can you deduct?
The question is not "how much?" but "how high is the business share?". With a single line used both privately and for work, you estimate the share realistically. These ranges are usually uncontested in practice:
| Profile | Realistic share |
|---|---|
| Full-time home office (developer, designer, copywriter, consultant) | 50–70 % |
| Self-employed with external meetings (coach, trainer, photographer) | 40–50 % |
| Side business (main job external, client work in the evening) | 20–30 % |
The share must match reality, but the tax office does not demand hour-by-hour records. Anyone who goes online exclusively for business, for example via a separate office line in the company name, deducts 100% and avoids any discussion in an audit.
If you want to claim more than 50%
The higher the share, the more likely the tax office takes a closer look. If you want to claim, say, 80%, a short usage log over three representative months is your strongest argument: you note roughly what proportion of your online time is business (client communication, cloud, research, uploads). If that consistently shows very high business use, you may carry the share across the whole year. Above 90% even a full deduction is possible, but the tax office will then usually ask for concrete proof. The cleanest route to 100% remains a second line used solely for the business.
Watch out: the €20 flat rate is not for the self-employed
Many guides cite a flat "phone and internet allowance" of 20% of the bill, capped at €20 per month (€240 a year). That is the employee simplification under R 9.1 LStR; as a self-employed person it is not meant for you.
Even if a tax office waves this flat rate through, it is almost always a losing deal: on a €50 tariff at 60% use your actual share is already €30 a month, well above the capped €20. You claim the actual business share and take every euro you genuinely use for work.
The home-office allowance does not cover the line
This is the most common mistake: the daily home-office allowance (€6 per day, capped at €1,260 per year for 210 days) covers using part of your home as a workplace. It covers room costs, not your work equipment and not the internet connection.
Internet, phone, laptop and office supplies are deducted in addition to the daily allowance. Even if you claim only the daily allowance rather than a fully separate home office, you do not lose your internet deduction. Both side by side are allowed.
Input VAT on internet costs
If you are standard-rated (not a small business under § 19 UStG), you also claim the stated VAT as input VAT. On a €50 gross tariff that is €7.98 VAT per month, at 60% business use €4.79 of input VAT each month. Conditions:
- A proper invoice with separately stated VAT (the PDF from your account portal is enough)
- The name and address match your business details
- Above €250 gross: the provider's tax number or VAT ID
You claim the input VAT in the VAT return for the month you receive the invoice. Small businesses book the gross amount as an expense but cannot claim input VAT.
The starter book for your self-employment
Free e-book: registration, accounting, your first invoice, and taxes, plus a tax calendar, deductions cheat sheet, and invoice template.
Router, installation and one-off costs
The monthly base fee is not the only thing you can deduct. Booking these items alongside it lifts your deduction noticeably:
- Router or modem: almost always under €800 net, so it is a low-value asset (GWG), fully deductible in the year of purchase, proportionate to your business share.
- Setup and connection fee: the one-off costs at the start of the contract are a running expense and belong in the year they are paid.
- Repeaters, mesh systems, network cables: also work equipment, treated as a GWG or bundled office equipment depending on price.
The same business share applies to all of these as to the connection itself, and if you are standard-rated you claim the input VAT with them.
Worked example: fibre at 60% business use
A fibre connection costs €49.99 gross per month and you use it 60% for business:
- Net business expense: €42.01 net × 12 × 60% = €302.47 per year
- Input VAT: €7.98 VAT × 12 × 60% = €57.46 per year
- Tax saving at a 35% marginal rate: around €163 per year
Over five years that is more than €800, for a line you pay for anyway. The difference between standard-rated and small-business treatment at a glance:
| Item | Standard-rated | Small business |
|---|---|---|
| Deductible as business expense | Net share (€302.47) | Gross share (€359.93) |
| Input VAT claim | yes (€57.46) | no |
| Effect | Net + input VAT separately | expense only |
Where do you enter it?
Self-employed people book internet as a business expense and enter it in the EÜR form under limited or unlimited deductible business expenses, in practice on the line for telecommunications or other operating costs. The input VAT runs separately through the VAT return. For how the deduction lands in your year-end return, see our overview of taxes for the self-employed.
Receipts and bookkeeping
Keep the provider invoices for 10 years and store a short justification of the share: "DSL line used 60% for business: client communication, cloud, research. 40% private." The tax office asks for no more in an audit.
Norman pulls your Telekom, Vodafone or 1&1 invoice straight from your bank account, categorises it as "telecommunications" and calculates input VAT and the business share automatically. You set the share once and the rest runs by itself.
Frequently asked questions
What share of my internet can I deduct as a self-employed person?
You claim the actual business share. For full-time home-office work, 50 to 70% is usually uncontested, 40 to 50% with external meetings, 20 to 30% as a side business. A dedicated business line is 100% deductible.
Does the €20 flat rate apply to the self-employed?
No. The 20% flat rate (capped at €20 a month) is the employee simplification under R 9.1 LStR. As a self-employed person you claim the actual business share, which is almost always higher.
Do I have to prove my internet use to the tax office?
A plausible share only needs a short written justification. If you want to claim a very high share (over 50 to 90%), a usage log over three months strengthens your position. A permanent hour-by-hour record is not required.
Can I deduct internet on top of the home-office allowance?
Yes. The daily home-office allowance (€6 per day, capped at €1,260 a year) only covers room costs. Internet, phone and work equipment are deducted in addition.
Do I get the VAT on my internet contract back?
Yes, if you are standard-rated. You claim the proportionate input VAT through the VAT return. Small businesses under § 19 UStG book the gross amount as an expense but cannot claim input VAT.
Conclusion
Deducting internet costs in 2026 means: set the business share realistically (usually 40–70%), justify it in writing, claim the input VAT if you are standard-rated, and avoid two myths: the €20 flat rate is for employees only, and the daily home-office allowance does not cover the connection. Do this cleanly and you recover a four-figure sum over the years.
Book the internet bill, claim the VAT – automatically
Norman pulls your Telekom, Vodafone or 1&1 invoice straight from your bank account, recognises it as telecommunications, splits out the business share and posts the input VAT into your VAT return. You set your share once, every recurring invoice books to the right account on its own. Bookkeeping and invoicing are free with Norman.