The article analyzes the impact of the Tax Reform Act 2008 on financial decisions of incorporated and unincorporated firms.

Effective from 2008, Germany's top marginal income tax rate rises from 42 to 45 per cent. However, sole proprietorships and partnerships can opt for a preferential tax rate of 28.25 per cent for retained profits (§ 34a EStG-E). If they do so, profits are taxed again upon distribution. Using...

Effective from 2008, Germany's top marginal income tax rate rises from 42 to 45 per cent. However, sole proprietorships and partnerships can opt for a preferential tax rate of 28.25 per cent for retained profits (§ 34a EStG). If they do so, profits are taxed again upon distribution. Using...

Die Erbschaft- und Schenkungsteuer muss grundlegend reformiert werden. Grund- und Betriebsvermögen sollen nach dem Ertragswertverfahren bewertet werden. Das bedeutet eine deutliche Annäherung an die Verkehrswerte, macht jedoch das Besteuerungsverfahren aufwändiger und streitanfälliger. Ein...

This contribution addresses the substantial tax privilege for businesses introduced by the German Inheritance Tax Act 2009. Advocates of the vast or even entire tax exemption for businesses stress the potential damage of the inheritance tax on businesses, as those often lack liquidity to meet...

This submission deals with an alternative to the German Inheritance Tax Reform Act 2009 in form of an inheritance tax with a broad tax base and low tax rates. In contrast to the new German Estate Tax Act we analyse an inheritance tax reform proposal that provides no tax relief for particular...

The popular idea of increasing the inheritance tax revenue via a tax-rate-cut-cum-base-broadening-policy is based on macroeconomic estimates. These models apply national wealth and life tables to assess the size of aggregate inheritance. Microeconomic estimates based on the German Inheritance...

The German Inheritance Tax Reform Act 2009 was caused by the jurisdiction of the Federal Constitutional Court since the valuation procedures were not in line with constitutional requirements. However, similar to the criticized former law the new valuation procedures result in tax values widely...