Presentation at the "Talent? Success? Germany." event in San Francisco on April 28th, 2016 by Joerg Kemkes, Rueter Partner.

1. Debunking the Tax and Legal Myths of
Doing Business in Germany
Thursday, April 28, 2016
Wingtip Club
550 Montgomery Street
San Francisco, CA 94111

2. Joerg Kemkes, Managing Director
Rueter Partner, San Francisco
Presenters

3. 3 Lower Corporate Tax Burden
Reduction of average tax burden for corporations
from 38.7% to 29.8%
39.6
39.5
38.7
34.4
34,0
31.4
30,0
29.8
26,0
25,0
25,0
24,0
20.6
19,0
19,0
12.5
- 10.0 20.0 30.0 40.0 50.0
USA
Japan
Germany (till 2007)
France
Belgium
Italy
Spain
Germany
UK
Denmark
Netherlands
Greece
Hungary
Poland
Czech Republic
Irland

4. 4
GmbH Taxation
 Trade tax (depends on location)
• about 14% of taxable income
 Corporate tax
• 15%, solidarity surcharge 5.5%

5. 5
VAT Impact
VAT Impact for Companies is zero, The VAT is
only a burden for the ultimate consumer
 Sales tax - 19%, 7%, 0% (non-taxable or tax-free)
 Input VAT – fully reclaimable with VAT return

6. 6
Employment Regulations
 10 or less employees: Employment Protection Act
does not apply
 More than 10:
• Employment Protection Act does usually not apply for
first 6 months of employment
• Shorter dismissal period in the first 6 months if agreed in
the contract
• Personal reasons - long sickness
• Attitude related reasons
• Operational reasons – Loss in Revenue, Restructuring,
Shutdown

7. 7
Challenges
 Travel Expenses
 Identifying Taxable Benefits
 Customer and Internal Events
 Gifts to clients and employees
 Fixed Assets
 Transfer Price Study
 Interest on Intercompany Account

8. 8
Contact
Rueter Partner San Francisco
101 Montgomery Street, Suite 2050
San Francisco, CA 94104
U.S.A.
www.rueterpartner.de
Joerg Kemkes
D +1 415 248 7815
M+1 415 601 2053
E: j.kemkes@rueterpartner.de