Registering your dog for the local dog tax in Germany, Switzerland and Austria

The dog tax is a local levy, not a national one: each municipality sets and collects it, deciding the amount, the exemptions and how it is paid. Historically it was tied to the cost of managing waste and public spaces, and today it works mainly as a way for the town to count how many dogs live within its boundaries. That is why it must be kept apart from microchip registration, whose job is instead to reunite a lost animal with its owner.

Cats are normally not subject to this tax in any of the three countries: almost everywhere it applies to dogs alone. The reasoning is that a dog uses public space in a visible, trackable way while a cat does not. A tiny number of local authorities are exceptions, so the practical rule is to check the dedicated page on your municipality's website before assuming you owe nothing.

The duty falls on whoever keeps the dog, not necessarily its legal owner: if you take in a relative's dog for a long stretch, many municipalities expect the account to be opened anyway. The moment the duty begins is precise, and it is where newcomers from abroad most often trip up.

• When you take on a dog older than three months, from the day it moves in with you for good.
• When you move from another municipality or from abroad, from the day you take up your new residence.
• When a puppy already in your home reaches the age at which the town starts treating it as taxable, usually between three and six months.
• When you inherit or permanently take in someone else's dog, even without a formal transfer of ownership.

Deadlines vary, but almost everywhere they are short: in many German and Austrian towns the window is two weeks from the triggering event, while in Switzerland it often lines up with the start of the calendar year because the tax is annual and paid early in the year. Registering late rarely brings a heavy fine the first time, but the municipality still calculates the tax from the date you were actually due to pay, so waiting gains you nothing.

1. 1

   Find your municipality's form

   Look on the town website under taxes or citizen services for the dog page. Many towns offer a downloadable form or an online service, others ask you to come to the counter. The name of the levy changes from region to region, so search too for words like dog levy or dog tax.

2. 2

   Gather the dog's details

   You will need the microchip number, the declared breed or cross, date of birth, sex and the date the dog moved in with you. Some municipalities also ask for weight or shoulder height, because in certain places the rate depends on size.

3. 3

   Prepare the supporting documents

   Identity document, proof of residence, and where required the third party liability certificate and any temperament test certificate for breeds under special rules. Keep the health record book to hand as well.

4. 4

   Declare any right to a reduction

   If the dog comes from a shelter, works in an assistance or service role, or if you fall into a concession category, state it on the form and attach the paperwork. The reduction is almost never backdated, so ask for it now, not a year later.

5. 5

   Set up payment

   Provide the IBAN for direct debit or note the details for a transfer. The tax is annual and in many towns renews automatically until you cancel, so do not expect a fresh form every year.

6. 6

   Keep the tag and the receipt

   Several municipalities issue an identification tag carrying your registration number, to attach to the collar. Photograph the receipt and the tag and file them with the dog's health documents, so you can find the number quickly if you are ever checked.

The figures below are orders of magnitude for a first dog of ordinary size, not official rates: each municipality sets its own amount, and the gap between two neighbouring towns can be large. A second dog almost always costs more than the first, and for breeds classed as potentially dangerous the tax can multiply.

Almost every municipality allows for full exemption or a reduction, but it does not apply them on its own: you have to ask and provide the proof. The recurring categories are similar across the three countries, even if the detail changes from bylaw to bylaw.

• Assistance dogs for people with sensory or mobility disabilities, usually exempt on presentation of the certification.
• Recognised working dogs, for example those used in rescue or guarding roles under the local definitions.
• Dogs adopted from a shelter or rescue, often exempt or heavily discounted for the first year or two.
• The early life of a puppy, which many towns do not tax up to a certain age.
• Holders of specific benefits or low incomes, where the municipality offers a means tested reduction on request.

The tax does not stop by itself. If the dog dies, if you pass it on, or if you move to another municipality, you remain liable until you file the cancellation or the change. This is where many people keep paying for a dog they no longer have, or build up a debt in a town where they no longer live.

1. On death, report the date to the municipality with the vet's or crematorium's confirmation, so the tax stops from that day.
2. On transfer, state who has taken the dog and from when, so the duty passes to the new keeper.
3. When moving between towns, close the account where you leave and open it where you arrive, because a cancellation does not open a registration elsewhere.
4. Keep the written confirmation of the cancellation, because it is your only proof if the town keeps sending notices.

The levy follows the declared keeper, not the facts on the ground: until you update the account yourself, as far as the town is concerned the dog is still yours.