Healthcare
Tax advisor for laboratories
Between the pipette and the milling machine: we bring VAT-exempt analytics and 7 % dental technology into a clean order. Laboratories combine two tax worlds under one roof: VAT-exempt medical analytics, explicitly also without patient contact, and commercial dental technology at the reduced rate of 7 %. We arrange your order types, contracts and product items so that every transaction is handled correctly on its own, keep an eye on the freelance professional status (freiberuflich) of laboratory physicians and support the investments that shape laboratories: equipment, digitalisation, automation.
Focus areas for medical & dental laboratories
- VAT (Umsatzsteuer) in the medical laboratory: exemption for analyses serving a medical treatment purpose, even without a personal relationship of trust with the patient
- Dental technology: reduced VAT rate of 7 % on dental prosthetics and dental technology services; distinguishing ancillary transactions (Hilfsgeschäfte) that do not qualify
- Laboratory physicians: securing freelance professional status (freiberuflich) as the business grows; personal review of every examination order
- Dental laboratories as a commercial business (Gewerbebetrieb): profit determination and trade tax (Gewerbesteuer)
- Laboratory partnerships (Laborgemeinschaft) and billing with practices: structuring them cleanly for VAT purposes
Medical analytics: VAT-exempt, even without patient contact
For a long time, a direct line to the patient was treated as an unspoken condition of the VAT exemption. That time is over: medical analyses are exempt from VAT as medical treatment, even if your laboratory never sees the patient; a personal relationship of trust is explicitly no longer a requirement. What remains decisive is the therapeutic purpose: diagnostics for treatment yes, analyses for courts, insurers or purely research purposes no. For laboratory partnerships (Laborgemeinschaft), the following applies since the old special provision was abolished: the structure now has to hold up under the general exemption rules. We review your order types and contractual relationships and assign every service stream to the correct track.
Dental technology: commercial, but privileged at 7 %
For tax purposes, the dental laboratory is the counterpart to analytics: a commercial business (Gewerbebetrieb) for income tax purposes, since dental technicians do not practise a liberal profession, but privileged for VAT purposes. Dental prosthetics and dental technology services are subject to the reduced rate of 7 %, regardless of legal form, including as a GmbH. The trap lies in the side business: the sale of materials, equipment or other items that did not arise from dental technology work is charged at 19 %. Anyone who invoices everything at the reduced rate across the board accumulates audit risk; anyone who is too cautious gives away margin. We record this distinction in your invoicing at product item level.
The laboratory physician and the limit of growth
For laboratory physicians, income tax law raises an uncomfortable question: do you still personally review every examination order, meaning the order, the method and the plausibility of the finding? Only then does the growing business remain a freelance professional activity. Organisation, spot checks and concentrating on problem cases are not sufficient in the view of the courts; there are no fixed limits on staff numbers or order volumes, but the realistic time budget does serve as a yardstick. We build this limit into your growth and automation planning, including the question of when a deliberate structural decision is more honest than a risky state of limbo. The criteria of the tax authorities (practice structure, individual service capacity, range of services and qualification of the staff) provide orientation, and we compare them against your real order figures; in partnerships, there is the added point that every professional must shape their own area personally. In this way, a vague worry becomes a verifiable indicator with a clear recommendation for action, updated year after year.
A typical pitfall
"Everything here runs at 7 %": a dangerous sentence in a dental laboratory. Sales of materials, disposals of equipment and other ancillary transactions (Hilfsgeschäfte) fall under the standard VAT rate. Classifying the product master data properly once saves every discussion during an audit.
Example from our advisory practice
Hypothetical example: alongside dental prosthetics, a dental laboratory increasingly sells consumables to practices and disposes of a used milling machine. Challenge: these ancillary transactions (Hilfsgeschäfte) are charged at 19 %, while the dental technology services remain at the reduced rate; the invoicing has to reflect this at product item level. Suitable service: classification of the product master data plus ongoing monitoring. Intended benefit: no blanket 7 % invoices carrying audit risk. Next step: a first consultation with a product and revenue list.
Frequently asked questions
Yes: since the European case law, it has been settled that medical analyses can be VAT-exempt medical treatment even without a personal relationship of trust with the patient; the specialist in laboratory medicine is treating, even if all they see is the sample. The requirement remains the therapeutic purpose of the examination and the qualification of those responsible. Orders without a treatment context, for example for courts or studies, remain subject to VAT and should be invoiced separately.
No. Services arising from activity as a dental technician are subject to the reduced rate of 7 %: for dental prosthetics, repairs, alterations and also semi-finished parts, regardless of the legal form of the laboratory. The standard VAT rate of 19 % only applies outside these core services, for example to the sale of materials, equipment or other accessories. This boundary belongs in your invoicing at product item level; every transaction is then handled correctly on its own.
There are no fixed figures. The courts ask whether you are still able to take personal note of every examination order, monitor the processing and the method and check the plausibility of the finding. If the order volume grows beyond this realistic time budget, the freelance professional status tips over, irrespective of titles and organisation. The administrative criteria (practice structure, service capacity, staff qualification) turn this into a verifiable measure, which we compare against your figures each year.
No. The exemption only holds if the analysis serves a therapeutic purpose, meaning the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of a specific patient. Examinations for courts, insurers, biometric purposes or pure research do not meet this and are subject to VAT, even if they are carried out in technically identical fashion. For your laboratory this means: label the order types on intake and invoice them separately. We define the categories with you once and anchor them in order administration and invoicing.
Repairs, extensions and alterations to dental prosthetics are dental technology services and are therefore charged at the reduced rate of 7 %, just like new fabrication, regardless of the legal form of your laboratory. The standard VAT rate only applies to services and supplies outside actual dental technology, for example the sale of materials, equipment or accessories to practices. For this boundary to hold in day-to-day work, it belongs in the product master data of your invoicing; that is where we review and maintain it with you.
With laboratories, we are additionally interested in the order type statistics and the product master data. A few things are enough for an initial assessment: the most recent business analysis (betriebswirtschaftliche Auswertung) or the most recent tax assessment (Steuerbescheid), an overview of your service areas and, if available, the current list of accounts. To take over ongoing support, you will receive a short checklist from us; we set up powers of attorney and data access together. You do not have to carry around paper folders: you can submit all documents digitally.
Yes. You submit receipts digitally, you receive evaluations electronically, and we hold meetings by video, by telephone or on site, as you prefer. As a result, the support is not tied to the location of the firm; what matters is knowledge of the sector, not the postcode. Whether laboratory and invoicing data can be connected to the bookkeeping and which tools are used specifically is something we clarify together with you during setup.
With laboratories, the analytics and dental technology shares determine the scope of support. The fee follows the German tax advisor fee regulation (Steuerberatervergütungsverordnung) and depends on the value of the matter (Gegenstandswert), the scope of services and the effort involved; flat-fee agreements are possible for ongoing services. You will receive a reliable offer after the first consultation; the most recent evaluation, the number of receipts and the desired service modules are enough for that. We do not consider invented fixed prices without a look at your business to be sound practice.
Your next step
Analytics, dental technology or both: show us your range of services in the first consultation. After your enquiry you will receive a confirmation of receipt; your dedicated contact person will then get in touch. Still getting your bearings? We answer the most frequent questions directly at the top of this page.