A German freelancer earning €120k pays approximately €49,300 in combined income tax, Soli surcharge and health insurance. The same income, after a clean Abmeldung and 180+ days of Thai tax residency on the DTV visa, pays about €3,600 in Thai PIT on the THB 95,000 a month brought in to live in Bangkok — roughly €45,700 of annual upside, fully legal under Thailand's remittance basis.
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Thailand vs Germany.
A German freelancer earning €120k pays roughly €49,300 between Einkommensteuer, Solidaritätszuschlag and Krankenversicherung. The Thai DTV swaps that for a five-year multiple-entry visa, remittance-basis taxation, and around €45,700 of annual upside. Here's the full comparison.
Effective tax on €120k ~€49,300
Annual upside ~€45,700
Exit form Abmeldung + ESt-Erklärung
In one sentence
The headline difference: Germany taxes worldwide income on a smoothly progressive Einkommensteuer scale (14–45%), plus a Solidaritätszuschlag, due once the income tax passes €20,350 filing alone or €40,700 jointly: 5.5% of the tax, but capped at 11.9% of the excess just above the threshold, so it phases in and reaches the full 5.5% only at about €37,800 of income tax, and mandatory health insurance. Thailand taxes a resident's foreign income only in the year it is brought into Thailand, on a Thai PIT scale starting at 0% with a 60,000 THB personal allowance.
01 · Side-by-side
Thailand vs Germany
Every row matters on the diagnosis call.
| Dimension | Germany | Thailand |
|---|---|---|
| Effective tax on €120k freelance | ~41% (ESt + Soli + KV) | ~3% (Thai PIT, 25% remitted) |
| Annual upside | — | ~€45,700/year |
| Visa or residency type | EU citizenship | DTV — 5-year multi-entry |
| Exit paperwork | Abmeldung + final ESt-Erklärung | DTV application + 180-day stay |
| Exit tax | Wegzugsteuer §6 AStG (if ≥1% corp) | None |
| Health / social insurance | Health insurance mandatory (Krankenkasse or private) | Optional private cover (local plans from €60–120/mo) |
| VAT / consumption tax | 19% MwSt | 7% VAT |
| Income tax filing cadence | Annual ESt-Erklärung | Annual PIT (PND 90/91) |
| Time zone | GMT+1 / GMT+2 | GMT+7 (5–6 hours ahead of Berlin) |
| Operating language | German | Thai (legal); English (business) |
| 1-bed apartment, capital centre | €1,100–1,700 | €650 |
| Eating out daily, monthly | €700+ | €300 |
Key figures
Quick facts
Citable numbers. Calibrated against the CERØ tax calculator and 2026 brackets.
- 01
Effective tax burden on €120k freelance income, Germany (ESt + Soli + Krankenkasse): approximately 41% (CERØ Tax Calculator, 2026 brackets).
- 02
Effective tax burden on the same income, Thailand DTV resident bringing in THB 95,000 a month to live in Bangkok: approximately 3% Thai PIT.
- 03
Wegzugsteuer (§6 AStG) applies to stakes of 1% or more in any corporation after 7+ of the last 12 years of German tax residency, and, since 2025, to fund holdings of 1% of the fund or €500,000 of acquisition cost (§ 19 InvStG).
- 04
Thailand DTV visa: five years, multiple entry, stays of up to 180 days per entry, each extendable once by up to 180 days.
- 05
Thai tax-residency certificate: issued by the Revenue Department for a calendar year with 180 days or more in Thailand, once that year's PND 90 or 91 return is filed.
02 · What the exit looks like
What the exit looks like.
The boxes that actually close your home tax file.
The German exit has two steps. First, the civil one: Abmeldung at the Bürgeramt, which you can do from a week before the move and must do within two weeks of it when you keep no dwelling in Germany (§ 17 Abs. 2 BMG); it records your move-out date in the Melderegister. Second, the fiscal one: tell the Finanzamt you are giving up the freelance activity (and the Gewerbeamt if you ran a Gewerbe), cancel your German health insurance, and file an ESt-Erklärung for the year you leave — one return for the whole year, in which German-source income after departure stays taxable and foreign income from the months abroad still lifts the rate on your resident months. The trap to plan for is Wegzugsteuer under §6 AStG: if you have held 1% or more of a corporation within the last five years and have been resident 7 of the last 12 years, Germany taxes the latent gain on your shares as if you sold on departure. CERØ models this on the diagnosis call before any move starts.
03 · How daily life changes
How daily life changes.
