In short: In Germany you state your salary expectation (Gehaltsvorstellung) only when the posting asks for it — as a gross annual figure (Bruttojahresgehalt), never monthly, in the closing paragraph of the cover letter. Give one concrete number or a narrow range; changing employers typically justifies asking 10–20% above your current package. The real negotiation happens in the first or second interview — and the side that names a number first usually anchors the outcome.
Salary is where international habits and German conventions collide hardest: no salary on the CV, no negotiation over email, and a vocabulary of its own. Here is how the topic actually runs — from the application to the handshake.
When (and where) to state a number
Three rules cover almost every case:
- Only if asked. If the posting says “Bitte nennen Sie Ihre Gehaltsvorstellung” (please state your salary expectation), you state it. If it doesn’t ask, you don’t volunteer it.
- In the cover letter’s closing paragraph — one sentence, together with your earliest start date. Never on the CV; the Lebenslauf is a factual document, not a negotiation channel.
- As a gross annual figure. Germany talks in Brutto per year — before tax and social contributions. A monthly or net figure reads as not knowing the conventions. (For the Brutto/Netto gap itself, see the glossary.)
A typical sentence: “Meine Gehaltsvorstellung liegt bei 58.500 Euro brutto jährlich.” — that’s the register JACVault produces too.
One number or a range?
Both are accepted; they signal different things:
| Signals | When it works | |
|---|---|---|
| Single figure (e.g. 58,500 €) | You know your market value | You’ve researched the band and want to anchor firmly |
| Narrow range (e.g. 55,000–60,000 €) | Flexibility, openness to the total package | You’re less certain of the band — expect the employer to hear the lower end |
Two practical notes from German career research: a slightly odd, specific number (58,500 rather than 60,000) anchors better than a round one, because it signals a calculated value rather than a wish. And when you switch employers, asking 10–20% above your current package is the accepted convention — a move is expected to pay for itself.
Doing the research
Your figure is only as strong as its basis. Before you write anything, triangulate: the salary reports and calculators of the big German job boards, the pay bands typical for the region (the same role pays differently in Munich and in Leipzig), company size, and — where one applies — the collective agreement (Tarifvertrag), which fixes pay bands outright. If a Tarif covers the role, your negotiation space usually lives in the grading, not the base number.
The negotiation itself
Expect salary in the first or second interview, usually in the later phases of the conversation — rarely earlier, and almost never over email. What matters:
- Anchoring works. Whoever names a serious number first pulls the result toward it. If you’re asked, answer with your researched figure — confidently, without apology.
- Argue with the role, not with your rent. German negotiation culture is sachlich: your case is market data plus what you specifically bring — not personal cost of living.
- Think in total package. A 13th-month salary, bonus, company pension (betriebliche Altersvorsorge), remote arrangements and vacation days above the statutory minimum are all normal levers when the base number stalls.
- You may stay silent about your current salary. A question about what you earned at your previous employer is one you don’t have to answer — see inadmissible questions.
What JACVault does with this
When a posting asks for a Gehaltsvorstellung, the closing paragraph of your Anschreiben has to carry it in exactly the register above — one clean sentence, gross annual, next to your start date. JACVault builds that closing correctly and keeps the rest of the letter arguing your case. Your first application is free.
Start for free → · The German cover letter · The German job interview
General information, not legal advice. Last reviewed: see the date at the top.