Certificate of inheritance without note on subsequent heirs after sale of rights of subsequent heirs to prior heirs
July 10, 2020 / On 13.05.2020, the Higher Regional Court of Braunschweig ruled that the probate court must also issue a certificate of inheritance if there is no note of succession, but the prior and subsequent heirs have effectively agreed on the succession. In this case, the testator had appointed his wife as the prior […]
Shorter residual debt discharge proceedings
July 06, 2020/ On July 1, 2020, the German government passed a draft law to shorten the residual debt discharge procedure. In future, the procedure will only take three years instead of the previous six. This will enable over-indebted entrepreneurs, the self-employed and consumers to make a faster fresh start. However, the shortening of the […]
Act to strengthen integrity in the economy
April 29, 2019 / Under current law, criminal offenses committed by legal entities and associations of persons can only be punished with a fine in accordance with the German Administrative Offences Act (OWiG), whereby the maximum limit is ten million euros and is independent of the size of the association. Sanctions are based on company […]
Federal Council confirms property tax reform
Federal Council confirms property tax reform November 14, 2019 / On November 8, 2019, the Federal Council gave its final approval to the property tax reform. This means that the legislative package can enter into force as planned. The federal states will levy property tax according to the new rules from 2025. The value-based model […]
Soli abolition should not apply to top earners
August 20, 2019 / The German government has agreed that the solidarity surcharge will be abolished in August. The SPD has now decided that it will support the complete abolition of the solidarity surcharge demanded by the CDU/CSU if top earners also have to pay more income tax. SPD Chairman Thorsten Schäfer-Gümbel justifies this decision […]
No residual debt discharge for tax offenses
November 21, 2018 / Due to VAT declarations that were not submitted or were submitted late, the Office for Fines and Criminal Matters (BuStra) at the tax office initiated criminal tax proceedings against an entrepreneur in connection with an external audit. As a result, the local court issued a penalty order for VAT evasion, against […]
Where does Germany stand in the tax competition?
October 21, 2018 / For around 20 years, countries around the world have been competing to keep taxes low in order to attract companies and increase the attractiveness of new investments. At the beginning of the year, the United States cut corporate income taxes from 35% to 21% and reduced the tax rate on profits […]
Facebook account of deceased passes to heirs
July 16, 2018 / On July 12, 2018, the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe ruled in the last instance that a Facebook account created by a deceased person passes to the heirs as part of the estate. Facebook invokes the secrecy of telecommunications The lawsuit was brought by the mother of a girl who […]
Is the interest rate of six percent p.a. for back tax payments constitutional?
May 31, 2018 / The Federal Fiscal Court ultimately had to deal with the high interest rate of six percent on tax arrears for interest periods from 2015 onwards. The judges were presented with a case in which a married couple had to pay interest of EUR 240,831 on an additional tax payment of EUR […]
Donation after conclusion of the inheritance contract before the inheritance occurs
Donation after conclusion of the inheritance contract before the inheritance occurs May 22, 2018 / In 1991, a married couple concluded a notarized contract of inheritance by which they mutually appointed each other as heirs and also agreed that one of their three children should receive a plot of land with a house, as he […]