Kategorie: English Press Releases

FG Düsseldorf: Demolition of inherited family home may retrospectively give rise to estate tax The demolition of your parent”s home post-inheritance may lead to a retrospective loss of tax-exempt status. That was the verdict of the Finanzgericht (FG) Düsseldorf – the Fiscal Court of Düsseldorf – in a judgment from January 8, 2020 (Az.: 4 K 3120/18 Erb). Children who inherit real estate from their parents can receive an exemption from estate tax even if they go over their personal tax allowance of 400,000 euros. We at the commercial law…

COVID-19 – Rent reduction in response to lockdown The return to a state of lockdown has hit many businesses and entrepreneurs hard. Meanwhile, the courts are arriving at different conclusions regarding whether government-mandated business closures justify rent reductions. The period in the run up to Christmas saw the metaphorical lights go out in a lot of pedestrian zones and at many businesses, many of which have had to close due to the latest lockdown in response to the coronavirus pandemic. While businesses have experienced a drop in income during what…

Transfer of shares from company to private hands not an acquisition If shares that were acquired prior to 2009 are transferred from company to private hands and later sold, the profits are not to be treated as taxable income from capital investments according to the Finanzgericht (FG) Münster, the Fiscal Court of Münster. On January 1, 2009, a flat rate withholding tax (Abgeltungssteuer) was introduced in Germany. A transfer of shares acquired prior to this cutoff date from company to private hands does not amount to an acquisition of shares.…