Genau
Topic test · B1

Payslip test

13questions
8minutes
60%pass mark
Start the test Read the topic first

One question at a time, the clock runs. Answers stay closed like a real exam: you see every correct answer with its explanation at the end. Score 60% to finish the topic.

Topic test

13 questions, easy to hard

Pick an option and press «Next». You can go back and change it. Anything left blank counts as wrong.

The job ad says “2.800 € brutto”. What will reach your account?

Less. In Germany ads and contracts always state brutto. After tax and insurance are taken off, the netto that is left is usually 25–40% lower.

Who is the Arbeitnehmer?

die Arbeit = work

The employee. The person who takes work: Arbeit + nehmen. The employer gives work: Arbeit + geben → Arbeitgeber.

Which of these is an insurance contribution, NOT a tax?

die Pflegeversicherung. Every line ending in -versicherung is insurance, and you get a service in return. Steuer and Zuschlag are taxes that go straight to the state.

When is church tax deducted?

If you are registered. If you name a church in the religion field of the Anmeldung form, the deduction starts automatically. If the field is empty or says keine, nothing is taken.

In a married couple, which class does the lower-earning partner see the highest deduction in?

V. In the III + V pairing the allowance is loaded onto the higher-earning partner (III); the lower earner (V) has more taken during the month. The total evens out at year-end.

Which document does a landlord ask for in an application?

The last three payslips. In Germany the payslip is your proof of income — asked for with flats, loans, instalment purchases and residence matters. That is why you keep them.

What is “Netto” on a payslip?

brutto is before deductions, netto is after. The figure discussed in a job interview is almost always brutto.

What is “die Lohnsteuer”?

die Lohnsteuer is income tax deducted directly from your wages. Insurance contributions appear on separate lines.

Which statement about “die Steuer-ID” is true?

die Steueridentifikationsnummer stays the same for life and arrives by post after birth or your first registration. Your employer asks for it when you start.

Which statement about the annual tax return (Steuererklärung) is true?

For ordinary salaried employees a return is often not compulsory; but once commuting, course and work costs are deducted, a refund usually results.

Gross pay (Bruttolohn) is always the net money paid into your bank account.

Bruttolohn is the pay before deductions. What lands in your account is the Nettolohn.

In German, a payslip is called Lohnab.

rechnung. der Lohn (pay) and die Abrechnung (statement) combine into Lohnabrechnung, the word for payslip.

Build the sentence: I haven’t received my payslip yet.

Tap the pieces to build the sentence

A sentence you often use when talking about a payment or a document.
Quick rules

The rules in three lines

The full topic lives on its own page. This is only the core you need for the test.

  1. The figure in the ad is gross

    The amount in a job ad is almost always brutto. The netto that reaches your account is clearly lower — tax and contributions are taken off.

    2.800 € brutto

  2. Tax and contributions are different things

    Lohnsteuer · Solidaritätszuschlag · Kirchensteuer are taxes. Renten- · Kranken- · Pflege- · Arbeitslosenversicherung are insurance contributions, and they give you a claim in return.

    die Pflegeversicherung

  3. Your tax class sets the deduction

    In a married couple that picks the III/V combination, the lower-earning partner in Steuerklasse V sees the heaviest deduction. The total tax is evened out at year-end through the tax return.

    Steuerklasse III / V

  4. The Steuer-ID stays the same for life

    die Steueridentifikationsnummer is issued once and never changes. When you start a job your employer asks for it, plus your insurance number.

    Ihre Steuer-ID bitte

Traps

Commonly mixed up

Where a direct translation breaks. The hard questions come from here.

  • 2,800 € brutto — 2,800 € will reach my account.

    2,800 € brutto — less than that will reach my account.

    brutto means before deductions. The net amount drops noticeably, depending on your tax class.

  • Church tax is taken from everyone.

    Church tax is only taken from registered members.

    It is deducted if your registration shows you as a member of an officially recognised religious body; it stops once you leave.

  • The Pflegeversicherung is a tax.

    The Pflegeversicherung is an insurance contribution.

    Contributions give you a claim in return; taxes don’t. On the payslip the two groups sit under separate headings.

  • A Steuererklärung is compulsory for every employee.

    For most salaried employees it is voluntary.

    The cases where it is compulsory are limited; most people who file voluntarily get money back.