Financial Analysis Under DIN 77230: What You Get

DIN 77230 is the German standard for analysing the finances of private households. It sets out which data is collected, which topics come in which order and what your current figures are compared with. Here you can read what comes out of it and where the standard stops. The checklist shows you in two minutes whether the analysis is worth it for you.

What DIN 77230 covers

The full name translates as "Basic financial analysis for private households", and it was first published in January 2019. The current edition is DIN 77230:2026-03, which replaces the edition of December 2023. No law requires anyone to use it. Using it is voluntary.

The idea behind it is simple: the same data should lead to the same analysis, no matter who prepares it. That is why the scope of the data, the assumptions and the ranking are fixed. The standard separates diagnosis from treatment. It shows where your household stands. What follows from that is a separate step and no longer part of the standard.

It is designed for typical households with up to two people responsible for the household and financially dependent children. It covers three areas: protection, provision and asset planning.

The analysis in five steps

1. Collect data: The standard sets out which household data must be collected as a minimum. This produces an income and expenditure statement and a balance of assets.
2. Check relevance: All financial topics are checked for whether they affect your household. Without a dog there is no pet liability, without property no building cover.
3. Set benchmarks: For each relevant topic, a benchmark for the relevant level of need is calculated or adopted.
4. Assign current figures: Existing cover, entitlements and assets are assigned to the topics.
5. Compare: Current figure and benchmark are set side by side for each topic. You see the result in a defined format.

Which topics are checked

The standard has around 40 financial topics. They are assigned to three levels of need: securing basic needs, maintaining your standard of living and improving it. They are grouped into nine blocks:

• Illness and care: health insurance, additional benefits, cover abroad, long-term care.
• Liability and legal protection: private liability, motor vehicles, animals, property ownership, costs of enforcing your rights.
• Loss of earning capacity: occupational disability, inability to earn, longer periods of sick leave.
• Partner and children: financial losses after a death, disability of children, money for education.
• Liquidity and balance of assets: impending insolvency, cash reserve, overdrafts and consumer loans.
• Retirement provision: entitlements compared with what you need in retirement.
• House and home: property, household contents, maintenance, interest rate risk on the loan.
• Mobility and travel: damage to vehicles.
• Saving and building wealth: equity for a home, larger purchases, other personal goals.

The fixed ranking is the real benefit for you. Many households save every month for the next car and have no adequate cover for losing their income. The analysis makes this kind of imbalance visible, because existential risks come before savings goals.

Where the standard stops

An analysis under DIN 77230 is a solid basis, but it deliberately leaves some questions open:

• No product check: The standard does not look at policy conditions, exclusions or clauses. An occupational disability pension can be the right amount and still have poor conditions.
• No advice: The analysis names neither tariffs nor providers. Interpreting the results is not part of the standard either.
• A snapshot: The result applies to one reference date. Marriage, a child, a new job or buying a home can quickly overtake it.
• Typical calculation: The standard works with fixed parameters and net values and treats taxes as flat amounts. Basic income support is left out. It only roughly reflects very individual situations.
• Depends on your data: An old pension statement or a forgotten policy distorts the result. The analysis is only as good as the information going in.

The method is product-neutral. The person applying it may still earn money from the contract that follows. That goes for me too. So ask every provider how they earn their money and how they prepare the analysis. Voluntary certifications exist for software and advisers, but nobody has to hold one. You can ask to see exactly what was checked.

Documents that help you prepare

The more complete the data, the more reliable the result. If you can, have these ready: payslips or proof of income, an overview of your fixed expenses, your latest German pension statement (Renteninformation), documents on company and private pensions, all insurance policies, account balances and securities values, and loan and property documents. If your contracts are in the simplr app, part of this is already done. Pension entitlements from your home country count too, so bring what you have.

How I offer the analysis

I offer you the basic financial analysis under DIN 77230 under a service agreement. It goes beyond my legal duties as a broker and therefore costs a fee. Scope and price are set out in the agreement beforehand, and the contract, invoice and SEPA direct debit are handled digitally through DIPAY. The revocation instructions are in the individual agreement, and you can declare a revocation using the revocation form.

If you only want to take out insurance through me, you do not need this analysis. Assessing your needs and the advice the law requires when I arrange a contract (sections 60 and 61 VVG) cost you €0 and do not depend on the service agreement. With regular tariffs, my commission is part of the premium. Net policies always carry a fee that we agree in advance. You can read how this works in detail in the guide on cost transparency.

The result is yours. You decide whether you then take out something through me, elsewhere or not at all. I can help you directly with insurance topics, because that is what my licence as an insurance broker under § 34d (1) GewO covers. I give no recommendations on ETFs, funds, loans or property financing, and tax advisers and lawyers can help with tax and legal questions. The analysis does not include regular reviews. You can request a new one at any time.