The German Federal Ministry of Finance has commented on the changed requirements for intra-community supplies resulting from the Act on Further Tax Incentives for Electromobility and on the Amendment of other Tax Regulations – Finance Act 2019: “FA 2019” – amending the VAT Act Application Ordinance accordingly. Continue reading
Tax & Legal
Prepared by Luca Lavazza
On 19 May 2020 the Law Decree no. 34 has been published in the Official Gazette (“Rilancio Decree“). The new emergency decree is in line with the previous Cura Italia and Liquidità Decrees, introducing inter alia measures to support the liquidity the capitalization of enterprises, incentives and tax credits as well as measures in the context of indirect taxation, tax assessment and tax litigation. Continue reading
In the night of 3-4 June, coalition partners CDU/CSU and SPD agreed on a crisis management package to mitigate the economic impact of the COVID 19 pandemic. Continue reading
Where a member of a supervisory board receives a non-variable fixed salary for his services and as a result does not bear any risks vis-à -vis his remuneration, he is not acting as an entrepreneur. This was decided by the Supreme Tax Court in its ruling of November 27, 2019 – (V R 23/19 / R 62/17), thereby abandoning earlier case law. Continue reading
In its judgment of 5 September 2019 (VR 57/17) published on 5 December 2019, the Supreme Tax Court held that the transfer for consideration of endowment policies on the secondary endowment policy market is exempt from VAT. Continue reading
The Supreme Tax Court has ruled that written warnings issued by a copyright holder in order to enforce his copyright following a breach are subject to VAT. The consideration for the written warning (deemed a service) was the payment from the person charged with breaching the copyright. Continue reading
The tax authorities have published a circular setting out the official view of the application of the new rules on the VAT liability of operators of electronic market places introduced by the Finance Act 2018. Continue reading
On 8 November 2018, the Finance Bill 2018 was adopted by the German parliament and received the consent of the Bundesrat on 23 November 2018 in the form of “The Act for the Avoidance of VAT Losses on the Trading of Goods on the Internet and Amendments to other Tax Regulations”(hereafter “Finance Act 2018”). This article sets out a selection of the new regulations. Continue reading
On 20 December 2017 the European Court of Justice (ECJ) held that the divergent VAT treatment of discounts granted by pharmaceutical companies (i.e. trader/entrepreneur for VAT purposes) to statutory (public) health insurance funds and private health insurance funds constitutes an infringement of EU law. The ECJ followed the Advocate General’s opinion and confirmed the doubts of the German Supreme Tax Court which had referred the question to the ECJ under reference V R 42/15. Continue reading
On 4 October 2017 the European Court of Justice decided that a finance lease with an option to purchase should be qualified as a “supply of goods” where the exercise the option appears to be the only economically rational choice that the lessee could make at the appropriate time. As a result the whole of the VAT becomes due when the object to be leased is handed over. Continue reading