Agricultural diesel

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As agricultural diesel is called in Germany diesel fuel in the, agriculture and forestry is consumed. According to the law on the introduction of a reimbursement of mineral oil tax for agriculture and forestry (Agrardieselgesetz - AgrdG) of December 21, 2000, companies in agriculture and forestry receive a partial reimbursement of the mineral oil tax (tax relief) for the proven consumption of diesel fuel from the responsible main customs office . The use of biodiesel and vegetable oil in agriculture and forestry is tax-free according to the Energy Tax Act. The tax refund when using these fuels is the same as for agricultural diesel, but there is no deductible or cap. The deductible and the cap have also been suspended for diesel fuels since 2008.

Aid scheme

Pursuant to Section 57 (1) of the Energy Tax Act, tax relief is granted on request for previously taxed gas oil that is used to operate agricultural vehicles and work machines to carry out work for the production of plant and animal products through land management and animal husbandry associated with land management. The tax relief is achieved through an annual refund of taxes already paid. Reimbursement is made on application for the eligible quantities of gas oil that the beneficiaries of the aid have consumed for production purposes during the previous tax year.

The tax relief is € 214.80 per 1,000 liters of gas oil. This means that the tax rate actually applied is € 255.60 per 1000 liters. The amount eligible for reimbursement is limited to 10,000 liters per calendar year, and reimbursement is only granted for consumption in excess of an amount of EUR 350 (deductible). The EU Commission suspended the upper limit of the reimbursement amount of 10,000 liters of diesel fuel for German farmers from January 1, 2008 to December 31, 2016, following Germany's applications.

As a result, the state is foregoing around € 400 million in taxes.

history

With the Agricultural Diesel Act passed by the red-green government on January 1, 2001, the earlier gas oil reduction under the Agricultural Gas Oil Usage Act of December 22, 1967, was replaced.

As of 2003, the mineral oil tax was 47.04 cents / liter, of which 15.34 cents / liter was an ecological tax . Farmers receive a payment of 21.48 cents / liter. Agricultural diesel was therefore taxed at only 25.56 cents / liter in Germany until 2004.

Since the application year 2005, a so-called “deductible” of € 350 per company has been deducted from the remuneration. In connection with the additional minimum limit of € 50, reimbursement claims up to € 400 were no longer paid out. Smaller companies with an annual consumption of less than 1862 liters therefore received no reimbursement. Larger companies could apply for relief until 2007 up to a maximum of 10,000 liters per company. In addition, agricultural and forestry operations that are subject to the sales tax flat-rate pay the valid VAT rate for the full mineral oil tax, while they are not reimbursed for the refund.

Suspension of the deductible and the upper limits for diesel fuel 2008–2016

With the law amending the Energy Tax Act of July 17, 2009 and after prior approval by the EU Commission of July 13, 2009, the deductible of € 350 and the limitation of the gas oil consumption that can be exempted to 10,000 liters per company for the application years 2008 (retrospectively) and Suspended in 2009 (insertion of Section 67 (10 ) EnergieStG ). The reason given for this was a “difficult economic environment”. Mainly due to the protests of dairy farmers, the grand coalition decided on tax breaks for German farmers. This measure reduced the tax burden from 40 cents to 25.56 cents for normal diesel fuel. The reimbursement is intended to strengthen the competitiveness of German agriculture and forestry compared to other EU member states (especially after the introduction of the eco-tax).

With the law amending the Energy Tax Act and the Electricity Tax Act of March 1, 2011, the deductible and the above were changed in accordance with Section 57 (6) EnergieStG . Restriction lifted again. The repeal was subject to the necessary state aid approval by the European Commission with effect from January 1, 2010. At Germany's request to the EU, which submitted an extension of the previous changes (suspension of deductibles, upper limit), the EU Commission approved these again on July 13, 2011 for the application year 2010 (retrospectively) and for the years 2011 up to and including 2013.

At the request of Germany, on May 2, 2013, the EU Commission again approved the suspension of the deductible and the upper limit of 10,000 liters for the application years 2014 up to and including 2016.

comparison

The taxation of diesel as well as the reimbursement is handled differently in the individual EU countries . A British farmer pays £ 0.1197 (€ 0.153) per liter, a French € 0.072, a Danish € 0.058 and a Belgian € 0.0. However, farmers in France, for example, are allowed to run their tractors on heating oil .

In Austria, too, there was or is a benefit for farmers through (partial) reimbursement of the mineral oil tax levied on diesel purchases. The argument is the dedication of the MÖSt for road construction.

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