You can apply for the tax relief declaration by post or online at the relevant main customs office:

Submit declaration by post:

• If you have included self-taxed sparkling wine or intermediate products in your tax warehouse, apply for a remission or refund of the tax as part of your monthly tax declaration. Complete the relief declaration and the annexes listed therein:
  • Download the form "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for sparkling wine" (form 2401) or "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for intermediate products" (form 2451) from the customs administration website.
  • Enter the transactions eligible for relief and complete the annexes in full.
  • Send the discharge declaration by post to your local main customs office.
  • The main customs office will check the discharge. You will receive a notification with the result of your application.
• If you include sparkling wine or intermediate products in your tax warehouse that someone else has paid tax on and you wish to receive a tax refund, please also enclose a confirmation of taxation with your monthly tax declaration/relief declaration:
  • Download the "Taxation Confirmation" form (Form 2735) from the Customs Administration website.
  • Complete the forms in full, enclose the confirmation of taxation and send it by post to your local main customs office.
  • The main customs office will check the information and send you a notification.

• If you want to deliver taxed sparkling wine or intermediate products to other member states and want to claim tax relief, you need a permit as a certified consignor.
  • You must apply for this in advance at your local main customs office.
  • If you have already been granted a permit as a tax warehouse keeper or registered consignor, you only need to submit a notification to your local main customs office before shipping.

With your permit, you will receive an excise number as a certified consignor. The delivery must be made using a simplified electronic administrative document (v-e-VD) in the EMCS IT procedure. The EMCS (Excise Movement and Control System) is an IT-supported movement and control system for excise goods. You will need your excise number as a certified consignor. Proceed as follows:

• Download the following forms from the customs administration website:
  • "Certified consignor - application for a permit or notification of a tax warehouse keeper/registered consignor" (form 2742) and
  • "List of goods - certified consignor (excluding energy products) (attachment to form 2742)" (form 2743)
• Complete the form and the attachment in full and send them by post to your local main customs office.
• The main customs office will check the information, issue the permit as a certified consignor in writing or electronically and assign an excise number for your deliveries to other member states with v-e-VD.
• You can then apply for the corresponding tax relief using the following forms:
  • Download the forms "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for sparkling wine" (form 2401) or "Monthly tax declaration/relief declaration for intermediate products" (form 2451) including the attachments via the customs administration website.
  • Select the second alternative "Application for relief from sparkling wine tax (relief declaration)" or "Application for relief from intermediate products tax (relief declaration)" in the forms for the relief declaration.
• If you have not paid tax on the sparkling wine or intermediate products yourself, please also enclose a confirmation of taxation with your application:
  • Download the "Taxation confirmation" form (form 2735) from the Customs Administration website.
  • Complete the forms in full, attach the confirmation of taxation (if necessary) and the other required documents - as a certified consignor, for example, a printout of the v-e-VD entry declaration - and send them by post to your local main customs office.
  • The main customs office will check the information and send you a notification.

Submit the declaration online:

• You can also complete and submit the forms for relief from sparkling wine tax or intermediate product tax online.
• Call up the online application on the customs portal on the Internet. This will guide you step by step through the necessary information, which you can enter electronically.
• Upload the required documents as a file and send the application.
• The main customs office will check your details and documents.
• You will receive a tax assessment notice.

The main customs office in whose district you operate your business or, if you do not operate a business, in whose district you are resident, is responsible. If your company is operated from a location outside Germany or if you do not have a place of residence in Germany, the main customs office in whose district you first appear for tax purposes is responsible.