Market guide
Investing in Germany
Europe's industrial heart — SAP, Siemens, Allianz, the auto majors. UCITS-ETF capital. And a 26.4% default WHT that you have to actively reclaim down to the treaty rate.
01 — Market overview
The shape of the market
Exchanges
- Frankfurt Stock Exchange (FWB / Deutsche Börse Xetra)
Headline indices
- DAX 40
- MDAX
- TecDAX
Top sectors
- Industrials / Automotive
- Information technology (SAP)
- Healthcare
Currency
- EUR
Regulator
- BaFin (Federal Financial Supervisory Authority)
Market capitalization
- ~$2.4T (Frankfurt-listed, 2025); DAX 40 above 24,000
02 — Ways to invest
What you can actually buy
A non-exhaustive inventory of instruments available in this market — stocks, ETFs, ADRs, REITs, bonds — with notes on access.
- Stocks
- Open to non-resident retail via Xetra; ~450 listed companies; home of SAP, Siemens, Allianz, Mercedes-Benz.
- ETFs
- Major UCITS ETF hub — iShares Core DAX (EXS1), Core MSCI World, Xtrackers, Lyxor.
- Mutual funds
- Strong domestic Investmentfonds industry.
- ADRs / DRs
- Some German ADRs in the US (SAP, BASF); many other ADRs delisted in recent years.
- REITs
- G-REIT regime is small (~$5B); housing operators like Vonovia are larger in standard corporate form.
- Bonds
- Bunds are the global safe-haven benchmark; accessible via broker.
03 — Access & brokers
How a foreign retail investor gets in
Brokers that serve non-residents
- Interactive Brokers
- Trade Republic / Scalable (EU-resident-focused)
- Saxo Bank
Choosing a platform? Compare Vested, INDmoney, IBKR & Rovia →
KYC & onboarding
Passport + tax residency; no German residency required.
04 — Tax & regulatory
What gets taxed, by whom
Headline tax treatment for foreign retail investors. Specific situations — large holdings, real-estate-rich entities, treaty residency — can diverge. Always confirm with a qualified advisor.
Capital gains
Residents: 26.375% flat (25% + solidarity). Non-residents: generally exempt on German listed-share CG (except substantial holdings ≥1%).
Dividend withholding
26.375% statutory for non-residents; reducible to treaty rate via refund.
India DTAA
Yes — India–Germany DTAA: 10% on dividends (you reclaim the 16.375% excess via Bundeszentralamt für Steuern).
05 — For Indian residents
The India-specific angle
What changes when you're investing from India — LRS eligibility, Indian feeder-fund options, and the tax / reporting gotchas you should know upfront.
Eligible under the Liberalised Remittance Scheme
Indian residents can remit up to $250,000 per FY to invest here, subject to 20% TCS above the threshold.
Indian feeder options
No Germany-specific feeder; broad Europe FoFs (Edelweiss Europe Dynamic Equity, ICICI Pru Global Stable Equity FoF) cover Germany.
Caveat / pitfall
Default 26.375% WHT is high. Reclaiming the excess down to treaty 10% is paperwork-heavy. Schedule FA disclosure mandatory.
06 — Drill down
Pillar guides on Germany
Four deep-dives we're writing on how to actually execute in Germany. Each becomes a full article at /germany/[slug].
DAX 40 ETFs accessible to Indian investors
Read/germany/dax-etfs-for-indians
Germany dividend WHT reclaim — bringing 26% down to 10%
Read/germany/germany-wht-reclaim-india
Investing in SAP, Siemens, Allianz from India
Read/germany/german-blue-chips-from-india
UCITS ETFs from Germany / Ireland for Indians
Read/germany/ucits-etfs-germany-ireland-india
07 — Tools
Related calculators
Free Vested calculators relevant when you're investing in Germany.
- LRS & TCS calculator →Compute the 20% TCS on LRS remittances above Rs 10 lakh and how much actually lands at your broker.
- US capital gains calculator (INR) →STCG vs LTCG, the 24-month rule, and Indian tax on US stock sales with currency conversion.
- Form 67 / FTC calculator →Compute foreign tax credit available on US dividends and net Indian tax owed.
- Schedule FA helper →Compute initial value, peak value, and closing balance in INR for foreign-asset disclosure.
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