Tax & Legal

In a most current decision, the Supreme Tax Court clarified that a financial loss is not considered to be of personal nature simply because the person who caused the damage is a family member or because a special relationship of trust existed. The decisive point is whether the cause of the loss caused by criminal acts stems from business activities which must be established beyond any reasonable doubt.

It should be possible to confiscate profits from complex illegal transactions, such as Cum-Ex short selling, more consistently. On 8 May 2026, the Bundesrat agreed to table a corresponding bill in the German Bundestag.

On 19 June 2023 the European Commission proposed new rules to make withholding tax procedures in the EU more efficient and secure for investors, financial intermediaries (e.g., banks) and Member State tax administrations. This initiative is aimed to promote fairer taxation, fight tax fraud, and support cross-border investment throughout the EU.

The Supreme Tax Court has allowed an employer a refund of the income tax paid on a fraudulent salary overpayment despite notification of the tax deduction to the employee, on the grounds that the tax had not been deducted from employment income.