Every month your employer gives you a payslip (Gehaltsabrechnung or Lohnabrechnung), on paper or digitally. The layout varies between companies, but the logic is always the same: gross pay → taxes → social insurance → net pay → amount paid out.
At the top: your personal details
These details should be correct, because your deductions are based on them:
- Steuerklasse (tax class): single people are usually in class I, married couples in III/V or IV/IV. A wrong class means the wrong tax every month.
- Steuer-ID (tax ID) and SV-Nummer (social insurance number)
- Kinderfreibeträge (child allowances), if you have children
- Konfession (religion): "rk" or "ev" means you pay church tax. If you aren't a church member, there should be a dash.
- Krankenkasse: your health insurance fund
Gross pay (Bruttobezüge)
This part lists everything you earned:
- Grundgehalt / Stundenlohn: basic salary, or hours × hourly rate
- Zuschläge: extra pay for nights, Sundays and public holidays – tax-free within limits
- Überstunden: paid overtime
- Sachbezüge: benefits in kind such as a public transport ticket (Jobticket) or meal allowance
- Einmalzahlungen: one-off payments such as a Christmas or holiday bonus
The total is your Gesamtbrutto. You may also see a "steuerpflichtiges Brutto" (taxable gross) and an "SV-Brutto" (gross for social insurance); tax-free extras can make them differ.
Taxes (Steuern)
- Lohnsteuer: income tax, based on your gross pay, tax class and allowances.
- Solidaritätszuschlag (SolZ): solidarity surcharge. Since 2021 most employees no longer pay it; only high earners do.
- Kirchensteuer (KiSt): church tax, 8% (Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg) or 9% of your income tax – only if you are a registered church member.
Social insurance (Sozialversicherung)
Contributions to the four insurances are usually split half and half between you and your employer. Your payslip shows only your share:
| Insurance | Abbreviation | Your share (approx.) |
|---|---|---|
| Pension insurance (Rentenversicherung) | RV | 9.3% |
| Unemployment insurance (Arbeitslosenversicherung) | AV | 1.3% |
| Health insurance (Krankenversicherung) | KV | 7.3% plus half of your fund's additional contribution (Zusatzbeitrag) |
| Long-term care insurance (Pflegeversicherung) | PV | 1.8%; a little more if you are over 23 and have no children |
Rates can change every year; your health insurance fund's website has the current figures. For very high salaries, contributions are only charged up to a ceiling (Beitragsbemessungsgrenze).
From net pay to payout
- Nettobezüge / Nettoverdienst: gross pay minus taxes and social insurance
- Nettoabzüge: other deductions from net pay, e.g. savings schemes (vermögenswirksame Leistungen), advances or the canteen
- Auszahlungsbetrag / Überweisungsbetrag: the amount that actually reaches your account
Minijobs and midijobs are different
- Minijob (up to €603 a month in 2026): usually no tax and no social insurance deductions – only your share of pension insurance, and you can apply to be exempted from that.
- Midijob (€603.01 to €2,000): your social insurance contributions are reduced on a sliding scale.
What to check on your payslip
- Are your tax class and religion correct?
- Are all your hours and overtime included?
- Do the extras (nights, Sundays, holidays) match your contract?
- Is your hourly pay at least the minimum wage (€13.90 in 2026)?
- If something is wrong, tell payroll or HR in writing – and watch out for cut-off periods in your contract.
Keep your payslips: you may need them for your pension, when renting a flat, applying for a loan or at the immigration office. At the end of the year you also get a Lohnsteuerbescheinigung (annual tax statement). If you file a tax return (Steuererklärung), you often get money back.
Frequently asked questions
Why was so much tax deducted from my first salary?+
Often your employer doesn't have your tax ID yet and has to apply tax class VI temporarily. Once your details are there, the tax overpaid is usually corrected.
How long should I keep my payslips?+
At least until your tax return is settled – and ideally much longer for your pension records. A digital copy is fine.
Is half of my gross pay deducted?+
No. On an average salary in tax class I, deductions are usually around a third. The exact share depends on your pay, tax class, children and church tax.
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