Germany Relaxes Tax Payment Rules

by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels

17 March 2020

On March 13, 2020, the German Ministry of Finance announced the relaxation of certain tax payment requirements as part of a package of measures designed to ease the economic impact of the COVID-19 virus.

Three tax relief measures are included in the plan to help improve corporate liquidity. These are:

• Tax authorities will be given greater latitude to defer tax debts;
• Enforcement measures and late payment penalties will be waived for companies directly affected by the coronavirus until December 31, 2020; and
• Companies will be able to adjust advance tax payments more easily if their profits have been affected by the virus.

In addition, according to an outline of the relief measures issued jointly by the Finance Ministry and the Economy Ministry, the Directorate General of Customs has been instructed to "accommodate taxpayers in an appropriate manner" for the taxes that it administers and enforces. These include energy taxes and the air passenger tax, among others.

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