The reduction of a molten carbonate fuel cell (MCFC) model is presented. It starts from a reference model, which includes direct and indirect internal reforming as well as a catalytic combustion and a reversal chamber between anode and cathode channels. The reference model is dynamic, spatially distributed and strictly based on balances of mass, enthalpy and charges. In order to reduce the numerical effort of the model simulations and to retain as much detailed information on the system behaviour as possible, the model is systematically reduced by identifying negligible physical and chemical processes. All model reductions are discussed in detail. To evaluate the effects of the applied changes, the reduced model is compared to the reference model.