. . Germany - the taxman cometh

[darmstadt]

I worked in the Munich area, and it is the Landshut tax office that has contacted me.
Some of the other posters have said they were being investigated by the Bayern tax office, I'm not sure if that is the same of even if that makes any difference.

I think I know where you were working and if its the same place I worked there some years back. The UK agency tried to get me to go through an offshore payment scheme type thing and I told them to get stuffed as (a) it looked extremely dodgy to me and (b) I knew that it was against German tax laws. As I was already in the German system I continued that way and showed the information to my accountant who just laughed and intimated that some people were going to be in trouble at some point.

[EelamTiger]

More info on this topic from a German lawyer...

IT Consultants Tax Investigations | Dr. Tobias Rudolph - Rechtsanwalt Nürnberg

[Dunkirk]

be very careful

The same thing has just happened to me. It looks like the tax man is doing 2006. If you worked for a travel company I would not be surprised.

The advice I have received is to be proactive. I have been told that it is possible to avoid prosecution as long as you start negotiating straight away.
If you ignore this, and there is any evidence that you should have paid tax, or have have evaded paying less than you should, then prosecution will begin. Once prosecution begins you can't negotiate any more.

You can't be tried in absentia in Gemrany, but at the point where you are wanted for prosecution a warrant will be issued for you in Germany.
I have been told this means that an EU arrest warrant can be issued. My advice is that this would not happen in the UK, but no one can tell me if the Finanzamt will do this or not. If they did so that does not automatically mean they can force you to return to Germany, you do have grounds for appeal in the country where you are picked up. This will make your solicitor's day as it is a new area of EU law and it will be his first time dealing with it. His learning experience will allow you to fund his wife's next skiing holiday and probably get his picture in the Trendy Solicitor Weekly. The issue of warrants won't happen suddenly, I am told. You will get a lot of notice when things move in this direction.

To complete the nastiness of this picture if they do catch up and prosecute you, you will gain a criminal record for fraud in Germany. Not long ago, you wouldn't have cared, but criminal record checks are about to become fully EU wide, which means it will show up if you are police checked in your home country. There are also stories in this forum that say at that point you will be thrown in the cooler until you pay up.

German tax evasion can be pursued for 10 years apparently, which means you'd have to lie low until 2016. Although I don't know exactly what they would do if you were to re-seal the envelope and write 'Not know at this address, retun to sender'. As you worked there, you know that there will be rubber stamps and forms involved, this being the correct German approach, but what they decide to do about you then is anyone's guess. You may decide that a five year spell contracting outside the EU is a good idea, but I would google Ronald Biggs first.

I have no idea the correct course of action but I'd suggest that you should find yourself a German criminal lawyer (not a tax lawyer). You will be able to give him authority to negotiate for you, and the tax man will supply him with all the documents he has on you as the first step. You'll be able to decide what to do then, on that basis.

Hi all,

I worked in Germany for two years back in 2006 and when I de-registered at the stadthaus, I had to give my forwarding address in Paris. Now, I have received a letter stating that the Finanzamt will proceed with a criminal proceeding. Anyone experiencing the same? What would be the preferred next step forward? Should I react or just keep quite?

A lot of experienced contractors have left Germany because of this matter and they could find jobs elsewhere with lower tax rates.

Cheers...

[Dominic]

Place of Work

Just thought I would point out that it was not the time in Germany that counted, but it was where the work was carried out.

Even someone working for a large UK business, in Germany, will require that business to pay tax on its share of the profit for that work in Germany.

Its a truely crazy situation that even our UK HMRC accepts.

I got back 6 years of UK tax and 6 years of interest on that tax ( at 2%) but had to pay 10 years of German tax and 10 years of 6% interest on that tax. I was out of poket by about 250,000 GBP, and yes I now have a criminal record,

Isnt tax a wonderful thing !

It isnt the amount, its the complexity of paying it correctly.

[Corporate]

Munich Tax Investigation

I worked in Munich for 6 months using a UK company as my Accountant and i just got the same 07/80 Tax Investigation Email

Has anyone been through this yet? Do they have any advice on good lawyers.

I thought and was advised i would fine within the 183 day rule

The same thing has just happened to me. It looks like the tax man is doing 2006. If you worked for a travel company I would not be surprised.

