Tax & Legal

The profit from the sale of a share in the upper-tier partnership as prescribed in Section 7 sentence 2 no. 2 Trade Tax Act is not to be allocated to the hidden reserves of the upper-tier partnership and the hidden reserves of the lower-tier partnership. It is rather a single and uniform sales transaction at the level of the upper-tier partnership, the Supreme Tax Court said in a most recently published decision.

An ECJ advocate general has suggested the court rule that a German practice of allowing deferral of taxation on the hidden reserves (appreciation in value) in intangible assets transferred abroad is proportional and reasonable in the light of the overall need to ensure a fair distribution of taxing rights between member states.

The ECJ has upheld a German rule providing for immediate taxation (but with a deferral option) of the capital gain inherent in the excess of the market over the book value of a business transferred to a corporation in exchange for shares where as a result of the transaction Germany would lose the right to tax the gain on any subsequent sale of the shares.

An ECJ advocate general has suggested the court accept in principle the Dutch exit tax on business, but require deferment of the actual levy until the relevant assets are realised.

The Supreme Tax Court has held that a share exchange at nominal value leading to a transfer of hidden reserves abroad triggers a taxable capital gain for the transferring shareholder.