Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases (639 found)

1. 06.04.2025

   Corporation tax group and non-typical silent partnership

   An untypical silent partnership in the controlled group company does not generally prevent the recognition of a consolidated tax group for corporation tax purposes. With this current decision, the Supreme Tax Court disagrees with the previous opinion of the tax authorities.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: non-typical silent partnership, corporat ...
2. 31.03.2025

   Economic ownership of shares assigned as collateral

   In a most recent decision, the Supreme Tax Court held that the shares transferred by way of security are attributable to the purchaser ( who is also the secured party) as of the date of transfer of ownership if the purchaser can legally and effectively exercise the material rights associated with the shares (in particular the sale and exercise of voting rights) and regardless whether the security event occurs.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: Collaterals / Sicherheiten, share transf ...
3. 31.03.2025

   German-French double tax treaty: Taxation of severance payme ...

   As the state of employment, Germany has the right to tax a severance payment to the extent that the employee has exercised the activity in Germany. According to a decision of the Supreme Tax Court in the case of cross-border situations, the exclusion to tax benefits in kind from the exercise of share options and comparable rights under tax treaty law is based pro rata temporis on the place of employment of the employee during the vesting period (defined as the period in which the employee is entitled to acquire the options).

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: stock options, severance payment, income ...
4. 21.03.2025

   Extended limited tax liability if income is subject to U.K. ...

   A taxpayer who emigrated to the U.K. and who exercised his right under U.K. tax law to pay tax on income not earned in the U.K. on a "remittance basis" is caught by the preferential taxation regime of Sec. 2 (2) No. 2 Foreign Tax Act and subject to extended limited tax liability in Germany.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: extended tax liability, preferential tax ...
5. 17.03.2025

   Tax treatment of awards for scientific publications

   In a most recently published decision, the Supreme Tax Court held that a financial science award can only be regarded as taxable income from employment if it is awarded to the employee for services rendered to his employer.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: income from employment, award
6. 17.03.2025

   Hidden profit distributions in the case of stock corporation ...

   The Supreme Tax Court decided that remuneration agreements (for profit related bonuses and sales bonuses) between a stock corporation (AG) and a member of the management board who is also a minority shareholder are generally to be recognized for tax purposes. Only in exceptional cases are they treated as a hidden profit distribution, specifically if there are clear indications in individual cases that the supervisory board of the AG has unilaterally focused on the interests of the management board member in the remuneration agreement.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: hidden distributions
7. 17.03.2025

   No deduction of foreign taxes for trade tax purposes within ...

   The Supreme Tax Court decided that the portfolio dividends received by the controlled company within a tax group from domestic and foreign corporations via an investment fund are subject to trade tax in full. A deduction of foreign withholding taxes in accordance with Section 34c (2) of the German Income Tax Act is not possible when determining the trade income tax basis of the tax consolidation group (Organschaft).

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: foreign tax credit, trade tax group
8. 15.03.2025

   Restriction to offset losses from tax deferral models not un ...

   Section 15b Income Tax Act dealing with the restriction of loss utilization for tax deferral models does not presuppose that an investment is not economically sensible or has not proved particularly successful. The restriction for an offset and deduction of losses from tax deferral models is also constitutional in the case of a so-called definitive loss. This was currently decided by the Supreme Tax Court who hereby confirmed its previous case law on this matter.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: loss offset, tax deferral scheme, tax lo ...
9. 10.03.2025

   No domestic residency in case of rental of German property

   The Münster Tax Court has rejected an earlier decree of the Federal Ministry of Finance according to which entrepreneurs based abroad who own a rented property located in Germany are treated as being resident in Germany if the otherwise exempt rentals are subject to VAT by way of a waiver pursuant to Section 9 VAT Act.

   Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

   Keywords: permanent establishment (PE), property r ...
10. 07.03.2025

    Special requests after conclusion of agreement for purchase ...

    In two similar decisions the Supreme Tax Court held that amounts charged for subsequent special requests for a property yet to be built are subject to real estate transfer tax if there is a legal relationship to the original property purchase agreement. These costs are then assessed in a subsequent separate tax notice. However, this does not apply to house connection costs if the property buyer has already agreed to assume these costs in the (original) property purchase agreement.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: property, real estate transfer tax
11. 03.03.2025

    No liability for incorrect VAT disclosure in rental agreemen ...

