Until now, the BGH had held the view that input VAT amounts must, in general, not be taken into account when assessing VAT evasions due to the so-called “prohibition of compensation”. Since balancing was thus not permitted, the perpetrator’s claim for reimbursement against the tax office, on the basis of justified input VAT claims, could not eliminate the offence of tax evasion. The BGH has now abandoned the across-the-board application of this case law in favour of a balancing of input VAT and value-added tax, in certain cases.
mehr