SteuerGo FAQs

(2022) Vaccination centres: trainer's allowance or volunteer allowance for volunteers

The COVID vaccination is a major task. Therefore, there should be a tax reduction for those who volunteer in vaccination or testing centres or mobile vaccination teams. The dedicated volunteers make an important contribution to health protection and combating the pandemic.

In 2020 and 2021, volunteers in vaccination and testing centres could benefit from the so-called trainer's allowance or the volunteer allowance. CURRENTLY, the finance ministries of the federal states and the Federal Ministry of Finance have decided to extend these reliefs for 2022 (source: Ministry of Finance Baden-Württemberg, announcement of 7.2.2022). The following regulations apply for the years 2020 to 2022:

For all those directly involved in vaccination or testing - such as in information sessions or the vaccination or testing itself - the trainer's allowance applies. In 2020, the trainer's allowance was 2,400 Euro, and since 2021 it has been 3,000 Euro per year. Those involved in the administration and organisation of vaccination or testing centres can claim the volunteer allowance. This was 720 Euro in 2020 and increased to 840 Euro from 2021. This also applies to mobile vaccination and testing centres.

Due to tax regulations, volunteers in testing centres can only claim the trainer's or volunteer allowance if the client or employer is a charitable organisation or a public employer, such as the state or a municipality.

For vaccination centres, the federal and state governments have agreed that the trainer's and volunteer allowance can also be considered if the vaccination centre is operated on behalf of a legal entity under public law with the involvement of private individuals or entirely by private individuals.

Both the trainer's and volunteer allowance only apply to remuneration for part-time activities. This is usually the case if these activities do not take up more than one-third of the working hours of a comparable full-time position or if the regular weekly working hours do not exceed 14 hours. Part-time volunteers can also include those who do not have a main occupation, such as students or pensioners.

The allowances are annual amounts granted to volunteers only once per calendar year. For multiple activities for which the trainer's allowance applies (e.g., volunteer in the vaccination area and youth team coach), the income must be added together. The same applies to the volunteer allowance.

If volunteers work part-time in both the vaccination/testing area and the administration/organisation of vaccination and testing centres, both allowances can be considered simultaneously. However, this requires that the activities are agreed upon and remunerated separately.

 

Doctors' surgeries are not considered COVID vaccination centres in this sense. Therefore, if doctors pay staff a bonus for additional work, the trainer's or volunteer allowance cannot be claimed.

 

Part-time helpers are generally considered employees and therefore earn income from employment. The occasionally held view that self-employed income may be involved is not shared by the tax authorities, as far as can be seen. The allowances of 3,000 Euro or 840 Euro can also be taken into account by the employer when calculating income tax. In this case, however, the employee must confirm in writing to the employer that the respective allowance has not already been "used" elsewhere. The employer must include the declaration in the payroll account.

 

If pharmaceutical staff were employed in the vaccination centres and received their remuneration from the pharmacy chamber, no income tax was usually deducted in 2021 because there were apparently special agreements between the tax authorities and pharmacy chambers. The income must then be declared and taxed in the respective employee's tax return. Caution: From 2022, this concessionary regulation is no longer expected to apply, meaning that income tax must also be paid for pharmaceutical staff if the tax-free allowances are exceeded.