: Most people are familiar with the mini-job principle: everyone can earn up to 450 euros a month tax-free.

The next level is the midi job.

With this you can earn up to 1,300 euros per month in the transitional area (formerly the sliding zone) and benefit from reduced social security contributions.

Your salary is taxed according to the wage tax card, but no wage tax is due for wage tax classes III (3) to IV (4), for tax classes I (1), II (2) and IV (4) at least the solidarity surcharge is waived, and only for classes V (5) and VI (6) you always have to pay income tax as an employee.

: As an employee, for many years you had to pay a solidarity surcharge in addition to wage tax and church tax, namely 5.5 percent of your wage and income tax every month.

But in 2021, the federal government abolished the solidarity surcharge for almost 90 percent of employees.

The solos are now only paid by high earners from income tax of around 17,000 euros a year.

: Married and registered civil partners who "have themselves assessed together" can save income tax with the spouse splitting.

As a rule, couples with spouse splitting pay less tax than couples who each have their income tax calculated individually.

Above all, you will save taxes if one of you earns a lot and the other – as a low earner – earns a little.

: Everyone who does not have to pay tax on income of more than 35,000 euros a year is supported by the state with a housing bonus.

The prerequisite for this is that you conclude a building savings contract.

You have to pay in at least 50 euros per year, a maximum of 700 euros per year will be funded.

This money is then subsidized by the state at 10 percent.

For married couples, double the amounts apply, i.e. an income limit of 70,000 euros and payments of at least 100 and at most 1,400 euros per year into the building society contract.

: You can benefit from the mobility premium if your taxable income is below the starting tax rate and your one-way trip to work is longer than 20 kilometers.

For each additional kilometer you will then receive 14 percent of the increased commuter allowance - i.e. 4.9 cents for 2021. According to the Federal Ministry of Finance, around 250,000 employees will benefit from this.

If you only drive up to 20 kilometers to work, you will get nothing.