---
title: "Anlage KAP: when the tax return pays off for investors"
description: "The Anlage KAP explained: when Germany's investment-income annex is mandatory (foreign accounts), when it pays off voluntarily (Günstigerprüfung, allowance, losses) and how to proceed."
canonical: "https://investboard.de/en/wissen/anlage-kap-steuererklaerung"
language: "en"
published: "2026-07-09"
modified: "2026-07-09"
last_verified: "2026-07-27"
jurisdiction: "DE"
applicable_tax_years: "2026"
author: "David Bartas"
author_url: "https://investboard.de/ueber-uns"
reviewer: "David Bartas"
reviewed: "2026-07-27"
---

# Anlage KAP: when the tax return pays off for investors

Usually the bank settles the tax. The Anlage KAP is for the years in which it could not know everything.

## In short

The Anlage KAP is mandatory when investment income arrived without German withholding, above all with foreign brokerage accounts. It pays off voluntarily when money comes back: an unused saver's allowance, the Günstigerprüfung at a tax rate below 25%, or loss offsetting across banks (request the loss certificate by 15 December). The Günstigerprüfung can only lower your tax.

- The Anlage KAP is mandatory above all for income without German withholding (foreign accounts)
- It pays off voluntarily with an unused saver's allowance, a low tax rate (Günstigerprüfung) and losses spread across banks
- The loss certificate must be requested from the bank by 15 December
- The Günstigerprüfung can only lower your tax, never raise it

Most investment income in Germany is settled by the bank's withholding: the Abgeltungsteuer is named for the fact that it settles the matter. Still, there are years in which the Anlage KAP (the tax return's investment-income annex) pays off, and a few cases in which it is mandatory.

The good news: once you know the four or five typical constellations, you recognise your own year within minutes.

> The Anlage KAP is not a standing obligation for investors. It is a tool for the years in which the bank could not know everything.

## When the Anlage KAP is mandatory

In these cases investment income must go into the tax return, because no (or too little) tax was withheld:

- **Income without German withholding:** above all accounts and brokerage accounts abroad. A foreign broker withholds no German flat tax; the tax return takes over.
- **Church-tax liability without deduction at source:** if you blocked the automatic church-tax exchange (Sperrvermerk), the church tax is collected through the return.
- **Foreign funds without German custody:** for investment income without German withholding there is the supplementary **Anlage KAP-INV**.

A foreign brokerage account takes none of the tax logic away: the Vorabpauschale (advance lump-sum tax), partial exemption and loss offsetting all apply just the same, only you do the arithmetic yourself. For many, that is the hidden price of the cheap foreign broker.

## When filing voluntarily pays off

More common than the obligation is the voluntary filing, because money comes back:

- **Saver's allowance not used:** without an exemption order (or with a badly split one), the bank withheld from the first euro. The return reclaims the tax on the first EUR 1,000 (EUR 2,000 for jointly assessed couples).
- **Günstigerprüfung (favourable-assessment check, Section 32d(6) EStG):** if your marginal tax rate is below 25%, in a low-income year, as a student or in retirement, investment income is taxed at the lower personal rate on request. The tax office checks automatically whether it benefits you; the request can never leave you worse off.
- **Loss offsetting across banks:** losses at bank A can only be set against gains at bank B through the tax return. For that you need a **loss certificate (Verlustbescheinigung)**, which must be requested from the bank by **15 December** of the year.
- **Foreign withholding tax not fully credited:** whatever the bank could not credit at source can be claimed through the return.

## How to proceed in practice

Your bank's annual tax statement (Jahressteuerbescheinigung) is the source of almost every figure; the lines of the Anlage KAP mirror it.

1. **Get the annual tax statement** (often delivered automatically to the broker's inbox).
2. **Check which case applies:** mandatory (no withholding) or voluntary (refund likely).
3. **Fill in the Anlage KAP,** plus KAP-INV for foreign funds; copy the figures from the statement.
4. **Tick the Günstigerprüfung** if your tax rate could be below 25%; the check never works against you.
5. **Attach loss certificates** if you want to offset across banks.

| Constellation | KAP needed? | Typical outcome |
| --- | --- | --- |
| One account, exemption order fits | No | Nothing to do |
| Allowance unused or badly split | Voluntary | Refund |
| Marginal rate below 25% | Voluntary (Günstigerprüfung) | Refund |
| Losses and gains at different banks | Voluntary + loss certificate | Offsetting, refund |
| Foreign brokerage account | Mandatory (KAP, possibly KAP-INV) | Payment or refund |

## Estimate the tax burden

The bank calculates with what it sees. The Anlage KAP is where you complete the picture, usually in your favour.

## Common mistakes

- Missing the 15 December deadline for the loss certificate and waiting a year for the offset
- Not requesting the Günstigerprüfung although income was low
- Treating foreign income as settled although no German withholding took place
- Leaving refund cases unfiled out of convenience: it is your money

## Frequently asked questions

### When do I have to file the Anlage KAP?

It is mandatory above all when investment income arrived without German withholding, typically with foreign accounts and brokers, and for church-tax payers with a blocking notice. For foreign funds without German custody the supplementary Anlage KAP-INV applies.

### When is filing the Anlage KAP worthwhile voluntarily?

When money comes back: with an unused saver's allowance, with a personal tax rate below 25% via the Günstigerprüfung (favourable-assessment check, Section 32d(6) EStG), and with losses and gains at different banks. The check can only lower your tax, never raise it.

### What is the deadline for the loss certificate?

The Verlustbescheinigung (loss certificate) must be requested from the bank by 15 December of the year. Only with it can losses at one bank be offset against gains at another through the tax return; without it, the bank carries the loss forward internally into the next year.

## Sources

- [EStG § 32d Gesonderter Steuertarif für Einkünfte aus Kapitalvermögen](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__32d.html) · Bundesministerium der Justiz
- [EStG § 43a Bemessung der Kapitalertragsteuer (Verlustbescheinigung)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__43a.html) · Bundesministerium der Justiz
- [EStG § 44a Abstandnahme vom Steuerabzug (NV-Bescheinigung, Freistellungsauftrag)](https://www.gesetze-im-internet.de/estg/__44a.html) · Bundesministerium der Justiz