If you intend to become or in fact are an influencer in Germany, you might have difficulties finding information on taxation for youtubers, bloggers etc. on the internet. This short abstract shall serve as a first reference for you to get some information. It cannot replace information given by a tax lawyer or tax advisor. However it should help you avoiding the biggest mistakes.
First: Evaluate what you want to do. Is this just a hobby or do you intend to earn some money? If this is just a hobby, there is no need to make any tax arrangements. You should however be able to proof that you do not run a profitable business. So constantly check your income (revenue) vs. your expenses. Always remember that not only money is considered revenue but also all kinds of other things you might get for your postings, e.g. product samples, free access, free software….
If you find out that what you do is profitable or will become profitable start treating your activites as a taxable income as early as possible. This gives you the opportunity to include the first months or years of losses and lower your overall tax burden.
If you act on your own, you do not need to register a new “tax person” at the local tax office. The activity will simply be included in your tax return. If there are two or more of you, you are a “GbR” (Gesellschaft bürgerlichen Rechts) which would be a Partnership in the US. This GbR needs to be registered with the Finanzamt and will be given a new Tax-Number. Similar to the US Partnership, the GbR is “transparent” for tax purposes. So the income will be calculated for the GbR and will be included into your personal tax-return divided per capita or in a different way (whatever you decide). If it results in a loss, this will result in a tax credit for your personal taxes.
What you will have to do is apply for a new tax Number for your GbR at your local tax office. Most likely your income will be classified as “gewerblich”, therefore you will also need to apply for a “Gewerbeschein”. Do not use a commercial service to do this. There are a lot of fraudsters around who will rip you off whilst performing this very simple service for you. If you apply for a “Gewerbeschein” first, this information will be passed along to the Finanzamt automatically.
The German Tax system also includes the “Gewerbesteuer”. If you are a “Gewerbe”, you will need to pay Gewerbesteuer to your local Tax office. However there is a threshold of EUR 24.500 income. If you are below that threshold, there is no Gewerbesteuer (You will however need to file).
You will consider not registering for VAT purposes if you expect your revenue to stay below EUR 50.000. You will make the election for “Kleinunternehmer” when registering your activities with the Finanzamt. You could opt for VAT, but the filing is extensive and if you do not have big purchases (where VAT can be deducted), you do not want to do this.
The filing is not very complicated, so you can do it yourself. Do not forget to file “Gewerbesteuer”, even if you do have an allowance of EUR 24.500. If you want to do this yourself, you will need an “Elster”-access [Fun Fact: Elster is the blackbird, that loves to collect valuables and bright objects and bring it to its nest. The German fiscal authorities call the Software you need to use “Elster”]. If you need help with filing, contact a tax advisor (e.g. www.weidmann-law.de)
If you are an American citizen, you will need to include this income in your US-filings as well. The income will however be tax-exempt in the US. Youtube however will collect withholding taxes for videos streamed to the US. You can include your German Tax information and this withholding tax will be reduced. Search for: U.S. tax requirements for YouTube earnings – YouTube Help (google.com).