Sales mark-ups for group insurance policies may be subject to Insurance Premium Tax (IPT), but do not have to be. In a recently published judgement, the Fiscal Court Köln commented on the issue of IPT on sales mark-ups and opposed the tax authorities view. The IPT for sales mark-ups was rejected. Now it is up to the Federal Fiscal Court. After its last ruling from 2016 concerning sales mark-ups, the Federal Fiscal Court will now have the opportunity to provide more clarity for taxpayers.

In cross-border situations, it is often the case that you only have limited information about your business partners. Nevertheless, as a supplier, you must ensure that the VAT treatment of the supplies is correct. You must therefore trust that the information provided is correct. Obtaining the correct information from the customer is, in practice, not always easy. The current Federal Fiscal Court ruling of 31 January 2024 - V 20/21 deals with the question of what to do in such a case.