The problem with the 0.03% flat rate
The monthly flat rate for the commute of 0.03% of the list price per kilometre of distance assumes that you travel to the office on about 15 days a month. If you work from home three or four days a week, you are taxed on trips that never happen. Individual valuation exists for exactly this case.
How individual valuation works
Instead of the monthly flat rate, 0.002% of the list price per kilometre of distance is applied for each day on which you actually travel to your primary place of work. The Federal Fiscal Court established this, and the tax authorities adopted it in the Federal Ministry of Finance letter on company cars of 3 March 2022. Individual valuation is capped at 180 commuting days a year. At 15 days a month both methods cost the same: 15 × 0.002% = 0.03%.
Worked example
A combustion car with a €45,000 list price, 30 km commute, and you only travel to the office on six days a month. With the flat rate, the commute component is 0.03% × 30 × €45,000 = €405. With individual valuation it is 0.002% × 30 × 6 × €45,000 = €162. The taxable benefit falls from €855 to €612 a month.
At €5,000 gross, tax class I and no church tax, according to our company car calculator this corresponds to a net saving of about €118 a month, i.e. more than €1,400 a year.
Requirements and proof
You must declare to your employer in writing each calendar month on which days you used the car for the commute. This declaration is kept with the payroll records. Your employer is not obliged to apply individual valuation in payroll, but if it offers it, it must apply it consistently for the whole calendar year.
If your employer declines, the money is not lost. You can switch to individual valuation in your income tax return if you prove the commuting days and show how your employer taxed the commute. The tax office then corrects your wages.
What does not count as a commuting day
Trips to customers, to other sites or on business travel are not trips to the primary place of work. If someone else drives you on an office day or you use public transport, the day does not count either. Several trips on the same day count only once.
A simple calendar in which you mark each office day is practical. Many employers provide a form that you sign at the end of the month. Keep a copy: you will also need the record if you only claim individual valuation in your tax return or if the tax office asks during a payroll tax audit. Rough statements such as “about two days a week” are not enough.
When individual valuation does not help
If you commute on more than 15 days a month, the flat rate is cheaper or costs the same. The 180-day cap ensures that individual valuation is never more expensive than the 0.03% on an annual average. Nothing changes for private use: the 1% remains even when working from home.
Tip: do not forget the commuter allowance
Regardless of the method, you may claim the commuter allowance of €0.38 per kilometre in your tax return for every actual commuting day. For home-office days there is also the daily allowance of €6 per day, at most €1,260 a year, although not for the same days. The commuter allowance calculator shows what this is worth.