Guide: free samples
Tax on TikTok Shop samples: what the tax office says.
Free doesn't mean tax-free. Five state tax administrations agree: products you receive for your work as a creator and keep are income. Here is what applies, what is disputed and which myths are wrong, each with its reference.
As of 31 October 2026 · 14 sources
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The basic rules.
Four points from the official guides and statutes.
Samples you keep are income.
If you receive a product and advertise it, you record its monetary value as income if you may keep it after the advertising. That is what the Hessian finance ministry's guide says.1
Even without an explicit return.
If you receive benefits in kind because you work as a creator, they are taxable whether or not you give anything specific in return. That includes PR packages sent without an agreement.2
VAT is affected too.
Benefits in kind are subject to income tax and VAT. A product for a video is a barter-like supply: your video is paid for with a product.3
There is no €50 exemption for you.
The €50 in the statute concerns the giver: up to that amount it may deduct gifts as a business expense. For you as the recipient, no official source names an exemption threshold.4
Valuation and special cases.
Here the official sources don't agree on every point. We show who says what.
Value for income tax
Hesse: the usual retail price at the place of supply, less usual discounts. Baden-Württemberg speaks of market value. No statute settles the valuation of exactly this case.1
Value for VAT
In a barter-like supply, the value of the consideration counts as the payment. What matters is what the seller spends on it, including shipping. This can differ from the shop price.5
Counts towards the Kleinunternehmer limit
Total turnover uses the taxable amount, which in a barter is the product's value. Samples for videos therefore count, even though no money changes hands.6
First for work, then private
The loss in value during business use is a business expense. If you then keep using the product privately, you record the used product's going-concern value as a withdrawal.1
Sending it back: an exception is possible
If you have to return the goods, the tax administration says deviations may arise. No official source says which. Record the return with date and receipt.7
Donations to charities
If you give a product to a tax-privileged organisation right after withdrawing it, the withdrawal may be valued at book value. Keep the donation receipt.8
What this means for TikTok Shop samples.
No official source names TikTok Shop. The general rules fit exactly, though: the seller sends you a product and you owe a video by the deadline. A seemingly free item for which the recipient actually gives something in return is not a free gift but a supply for consideration (Abschnitt 3.3 Abs. 17 UStAE). For income tax, business income is any inflow in money or money's worth caused by the business (H 4.7 EStH). Applying this to TikTok Shop is our conclusion; have your tax adviser confirm it.
“The brand paid a flat-rate tax on it.” A business can tax benefits in kind at a flat 30 %; they then stay out of your income, and it must tell you so (§ 37b Abs. 1 and 3 EStG). This is meant for benefits given in addition to the service already owed (BMF letter of 19 May 2015, Rn. 9a) and for gifts. It is not a gift if it is payment for a specific service in return (R 4.10 Abs. 4 Satz 2 EStR). If the sample is the payment for your video, it is neither additional nor a gift. Without notice from the seller, don't assume a flat-rate tax was paid.
“I only do this now and then.” If you only act as an influencer in isolated cases, it is other income, taxable from a total of €256 a year (Bavarian State Tax Office, influencer FAQ; § 22 Nr. 3 Satz 2 EStG). If you work as a creator regularly and receive money or products for it, the tax administration treats it as business income (Hessian Ministry of Finance, influencer guide, p. 2).
Since valuation isn't settled uniformly, one thing helps most: record what you received, what it would have cost and what became of it. Affliq keeps every sample with value, date and whereabouts, records a return, donation or disposal with a photo and puts it all in the tax package. How it is valued and taxed is your tax adviser's call.
Affliq records and does the maths, it does not advise. How things are taxed is your tax adviser's call.
Frequently asked questions
Do I have to pay tax on TikTok Shop samples?
If you keep a product you received for your work as a creator, the tax administration treats its value as income. VAT may apply as well, unless you are a Kleinunternehmer.1
Are samples under €50 tax-free?
No, not for you. The €50 limit decides whether the giver may deduct gifts as a business expense. No official source names an exemption threshold for recipients with business income.4
At what value do I record a sample?
For income tax, Hesse names the usual retail price less usual discounts, Baden-Württemberg the market value. For VAT, what the seller spends on the product counts. Record the price you can prove and settle the valuation with your tax adviser.5
What if I send the sample back?
Then, according to the tax administration, deviations from the rule may arise. There is no clear rule that returned products never count. Record the return with date and shipping receipt.7
Do samples count towards the Kleinunternehmer limit?
Yes. Total turnover uses the taxable amount, and in a barter-like supply that is the value of the consideration. No money doesn't mean no turnover.6
The seller says it paid the tax at a flat rate. Do I have nothing to do?
If it applied the flat rate under § 37b EStG and told you so, the benefit stays out of your income. For a sample that is the payment for your video, the flat rate usually doesn't fit: it is neither an additional benefit nor a gift. VAT is unaffected.9
I only got one or two samples. Does this still apply?
If you only act as an influencer in isolated cases, it is other income. It is taxable if it totals €256 or more in the year.10
Sources
Statutes and administrative guidance, as of 31 October 2026. Tax law changes: the current statutory text always prevails, and what applies to you is for your tax adviser to say.
- Hessisches Ministerium der Finanzen, Leitfaden Influencer, S. 2 f.Leitfaden zur Besteuerung von Influencerinnen und Influencern · Hessian Ministry of Finance, as of June 2026
- Finanzverwaltung NRW, Influencer & SteuernInfluencer & Steuern · Tax administration of North Rhine-Westphalia
- § 3 Abs. 12 Satz 2 UStG§ 3 UStG – Lieferung, sonstige Leistung
- § 4 Abs. 5 Satz 1 Nr. 1 EStG§ 4 EStG – Gewinnbegriff
- § 10 Abs. 2 Satz 2 UStG, Abschnitt 10.5 Abs. 1 UStAEUmsatzsteuer-Anwendungserlass, as of 2 June 2026 · Federal Ministry of Finance; Abschnitte 3.3, 10.5, 19.2
- Abschnitt 19.2 Abs. 2 Satz 4 UStAEUmsatzsteuer-Anwendungserlass, as of 2 June 2026 · Federal Ministry of Finance; Abschnitte 3.3, 10.5, 19.2
- Bayerisches Landesamt für Steuern, FAQ Influencer, S. 9FAQ „Ich bin Influencer – Muss ich Steuern zahlen?“ · Bavarian State Tax Office
- § 6 Abs. 1 Nr. 4 Satz 4 EStG§ 6 EStG – Bewertung
- § 37b Abs. 3 EStG§ 37b EStG – Pauschalierung der Einkommensteuer bei Sachzuwendungen
- § 22 Nr. 3 Satz 2 EStG§ 22 EStG – Arten der sonstigen Einkünfte
Further sources
- Steuerguide für Influencerinnen und InfluencerMinistry of Finance of Baden-Württemberg, as of 2025
- FAQ Social-Media-Akteure (Influencer/in)Berlin Senate Department for Finance
- Official income tax handbook 2025, H 4.7 and R 4.10Federal Ministry of Finance
- BMF letter of 19 May 2015 on § 37b EStGBStBl I S. 468, amended by BMF letter of 28 June 2018, BStBl I S. 814; official wage tax handbook 2026, Anhang 23a
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