Taxes & levies on withdrawals
RetirementWhen you withdraw capital from your portfolio, taxes and possibly health-insurance contributions are due on the gain share. The total shown is made up of the following components:
1. Capital-gains tax (KESt):25% on realized price gains. On top comes a 5.5% solidarity surcharge on the capital-gains tax (= 26.375% effective). If you have stored an individual tax rate in the Taxes module (e.g. through the favorable-rate check in FIRE or a foreign flat rate such as the Austrian KESt of 27.5%), that rate is used instead.
2. Dividends & interest:Ongoing income from your portfolio (dividends, interest) is 100% taxable – unlike sales of fund units, where only the price-gain share counts. FireLotse therefore taxes the dividend share of your withdrawal in full and only the remaining sale of holdings via the gain share.
3. Church tax:If applicable: 8% or 9% (depending on the federal state) on the capital-gains tax. The solidarity surcharge is then reduced slightly.
4. Partial exemption:For funds/ETFs, 30% (equity funds) or 15% (mixed funds) of the income remains tax-free. This noticeably reduces the tax burden. FireLotse calculates a weighted partial exemption based on your portfolio.
5. Statutory health insurance on investment income:Voluntarily insured GKV members without earned income pay the reduced contribution rate (approx. 14.0% + additional contribution + long-term care insurance) on investment income – up to the contribution assessment ceiling. Important: the health-insurance assessment base is the full gain share before partial exemption – the tax partial exemption (§20 InvStG) does not apply under health-insurance law (§240 SGB V). In the KVdR (pension phase), this contribution no longer applies if you meet the 9/10 rule.