    In a recent decision the Supreme Tax Court held that the person designated as the issuer of an invoice can only be held liable if he or she was involved in the creation of the invoice or if the issuance is otherwise attributable to him or her as representative or by proxy. An incorrect VAT statement in the invoice caused by the previous owner cannot be attributed to the purchaser of the property.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: incorrect VAT
12. 26.02.2025

    No tax exemption for contribution of limited partner shares ...

    The change in the shareholder structure of a limited property-owning partnership due to a contribution of the limited partners' shares in the partnership to a shelf-company may be exempt from real estate transfer tax pursuant to Section 6a sentence 1 RETT Act provided that the transferor, i. a., held at least 95% of the shares directly or indirectly or partly directly for an uninterrupted period of five years before the legal transaction took place. This was decided by the Supreme Tax Court in a most recent judgment.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: real estate transfer tax, change of shar ...
13. 24.02.2025

    Flight training is generally not exempt from VAT

    In a recent judgment the Supreme Tax Court decided that flying lessons to obtain a permit for hobby pilots (private pilot license) are not exempt from VAT.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: international flight, VAT Exemption
14. 24.02.2025

    RETT: No tax relief for foreign intra-group share transfer

    The Supreme Tax Court decided that the contribution of all shares in an indirectly property-owning company by a corporation under Irish law to the plaintiff against consideration is subject to real estate transfer tax pursuant to Section 1 (3) Real Estate Transfer Tax Act. The exemption on intra-group restructures (conversions) under Section 6a Real Estate Transfer Tax Act was not available.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: share transfer, unification of shares, r ...
15. 21.02.2025

    Bribes confiscated under criminal law reduce VAT basis

    In a most recent judgment, the Supreme Tax Court held that bribes confiscated under criminal law reduce the VAT basis of the respective turnover affected under criminal law. A tax that has already been assessed must be corrected at the time of collection in accordance with Section 17 (1) sentence 1 VAT Act.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: bribes, assessment basis
16. 18.02.2025

    RETT: Transfer of ownership and unification of shares in a f ...

    In a most recent decision, the Supreme Tax Court held that the unification of shares resulting from the transfer of shares in a property-owning corporation to a Dutch foundation is not exempt from real estate transfer tax pursuant to Section 5 (1) RETT Act if the comparison of legal types reveals that the legal structure of the foundation is not comparable to a joint ownership under German law.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: unification of shares, foreign foundatio ...
17. 17.02.2025

    Allocation of employment income of airline pilot under Doubl ...

    According to a most recent decision of the Supreme Tax Court, the income from employment of a pilot resident in Germany and who is employed in international air traffic by a Swiss-based company is only exempt from German income tax (subject to progression) to the extent that he performs his activity on Swiss soil and in Swiss airspace in accordance with the principle of territoriality.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: airlines, income from employment
18. 12.02.2025

    Trade tax treatment of the sale of a partnership share with ...

    In a recently published decision, the Supreme Tax Court held that the profit from the sale of a limited partnership share which is proportionally encumbered with an atypical sub-participation is fully subject to trade tax.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: Sale of shares, limited partnership
19. 10.02.2025

    Disallowance of flat rate holding discount when determining ...

    When valuing an unlisted share in a corporation for gift tax purposes a constant flat-rate holding markdown is not acceptable. The market value of an unlisted share in a corporation can only be derived from sales between third parties if the sales take place in the normal course of business and in accordance with ongoing market principles, the Supreme Tax Court said in a most recent judgment.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: valuation, market value
20. 07.02.2025

    Waiver of loan by shareholder of a corporation in return for ...

    One of the issues of dispute before the tax courts was if the waiver of a claim by a shareholder of a corporation in return for a debtor warrant should be taken into account at the time of the waiver or later if it is certain that the condition subsequent will no longer occur. According to the decision of the Supreme Tax Court, the ensuing loss in the case from the waiver is to be considered for tax purposes already at the time of the waiver. This results in negative income from capital investments in the amount of the non-recoverable receivable. The Supreme Tax Court further revealed on how it sees qualified subordinated debt and interest for refinancing of the loan to be treated in the hands of a shareholding managing director.

    Categories: Supreme Tax Court cases

    Keywords: waiver, losses
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