Current reporting requirements in the transparency register and upcoming changes due to the EU money laundering regulation
As of 1 August 2021, the transparency register was restructured by the Transparency Register and Financial Information Act (Transparenz-Finanzinformationsgesetz Geldwäsche – TraFinG Gw). In this process, the so-called notification fiction for the reporting of beneficial owners of legal entities to the transparency register was abolished, which prompted numerous companies to make entries. The transitional periods […]
The introduction of Commercial Courts in Germany
With the ECJ ruling dated 14 May 2019 that employers must enable the recording of working time by means of an objective, reliable and accessible system, ambiguity arose as to what extent this also has an impact on the burden of presentation and proof in lawsuits brought by employees for compensation for overtime. The Federal […]
The tax reduction under § 34 para. 3 EStG – also used by an unlawful granting
In its ruling of 28 September 2021 (BFH VIII R 2/19), the Federal Fiscal Court (Bundesfinanzhof – BFH) decided that the tax reduction under § 34 para. 3 German Income Tax Act (Einkommensteuergesetz – EStG) is also used in the event that it was granted unlawfully and without prior application. This result may seem surprising […]
The virtual general meeting of the stock corporation – from a temporary exception to a permanent solution?
The COVID-19 Act of 27 March 2020 allows stock corporations and related legal forms to hold their general meetings as purely virtual meetings without the physical presence of shareholders until the end of August 2022. Based on the largely positive experience with this form of meeting, the German government presented a draft law on 27 […]
Personal liability of the representative of a UG acting in legal relations
According to a recent ruling by the Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof – BGH) (ruling dated 13 January 2022, case no. III ZR 210/20), a representative acting in legal relations on behalf of an entrepreneurial company (Unternehmergesellschaft – UG) is personally liable on the basis of a prima facie case (Rechtsscheingesichtspunkten) pursuant to § 179 […]
VAT treatment of supervisory board members – the tax authorities are making improvements
The entrepreneurial status of supervisory board members is one of the hot topics in VAT, as reflected in the frequency of the letters published by the Federal Ministry of Finance (Bundesministerium der Finanzen – BMF). Just half a year after the BMF letter of 8 July 2021, the tax authorities have once again issued a […]