Apply for a refund of the motor vehicle tax for the transport of vehicles by rail

If you transport your vehicle by rail for a certain number of trips within a 12-month period, you can, under certain conditions, receive a full or partial refund of the motor vehicle tax.

If you have road vehicles transported by freight transport on railway tracks, you can have the motor vehicle tax refunded under certain conditions. Whether and how high the refund is depends on the number of trips within 12 months and the distance traveled.

Refund of motor vehicle tax

The tax for the transported vehicle

• Do you regularly have to pay in advance,
• cannot be postponed due to expected reimbursements and
• can only be refunded if you have submitted an application within 5 years. Otherwise, the claim will expire.

You can additionally apply for the reimbursement of the tax-relevant trailer surcharge, regardless of whether the vehicle was transported by rail alone or with a trailer. 

The following applies to the reimbursement and payment period:

• The reimbursement period is 12 months.
• This must coincide with the start of the payment period, i.e., the period for which you are paying motor vehicle tax. 
• As a vehicle owner, you can determine the payment period with which the decisive 12 months should begin.
• Reimbursement periods do not have to follow one another seamlessly. Therefore, any amount of time can elapse between individual reimbursement periods.
• If you permanently or temporarily take your vehicle off the road, you have the option to apply for a tax refund for a shorter period.

It is irrelevant for reimbursement purposes whether

• whether the vehicle was loaded or empty,
• the whole route or only part of it was traveled by train.

To receive a refund, you must apply for it online or in writing. The main customs office will review your application.

Online application in the customs portal:

• Open the website www.zoll-portal.de and register with your ELSTER account.
• As a business, you can create a business customer account using your ELSTER account or add a user account to an existing business customer account on the Customs Portal.
• If you have already created an account on the Customs Portal, log in using ELSTER or Zoll-Ident.
• Select the "Motor Vehicle Tax" service.
• Under the "Additional Services" section, select "Other Applications.".
• Finally, by using the button "Other applications and notices", you can "Start a new application".
• Enter all the necessary information.
• Upload the supporting documents.
• You can agree to receive the response to your application digitally via the customs portal.
• After processing, you can access the decision on your application there electronically.
• Upon approval, you will receive a refund notice and the motor vehicle tax will be refunded to the account you provided.

Written request:

• Draft for an informal application for a refund of motor vehicle tax: [Your Name] [Your Address] [Your Phone Number / Email] [Name of the competent main customs office (Hauptzollamt)] [Address of the main customs office] [City], [Date] **Application for a refund of motor vehicle tax** License plate number: [Vehicle Registration Number, e.g., B-AB 1234] Tax number / File reference: [If known, otherwise leave blank] Dear Sir or Madam, I hereby apply for a proportional refund of the motor vehicle tax paid for the above-mentioned vehicle, as the vehicle was deregistered / sold on [Date]. Please transfer the refund amount to the following bank account: Account holder: [Name] IBAN: [Your IBAN] BIC: [Your BIC] Please find enclosed the deregistration confirmation. Thank you in advance for your efforts. Sincerely, [Your Signature] [Your Printed Name].
• Submit the application, along with all supporting documents, to the appropriate main customs office.
• Upon approval, you will receive a refund notice and the motor vehicle tax will be refunded to the account you provided.

There are no costs.

• Appeal. Detailed information on how to file an appeal can be found in the tax assessment.
• You can also file an objection online via the Customs Portal. To do so, select the "Objection" section under "Cross-Functional Services" in the service overview.
• Lawsuit before the tax court. This usually takes place after the appeal process.