Entertainment receipt (Bewirtungsbeleg) in Germany

Last reviewed: October 2026

When you need a Bewirtungsbeleg

Whenever you claim entertainment costs as a business expense — typically a client lunch, project kick-off meal, or similar. The till receipt alone is often not enough. The entertainment form (Bewirtungsbeleg) documents who attended and why it was business-related.

Purely private meals do not belong in business expenses. Mixed occasions are sensitive — ask a tax advisor if unsure.

Required fields (checklist)

• Place, date, and venue name (usually on the receipt)
• Names of people entertained (not only “3 guests”)
• Business occasion (short, e.g. “project close-out with client X”)
• Amount including tip
• Your signature as the host

Many venues provide a paper form or print fields on the slip. Digitally: photo of the receipt plus a completed form stored together.

VAT (Vorsteuer) and deduction

If you are entitled to reclaim input VAT, you may recover VAT shown on a proper receipt. Deductibility of entertainment costs themselves follows special German rules (often only partly deductible). Exact rates and limits are a tax-advisor topic; this guide focuses on documentation quality.

Kleinunternehmer under § 19 cannot reclaim input VAT — you still need a solid Bewirtungsbeleg for the expense in your EÜR.

Practical workflow for solo freelancers

1. Photograph the receipt immediately (readable, complete).
2. Fill the Bewirtungsbeleg the same day while names and occasion are fresh.
3. Store immutably (GoBD principles) — see GoBD archiving.
4. Book under entertainment / Bewirtung and attach the file.

In Effitrio you can upload receipts into expenses and use AI to pre-fill fields — you still confirm occasion and attendees.