Community of heirs can exist alongside a GbR

If the co-heirs of a community of heirs form a GbR, this can exist alongside the community of heirs and be assessed for tax independently of it.

The Federal Fiscal Court has clarified that a community of heirs can exist in parallel with a GbR formed by the same co-heirs as long as the estate has not yet been settled. The tax office must therefore carry out a separate tax assessment for both the community of heirs and the GbR. This ruling is significant not least because a community of heirs can also generate surplus income that is not subject to trade tax in addition to profit income, whereas the GbR is generally a commercial enterprise in its entirety.