Lawyer with expertise in tax law in Berlin
Income tax is getting relevant for more and more senior citizens. Many aren’t aware at all that ongoing pensions also have taxes held back and given by the social pension fund to the tax office. Often people are only contacted by the tax office several years later and tasked with handing in several declarations.
If you have other income beside your pension or receive a widow’s pension from your deceased spouse, an income tax declaration is even mandatory.
Lawyer for tax law or tax consultant?
As a lawyer I’m authorized to help in all tax matters and therefore equal to a tax consultant in rights.
I have specialised my work on the consultation of senior citizens and their relatives and therefore mainly write income tax declarations, inheritance tax declarations, and gift tax declarations.
I am also often engaged as a lawyer by tax consultations for finance court cases or for opposition proceedings against the finance administration.
You plan your retirement outside of Germany – I will advise you in tax law
If you plan to spend your retirement outside of Germany, a tax law consultation beforehand is usually advantageous.
To not draw the attention of the tax office, you first have to find out whether you’re a limited or unlimited taxpayer in Germany.
As a lawyer for tax law in Berlin I will advise you about this in-depth in an initial consultation.
Saving taxes at retirement age – your lawyer with expertise in tax law shows you how
On this page I will explain what options senior citizens have to claim professional expenses, special expenses, and extraordinary burdens in your tax declaration, so you have to pay as little in taxes as possible.
For further questions I will gladly advise you in my accessible law firm for tax law in Berlin, on the telephone, or in my secure video conference room.
I will gladly advise you!
Book an appointment for a free initial assessment or contact me by phone, e-mail or via my contact form:
Lawyer Christian Janssen from Berlin
Tax law – important terms for your tax declaration
With the tax declaration you have the opportunity to lower your tax burden. You can claim professional expenses, special expenses or extraordinary burdens.
Professional expenses are expenses for acquiring, securing and keeping income. For employees these are commonly costs for travel to work. In pandemic times the home office is also increasing in significance. I will gladly explain to you how to furnish it so the tax office approves the costs.
Special expenses are private expenses that can’t be claimed as professional expenses due to their lack of connection to work. This includes mainly benefits, paid church tax, support payments, child care costs, expenses for occupational training and school payments.
Extraordinary burdens are defined as greater expenses that the taxpayer is forced to pay beyond what the majority of taxpayers of the same income, wealth and family status have to pay. Upon application, your income tax is lowered by deducting the part of the expenses that exceeds the reasonable burden of the tax payer from the total sum of income.
Is an income tax declaration worth it?
Turning in an income tax declaration can also be worth it for pensioners. Especially the expenses for medication, household help and tradespeople can give a nice reimbursement. But employees can also regain the income tax that was withheld beyond their correct amount.
To be able to claim for example special expenses or extraordinary burdens, you have to be an unlimited income taxpayer in Germany. You are an unlimited income taxpayer through your place of residence or habitual abode. It often occurs that you slide into German taxation through long stays in Germany, even though you generally live outside of Germany. I can gladly advise you about the option to apply for treatment as unlimited income taxpayer. This offers plenty of options especially for senior citizens.
Trust in my many years of experience in tax consultation and my knowledge of overlap areas. Other than a tax consultant I not only examine your tax documents when writing your income tax declaration, but also take a look at your pension certificate or service charge settlement.
If the certificate is incorrect, I will object and if needed bring the case to the finance court. I am often engaged by tax consultants not only in Berlin but across Germany for such proceedings and can offer my experience.
Commonly asked questions regarding tax law
Study costs tax-deductible?
The federal constitutional court (BVerfG) currently has to deal with the costs of studies due to several decisions.
What is the legal situation?
The old and new legal situation looks roughly as follows: costs for first studies can only be claimed as special expenses in the tax declaration of the student. This has the disadvantage of only making a difference if the student also has taxable income. So only when they earn more than 9.000 EUR from their student job. As very few can do that due to the tight semester plans, they’re usually left out in the cold. A way out could be the pre-empted inheritance. If the parents are owners a rented-out apartment, they could gift it to the child and the student could earn income from renting it out. At the same time the parents are appointed as caretakers and continue taking care of the real estate so the child can successfully study. But what do the children of less wealthy parents do?
What did the claimants want to achieve?
It would be much nicer if the costs for first studies could be collected as pre-empted professional expenses via yearly tax declarations and thus could form a good deficit carried forward upon beginning employment. As soon as the first proper income is earned, the carry-over could lead to a nice tax reimbursement. This thought occurred to many taxpayers over the last years and they claimed the costs of their studies in their tax declarations. The tax offices had their instructions from the federal ministry of finance and therefore rejected everything. So objections were filed and the matter was brought before the finance court. The judges always stood on the side of the BMF and thus the federal finance court had to be involved again and again.
But now the federal finance court has doubts whether the current regulation is constitutional. Why should the costs of a master’s program, which is commonly done as second studies after a successful bachelor’s program, be treated differently than the costs for law school? The costs for secondary studies can be claimed as pre-empted professional costs. So why not the costs for the pre-empted bachelor’s program?
Now the federal constitutional court has confirmed the prior regulation. The reasoning of the judges in Karlsruhe was that not all studies prepare for an occupation.
Other areas of law
Inheritance law
I would also be happy to execute your will on your behalf. I would also be happy to advise you on gifts and the tax implications of anticipated succession.
Pension law
I would also be happy to assist you in drawing up your own personal living will, health care proxy, and power of attorney.
