How are profits and losses from gold sales treated for tax purposes?
When you sell gold coins or bars, it is considered a private sale transaction (Section 23 (1) No. 2 EStG) for tax purposes. The key factor is how long you have owned the gold before selling it:
Sale within 12 months
If you bought the gold less than a year before selling it, profits up to 600 Euro per calendar year are tax-free. Important: This 600 Euro limit is an exemption limit, not an allowance. This means: As soon as your profit exceeds 600 Euro, the entire profit is taxable – as “other income” (Section 22 No. 2 EStG).
Losses from such transactions may only be offset against other profits from private sales transactions – either in the same year or as part of a loss carryforward or carryback.
Sale after more than 12 months
If more than a year has passed between purchase and sale, the profit is completely tax-free. Losses in this case are not considered for tax purposes.
For example: If you make a profit of 999 Euro, you pay no tax. If you make a profit of 1.000 Euro or more, the full amount is taxable.
Profits from private sales transactions must be entered in the “Form SO” of your income tax return – on the reverse side. However, this form is only required if the profits are at least 600 Euro.
Special regulation for married couples
The exemption limit of 600 Euro applies per person. Spouses cannot jointly earn 1.200 Euro tax-free. If the sale is made through a joint account, the profits are usually split equally between both (entry in line 47 of Form SO).
Tax treatment of Xetra-Gold and similar products
Some bonds – such as Xetra-Gold – do not provide cash but the right to delivery of physical gold. For tax purposes, these securities are now treated like real gold.
Federal Fiscal Court ruling on Xetra-Gold
As early as 2015, the Federal Fiscal Court (BFH) ruled that the sale or redemption of Xetra-Gold bonds is tax-free after more than one year. The BFH clarified that the bond is treated like physical gold for tax purposes (rulings of 12.05.2015 – VIII R 4/15, VIII R 35/14, VIII R 19/14).
This ruling was confirmed in 2020: Profits from the sale of such bonds are not considered investment income under Section 20 EStG but fall under private sales transactions – with the tax implications described above.
New case law on gold warrants
In a ruling dated 03.06.2025 (Ref. VIII R 5/24), the BFH decided that the redemption of so-called gold warrants may result in taxable investment income – even if the claim is not fulfilled in cash but by gold delivery.
In the specific case, the claimant had purchased certificates that gave him the choice at maturity: cash or gold warrants. The claimant chose gold, had the gold credited, and sold it later. The tax office considered this taxable income.
BFH decision
- The booking of the gold warrants into the account was tax-neutral.
- However, the subsequent crediting of physical gold to the metal account was considered a taxable redemption of a capital claim (Section 20 (2) sentence 2 EStG).
- The decisive factor was the value of the credited gold minus the acquisition costs of the warrants.
This legal opinion was also confirmed in similar cases (BFH rulings of 03.06.2025 – VIII R 23/24 and 01.07.2025 – VIII R 33/23).
