Self-Receipt (Eigenbeleg) in Germany 2026: When You Can Use It and How to Write One

Lost your receipt, no parking ticket printed, tipped a waiter without one – every self-employed founder and GmbH director eventually needs an Eigenbeleg, a self-issued receipt. The German tax office accepts it as a fallback if you fill it out correctly. You don't get the input VAT back, though. Here's when an Eigenbeleg is allowed in 2026 and what it must contain.

Key facts at a glance

• An Eigenbeleg replaces a missing original receipt – but only when no original exists or it is demonstrably lost.
• You cannot reclaim input VAT with it. For that the tax office needs a proper invoice under § 14 UStG.
• Seven mandatory fields make the Eigenbeleg GoBD-compliant: date of expense, creation date, recipient, precise description, gross/net amount with VAT rate, a reason, and your signature.
• Up to roughly €250 (small-amount threshold) the tax office usually accepts Eigenbelege without questions. Larger amounts get scrutinized.
• Retention: 8 years – since the Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act (BEG IV) cut the period for booking receipts from 10 to 8 years from 2025.
• Handwritten is fine – unlike a proper invoice. Frequent Eigenbelege are still a red flag in an audit.

What is an Eigenbeleg?

An Eigenbeleg is a self-issued receipt that proves a business expense for which no original receipt exists. The German principle is "no posting without a receipt" (keine Buchung ohne Beleg). When the original is missing, the Eigenbeleg substitutes for it – strictly as a fallback, not as a routine.

It documents the expense precisely enough that an auditor can follow the business reason even though the external receipt is gone. That saves the business-expense deduction – but not the input VAT deduction.

When is an Eigenbeleg allowed?

The tax office accepts Eigenbelege in two situations only:

• The original never existed (e.g. cash tip, coin parking meter, market stall, machine without a receipt function)
• The original was demonstrably lost or destroyed (washed receipt, faded thermal print, unreadable fuel slip)

Routine use because receipt capture is annoying isn't accepted. During a tax audit, frequent Eigenbelege get flagged quickly – and are usually struck.

The decision path is actually simple: first check whether an original is obtainable. Only when that fails does the Eigenbeleg come into play.

Mandatory fields in 2026

For an Eigenbeleg to be GoBD-compliant, it must contain the following. The examples show how specific you should be:

Tip: write the Eigenbeleg as close to the event as possible – same day if you can. Backdated entries look constructed. A sequential number or a clear link to the booking makes it even more audit-proof.

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No input VAT on an Eigenbeleg

Important: an Eigenbeleg lets you deduct the expense as a business cost, but you cannot reclaim input VAT. The tax office needs an original invoice with VAT shown and all mandatory invoice fields. If the original is lost, the only way to save the VAT is to ask the supplier for a duplicate.

The difference in numbers: book €100 net via Eigenbeleg and you save part of your income tax through the business-expense deduction – but the €19 VAT is gone. With an original invoice you reclaim those €19 through the VAT return. That's why the duplicate is almost always worth the effort.

Amount limits and frequency

There is no statutory maximum amount for an Eigenbeleg. In practice the tax office follows the small-value invoice threshold of €250 gross (§ 33 UStDV): below that, plausible Eigenbelege are usually accepted without questions.

Rule of thumb: if more than 10% of your monthly expenses are booked via Eigenbelege, that's a warning sign – and a reason to redesign your receipt workflow.

Eigenbeleg vs. Bewirtungsbeleg (hospitality receipt)

The two are often confused but aren't the same. For a business meal, the Eigenbeleg never replaces the machine-printed restaurant invoice – that has been mandatory since the BMF letter of 30 June 2021. Here an Eigenbeleg only comes in additionally, for the cash tip.

Real-world examples

• €5 tip at a business dinner → Eigenbeleg allowed (amount, recipient, reason) – on top of the restaurant invoice
• €2 parking at a meter that doesn't print → Eigenbeleg allowed
• €80 restaurant bill lost → ask for a duplicate; otherwise Eigenbeleg without VAT deduction
• Office supplies on Amazon → never an Eigenbeleg, always request the original invoice (it's in your account)

Common mistakes with Eigenbelege

These are what cost you the deduction most often in an audit:

• Reclaiming input VAT anyway – the most common mistake. An Eigenbeleg carries no deductible VAT.
• Vague reason – "hospitality" instead of "business meal with client Müller, Relaunch project". The more specific, the safer.
• Written too late – noted down weeks later, the receipt looks constructed and stands out immediately.
• Eigenbeleg instead of a duplicate – for a lost invoice, request the duplicate first, otherwise the VAT is gone.
• Missing signature or creation date – then a mandatory field is missing and the receipt is contestable.

Can an Eigenbeleg be purely digital?

Yes – an Eigenbeleg can exist only digitally if it is GoBD-compliant:

• stored immutably with an audit trail
• uniquely linked to the bookkeeping entry
• retained for 8 years (since BEG IV; the period for booking receipts dropped from 10 to 8 years from 2025)

Norman creates Eigenbelege right in the app: tap "missing receipt", enter the reason and amount, and the digital Eigenbeleg is linked to the booking. More on the AI bookkeeping page.

Norman + GoBD-compliant receipt capture

Eigenbelege should be the exception. With receipt management and the receipt scanning app, you capture originals in seconds – VAT included. Everything is stored in a GoBD-compliant way, with a clean audit trail for tax audits. Bookkeeping is always free.

Frequently asked questions about the Eigenbeleg

Can an Eigenbeleg be handwritten?

Yes. Unlike an invoice, which must be machine-generated, you may fill out an Eigenbeleg by hand – reason, amount and signature in pen are fine. What matters is that all mandatory fields are complete and legible.

Up to what amount does the tax office accept an Eigenbeleg?

There is no statutory limit. In practice, amounts up to roughly €250 (the small-amount threshold under § 33 UStDV) are considered unproblematic. For larger amounts the tax office looks more closely – always try to get a duplicate from the supplier.

Can I reclaim input VAT with an Eigenbeleg?

No. An Eigenbeleg only supports the business-expense deduction. For input VAT the tax office needs a proper invoice under § 14 UStG with the VAT shown.

How often may I issue Eigenbelege?

There is no fixed number, but they are the exception. If they pile up – especially for the same expense type – the tax office reads it as poor receipt discipline and looks closer. As a guide: more than 10% of monthly expenses via Eigenbelege is too much.

How long must I keep an Eigenbeleg?

8 years. Since the Fourth Bureaucracy Relief Act (BEG IV), the retention period for booking receipts – which includes Eigenbelege – was cut from 10 to 8 years from 2025.

Bottom line

An Eigenbeleg saves the posting when the original receipt is missing – but only as a fallback and without VAT deduction. Get the mandatory fields right, write it the same day, and keep the volume small. If you find yourself reaching for the Eigenbeleg form often, your receipt workflow needs fixing – before the tax office fixes it for you.