There is no special gains tax in Germany. The profits on the sale of both movable and immovable property is taxable only in cases where the property had formed part of an agricultural or forestry business, an industrial business, or a self employment. In such cases, the profit is added to the normal profit and loss statement. In case the profit derives from the sale of some special items, it may stay tax free if such profit is either reinvested in some particular items, or attributed to a reinvestment reserve provided that the amount of the reserve is deducted from the cost of acquisition of new fixed assets of the same kind within the following four years. Failing such reinvestment on time, the reserve must be dissolved to the credit of the profit account.

In all other cases, the profit stays totally tax free unless the asset is sold prior to the acquisition or within two years (for movable property) or within ten years (for immovable property) after the acquisition (so called "speculative profit").