In a recent ruling, the Supreme Tax Court held that the deemed settlement of final withholding tax under Section 43 (5) Sentence 1, Half-Sentence 1 Income Tax Act (ITA) also applies if the tax has been withheld by the debtor (payer) of the investment income, but not declared and paid over to the tax office. As a result, investment income from a fraudulent pyramid scheme is in principle no longer to be included in the income tax base. Continue reading
Tax & Legal
The finance ministry has reissued its slightly modified regulations to be followed by those responsible for deducting tax on investment income at source. Continue reading
The Supreme Tax Court has held that lapsed options based on market rate movements rather than on a conscious decision by the taxpayer are not deductible from investment income. Continue reading
The Supreme Tax Court has held that a benefit from a foreign company to a German shareholder is a hidden distribution taxable in Germany as investment income. Continue reading
The Supreme Tax Court has rejected an assessment to gift tax on a supposed hidden distribution to a shareholder on the grounds that a shareholder’s receipt of a hidden benefit is his investment income. Continue reading
The Supreme Tax Court has filed a preliminary question with the ECJ on the calculation of the German income tax attributable to foreign source income as the maximum amount of the foreign tax credit.
The Supreme Tax Court has refused a taxpayer a deduction for a series of short-term losses incurred through speculating in foreign currencies.
The finance ministry has issued a decree on a number of technical points in connection with the obligation of banks to withhold tax from the investment income of private individuals.