Budget deal reached: here's what we already know

After long political negotiations, the federal government reached a budget agreement on Nov. 24, 2025. The goal: additional sanitation of 9.2 billion euros by 2029.

Below is an overview of the most important measures as we know them today. Please note that this article is based on current information. We will keep you updated on further details, such as the implementation date of the measures.

Corporate Tax

• VVPR bis:
  • Reduced rate for profit distributions by small companies increases from 15% to 18%.
  • For VVPR-bis, the three-year waiting period remains in place to benefit from the reduced rate.
• Liquidation reserves:
  • With liquidation reserves, the withholding tax on distribution is also increased so that the total tax burden on 18% coming.
  • Distributions from liquidation reserves upon liquidation remain exempt from withholding tax.

• Stricter supervision of management companies:
  • Abuse will be dealt with more severely.

Limited wage indexing

• For wages < 4,000 euros gross and pensions/benefits < 2,000 euros:
  • No change: maintain full percentage wage index
• For wages > 4,000 euros gross:
  • In 2026 and 2028 the portion above 4,000 euros will be not indexed.
  • Employees in those years receive a fixed ‘penny index’ equal to the indexing at 4,000 euros (e.g., 2% at 4,000 = 80 euros).
  • Employers do charge half of the indexation above 4,000 euros, but remit it to the state treasury.
• For pensions and benefits > 2,000 euros gross:
  • There, too, the portion above 2,000 will not be indexed in 2026 and 2028.
• Wages of ministers and MPs:
  • No indexing during this legislature.
• Minimum wage:
  • Rises from April 1 with 50 euros by increasing the work bonus.

Tax on securities accounts

• Doubles from 0.15% to 0.30% for accounts over 1 million euros.

New and higher taxes

• Pakjestaks:
  • 2 euros per package from non-European webshops (e.g. Shein, Temu).
• Airline tax:
  • The general tax per ticket rises from 5 to 10 euros.
• Banking tax:
  • There will be a new levy.

VAT and excise tax reforms

• There will be no general VAT increase.
• Hotels, campsites, take-away meals, non-alcoholic beverages in hospitality and entertainment go To 12% btw.
• Cinema and festival tickets rise from 6 to 12% btw.
• Pesticides rise from 12% to 21%.
• Energy & fuel
  • Excise taxes on natural gas rise, which on electricity decline.
  • Excise taxes on diesel, gasoline and heating oil go up.

Social measures

• Sick periods count toward retirement, including for the pension malus.
• First year of work is as a full year counted For calculation of pension.
• Activation of the long-term sick:
  • Ambition to get 100,000 people back to work.
• Brake money:
  • Rises, but no details yet known.
• Health Care:
  • Growth standard lowered to 2.5%, but additional investment.

Other measures

• Tax cut shifted:
  • Some brought forward to 2028, some postponed to 2030.
• Fight against tax fraud:
  • National Tax Prosecutor's Office and 337 additional inspectors.
• Copyright system becomes less attractive:
  • Reimbursement through copyright is made less attractive, as the flat-rate cost deduction would be eliminated.
  • Only actual costs should still be deducted.
  • There will be reopening for the IT sector, though.

Summer agreement being implemented

For the 2026 budget, the basis of the previously concluded summer agreement preserved. This means that the planned measures around capital gains tax, pension reform and labor market reforms be effectively implemented.

There will be some refinements, however. For example, sick days will be taken into account when calculating the pension malus: periods of illness will count as years worked. In addition, a practical correction is provided for those who started later in the first year of work, such as September. That year will also count in full for the pension calculation.

Please note that these measures have also not yet been passed into law.