Bequest to foreign charities

The EU Commission has called on Germany to put bequests to foreign charities on an equal footing with those to domestic ones.

Until now, bequests to charitable organizations based in another EU/EEA country have often been subject to inheritance tax. The organizations are only tax-exempt if their state grants similar tax exemptions for German organizations. The EU Commission sees this as discrimination and an unjustified restriction on the free movement of capital and has therefore called on Germany to amend the relevant provision.