Germany mulls corporate tax break
Dropping tax to 25% could give decisive boost to its legions of small businesses
Frankfurt
Germany is looking to cap its corporate tax burden at 25 per cent as the country seeks to help smaller businesses amid signs the economy is lurching into a recession. The proposal was made by Economy Minister Peter Altmaier on Thursday as part of a package aimed at supporting the so-called Mittelstand — small and medium-sized businesses that account for nearly 60 per cent of the country’s jobs.
According to Deloitte, Germany’s overall tax burden on companies is about 30-33 per cent.
The plan isn’t part of the German government’s coalition agreement and would need to gain support from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s junior partner, the Social Democrats, to become reality. Altmaier didn’t specify the impact of the tax cut on government revenue. He said he is in talks with German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz to advance the effort.