Time zone, climate and cost of living vs Bangkok.
Bangkok runs 5 hours ahead of Berlin in summer and 6 in winter, so your afternoon and evening calls comfortably cover Germany's working day. Bangkok's cool season runs about 21–33°C — a world away from Berlin's 0–5°C December. Cost of living drops materially: €650 for a one-bed in central Bangkok vs €1,100–1,700 in Mitte; €300/month eating out daily vs €700+ in Berlin.
04 · Which one fits
Which one fits.
Honest framing: most Europeans go to Thailand. Here are the cases where they don't.
Stay in Germany if…
- You hold 1%+ of a German corporation and Wegzugsteuer would bite hard.
- Your business is anchored to physical German operations or German-only clients.
- Family members are tied to Germany and can't move with you.
- You depend heavily on the German social-insurance system (Krankenkasse, Rente).
Move to Thailand if…
- You're a remote operator with international clients you can invoice from anywhere.
- You can spend 180+ days a year in country to anchor Thai tax residency.
- You want foreign income kept abroad out of Thai tax — fully legal.
- You'd back the file with a Thai tax-residency certificate, knowing German liability ends on the facts of §§ 8 and 9 AO, not on a certificate.
05 · FAQ · Thailand vs Germany
Questions people ask.
Real questions, real answers.
Does Wegzugsteuer apply if I freelance without owning a corporation?
No. §6 AStG triggers on stakes of 1% or more in any corporation held within the last five years, after 7 of the last 12 years as a German tax resident, and §19 InvStG extends it to fund holdings that cost €500,000 or more. Freelancers without such holdings don't hit it. Founders with a GmbH should model the impact carefully — the bill can be spread over seven annual instalments, usually against security, wherever you move, and there are structural alternatives that flatten it before departure.
When do I file my final German Einkommensteuer return?
For the calendar year you leave, by 31 July of the following year — for a 2026 departure that is Monday 2 August 2027, since 31 July is a Saturday (§ 149 Abs. 2 AO with § 108 Abs. 3 AO) — or by the end of February of the second following year if a Steuerberater files, so 29 February 2028. The pandemic-era extensions ended with the 2024 return. It is one return for the whole year: German-source income after you leave stays taxable in Germany, and foreign income from the months after departure still lifts the German rate on your resident months.
How much does a German freelancer earning €120k save by moving to Thailand?
About €45,700 a year, living on THB 95,000 a month in Bangkok. The figure moves with what you bring into Thailand, your Krankenkasse exit and your family situation; the Thailand tax calculator estimates it on your own numbers, using 2026 brackets.
Do I keep my German Krankenversicherung after moving?
Not in any useful way, but it does not lapse on its own. If you were compulsorily insured as an employee, membership ends with the employment (§ 190 Abs. 2 SGB V); most self-employed founders are voluntary members, and § 191 SGB V does not list moving abroad among the ways that ends — you have to terminate in writing, with notice running to the end of the second calendar month after the month you declare it (§ 175 Abs. 4 SGB V), and you keep paying until it takes effect. The Kasse issues a Kündigungsbestätigung and normally asks for the Abmeldebescheinigung and proof of cover in your new country. Keeping the membership buys nothing: § 16 Abs. 1 Nr. 1 SGB V suspends benefits while you are abroad, and Germany has no social-security agreement with Thailand. So members cancel and switch to private health insurance — Thailand-only plans from about €60–120 a month, international plans for more. Bumrungrad, Bangkok Hospital and Samitivej operate at international standard.
Will the Finanzamt challenge my Thai residency?
Only if the file is weak — above all a German flat you can still use, which keeps you tax-resident whatever your Abmeldung says, plus an active German billing address or fewer than 180 days in Thailand. With a Bangkok lease, a clean Abmeldung, a final ESt-Erklärung and, from the following year, a Thai tax-residency certificate, the file holds. The certificate corroborates; it does not end German residence, and it cannot repair a past year in which a German flat was still available to you. CERØ builds for that exact audit.
Is remote work done in Thailand taxed if the client or employer pays abroad?
It can be. Section 41 of the Revenue Code taxes income from work performed in Thailand whether it is paid inside or outside the country, and the Revenue Department's 2024 guide for foreigners gives work performed in Thailand as its example. The DTV carries no tax exemption, and no published Revenue Department ruling deals with remote work for foreign employers or clients. The figures on this page count only the foreign income you bring in, so treat them as the lower bound and confirm your position with a Thai tax adviser.
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