The advice I have received is to be proactive. I have been told that it is possible to avoid prosecution as long as you start negotiating straight away.
If you ignore this, and there is any evidence that you should have paid tax, or have have evaded paying less than you should, then prosecution will begin. Once prosecution begins you can't negotiate any more.

You can't be tried in absentia in Gemrany, but at the point where you are wanted for prosecution a warrant will be issued for you in Germany.
I have been told this means that an EU arrest warrant can be issued. My advice is that this would not happen in the UK, but no one can tell me if the Finanzamt will do this or not. If they did so that does not automatically mean they can force you to return to Germany, you do have grounds for appeal in the country where you are picked up. This will make your solicitor's day as it is a new area of EU law and it will be his first time dealing with it. His learning experience will allow you to fund his wife's next skiing holiday and probably get his picture in the Trendy Solicitor Weekly. The issue of warrants won't happen suddenly, I am told. You will get a lot of notice when things move in this direction.

To complete the nastiness of this picture if they do catch up and prosecute you, you will gain a criminal record for fraud in Germany. Not long ago, you wouldn't have cared, but criminal record checks are about to become fully EU wide, which means it will show up if you are police checked in your home country. There are also stories in this forum that say at that point you will be thrown in the cooler until you pay up.

German tax evasion can be pursued for 10 years apparently, which means you'd have to lie low until 2016. Although I don't know exactly what they would do if you were to re-seal the envelope and write 'Not know at this address, retun to sender'. As you worked there, you know that there will be rubber stamps and forms involved, this being the correct German approach, but what they decide to do about you then is anyone's guess. You may decide that a five year spell contracting outside the EU is a good idea, but I would google Ronald Biggs first.

I have no idea the correct course of action but I'd suggest that you should find yourself a German criminal lawyer (not a tax lawyer). You will be able to give him authority to negotiate for you, and the tax man will supply him with all the documents he has on you as the first step. You'll be able to decide what to do then, on that basis.

[scooterscot]

I worked in Munich for 6 months using a UK company as my Accountant and i just got the same 07/80 Tax Investigation Email

Has anyone been through this yet? Do they have any advice on good lawyers.

I thought and was advised i would fine within the 183 day rule

Why would you take German tax advise from a UK accountant?

[Pain]

Well the tax man still cometh.
I contracted in Germany for less than year more than five years ago, and the tax man cometh for me too.

I think that at this point we can roundly reject the idea of being 'unlucky' and below the radar compared to the people who have avoided paying tax for many years. It looks like the tax office is working down the chain by association. No amount seems too small. If they have investigated any contractor who has worked for a company, they'll pull the list of anyone else who has worked there. Then they'll follow up with the recruiment agency.

What has happened to me is that I worked for a company in the travel industry. Several other contractors that have worked there have been busted for tax evasion, I suspect those at the very beginning of this forum posting two years ago worked for them too. The travel company has coughed up a list of names of people who worked there. There is one agency in particular who places people there and they have given up everyone's time sheets and contracts.

I've been contacted by the tax man saying that they're starting criminal investigations which sounds much like what others have said, and I've engaged a lawyer.

It would be useful to hear if at this point if anyone actually managed to avoid prosecution. Paying up seems like a given, but I'm wondering right now if anyone else has done this and managed getting a criminal record?

Hi I have also been raided by tax men ..they have seized all my laptops ..I am working asan employee now in germay by I was wroking fro managemen company ...Should I go to a lawyer now ?

[Dominic]

Why would you take German tax advise from a UK accountant?

I had a German tax accountant, and still she got it so wrong. German tax is whatever the German tax authorities want it to be. There is no defence against them

[darmstadt]

I had a German tax accountant, and still she got it so wrong. German tax is whatever the German tax authorities want it to be. There is no defence against them

Then she is obviously not very good! The German tax authorities change the laws with some regularity and accountants are notified about these changes. As soon as there is a change that might affect me then my accountant contacts me and we have a meeting to go through the changes and see what we can do.

[stek]

Hi I have also been raided by tax men ..they have seized all my laptops ..I am working asan employee now in germay by I was wroking fro managemen company ...Should I go to a lawyer now ?

Well it's not going to go away so, yes, and get a good (ie expensive) one.