Reform of the German Local Trade Tax in 2008: Effects on Municipalities and Companies

Abstract

The 2008 Corporate Tax Reform Law was passed by the parliament in July 2007. It also reforms the trade tax. This applies both to the rate and to the tax base. In future, not only the interest on permanent debt will be included in the tax base, but also all interest paid as well as the financing share of rents, leases and leasing instalments, though only at 25% instead of 50%. Since the interest barrier will also affect the trade tax base, it is still unclear how all the measures will affect the receipts of the municipalities and what tax burdens they will place on the various forms of business entity. Using the trade tax statistics from the year 2001, the changes in burdens resulting from the trade tax reform have been simulated. Taking account of the interest barrier, the result for municipalities is a drop in trade tax revenue. Incorporated businesses will have to pay less due to the reform and unincorporated companies will have to pay more.