Do you also belong to the growing majority who are dissatisfied with our politicians? If that is not yet the case, this may change after my post today. At least if you are one of those who try to invest their money sensibly and do something for their private retirement provision. Because for years, the government has been putting obstacles in the way of these people.

Stock pension cancelled Performance providers currently do not have it easy in our country. This applies to medium-sized companies, to farmers who are rightly protesting against the traffic light policy, but also to investors who are saving and trying to increase their money on the stock market and provide for their old age.

In order to plug the budget hole that was created by the defeat of the Federal Constitutional Court, the stock pension that was agreed upon in the coalition agreement and proposed by the FDP was buried before it even started. It was supposed to improve the weak pension fund in a few years. This topic is now off the table.

You have to pay taxes on profits that you have not even realized yet Instead, investors who invest long-term in funds or ETFs are additionally squeezed. Normally, the withholding tax is only due when you sell a stock or fund at a profit. If you invest long-term, you may have to pay taxes on your profits after 30 years.

But the tax office wants to collect already. Therefore, the Investment Tax Act was introduced in 2018. It stipulates that „fictional profits“ are taxed through the so-called advance lump sum. Even if you have not sold any shares, you must – if the share value has risen during the year – pay taxes on profits that you have not even realized yet.

Investors are being asked to pay due to rising interest rates The amount of this advance lump sum depends on the current market interest rate. Since this has been zero in recent years, no advance lump sum has been due so far. However, for 2023, investors will be asked to pay for the first time. The base rate for 2023 has been set at 2.55%. The advance lump sum is now calculated by multiplying the current value of the fund units by the interest rate and then by the factor 0.7.

Specifically, this means: If you have invested 10,000 euros in a fund or ETF, the advance lump sum, i.e. the fictional profit, amounts to 178.50 euros. For stock ETFs, 30% of this is tax-free. This means that a fictional profit of around 125 euros has to be taxed. This results in approximately 33 euros in taxes. If you are subject to church tax, it is around 35 euros.

Fund savings plans remain a suitable means of building wealth For every 10,000 euros of investment amount, you pay around 35 euros in taxes for stock funds. This is due in January for the previous year. This is not a huge sum, but this approach is still outrageous. However, you should not be discouraged by this, but still take action yourself to provide for your retirement. Fund savings plans remain a suitable means for this.

You can counter the taxation of fictional profits by – if you have the choice – choosing a distributing fund (profits remain in the fund) instead of an accumulating fund. And: Set up a tax exemption order with your custodian bank. For most small investors, this should cover the tax due.