Tax: The tax office demands tax – even though the heir comes away empty-handed

Berlin. House, money, stocks? Those who inherit can often look forward to a financial injection. But what happens when an inheritance comes away empty-handed?

The testator does not even have to leave behind any debts. Even an unclear inheritance situation can result in an inheritance amounting to zero euros after all formalities and procedures have been completed. The Federal Finance Court recently had to clarify whether the tax office can still claim inheritance tax in these cases (case II R 1/22).

The testator, who died in 2006, actually planned it differently. In order to avoid legal succession, he had left a handwritten will naming a man, his mother and another woman as heirs, with the assets to be divided equally between all three.

After the testator's death, the testator's legal heirs applied for a certificate of inheritance at the responsible local court. Since the court did not know the will and its contents, only the legal heirs were named in the certificate of inheritance, each with a half share.