According to the decision of the Supreme Tax Court the offset of losses in case of an upstream merger with the profits of the transferring company accrued during the period of retrospective application was not abusive and in accordance with the legal (tax) provisions in force in the year of dispute (2008).
If the shareholder's right of membership in a domestic stock corporation (AG) lapses because the AG is dissolved, wound up and deleted from the register as a result of insolvency, the shareholder incurs a taxable loss if he does not receive his contribution back in full or in part.
The European Court of Justice will have to decide once again on the justification of the non-deductibility of ‘final losses’ in the foreseeable future. In two Swedish cases the Advocate General has formulated her opinion and is not convinced of a "finality" or cross-border loss utilisation due to the particularities of the cases.
Under certain conditions, changes in shareholders and the admission of new investors will in future be possible without giving rise to a forfeiture of losses carried-forward. On 23 December 2016 the Act for the Further Development of Tax Loss Utilisation for Corporations was published after having been adopted by the German Parliament (Bundestag and Bundesrat) on 20 December 2016.
