Previously, tenants had to pay the climate tax - also known as the CO2 price - via the ancillary costs.
That changes at the beginning of the new year.
An expert answers the most important questions for tenants.
Munich – Anyone who heats their home with gas or oil has been subject to a climate tax, the so-called CO2 price, since 2021.
The higher the consumption, the more you have to pay.
Owners of properties they use themselves pay the fee directly with the heating costs to the utility company, while tenants have usually had to pay the fee in full from their landlord in the form of ancillary costs.
Since the beginning of the new year, this has only been possible if the property meets particularly high energy standards (EH 55).
The poorer the energy quality of the building, the higher the share of costs that landlords have to bear – up to 90 percent.
This applies to billing periods from January 1, 2023. What tenants need to know:
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answers the most important questions:
How is the CO2 price calculated?
Because CO2 is released when a fossil fuel is burned, traders and producers have had to buy so-called emission certificates since 2021.
They pass these costs on to consumers.
The certificate per tonne of CO2 emitted costs 30 euros this year.
By 2026, the price should gradually increase to at least 55 euros.
How to check whether the landlord is complying with the new cost-sharing rule?
According to the new regulation, landlords must state the specific CO2 emissions of their building in kilograms of carbon dioxide per square meter of living space on the heating bill.
“This value is then used to classify into one of ten levels that determine which party has to bear which share of the CO2 costs,” says Florian Munder, energy expert at the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations.
Tenants can check whether the landlord has made the classification correctly by comparing it with the ten-step model of the Federal Ministry of Economics.
If you want to check whether the specific CO2 emissions have been calculated correctly at all, you can ask your landlord to see the receipt.
"The energy suppliers are obliged to provide the necessary information on the CO2 value of their delivery in their invoices," says Munder.
Dividing the total CO2 value by the floor space of the building gives the specific CO2 emissions.
A calculation example:
A 2-person household (90 square meters of living space, unrenovated apartment building, built in 1998) that heats with gas consumes around 17,600 kilowatt hours a year on average.
This releases around 2.14 tons of CO2.
This results in 23.78 kilo/sqm (level 4) - and at 0.65 cent tax per kilowatt hour around 114 euros.
In this case, the tenants would have to pay 70 percent (= 80 euros) and the landlord 30 percent (= 34 euros).
What can tenants do if the landlord does not implement the new requirements?
If a landlord does not show the individual CO2 costs at all, tenants have the right to reduce the heating bill by three percent, according to energy expert Munder.
If the landlord made the allocation incorrectly, tenants should first seek a conversation.
If an agreement is hopeless, the advice centers of the consumer advice centers can be a good place to go.
What applies to tenants who provide their own heat (e.g. via gas heating)?
In this case, tenants pay the CO2 tax directly and in full to the supplier.
If the landlord has to bear part of the costs according to the stage model, he must reimburse the share of the costs he has to bear.
According to Florian Munder, tenants must assert this claim for reimbursement in text form within twelve months of receipt of the bill from their energy supply company.
Advance payments can be offset against the next annual bill.
(dpa)
