Repay­ments from the contri­bution account for tax purposes (sec. 7 of the German Cor­porate Tax Act) can be received tax-neutral at the investor's level if the require­ments of sec. 27 of the German Corporate Tax Act are met. This provi­sion does not include any rules for repay­ments from companies established in non-EU countries. The German Supreme Tax Court now confirms the view of the Finance Court of Nürnberg that repay­ments of capital from companies established in non-EU countries can be recog­nized as a tax neutral trans­action if the respec­tive national law quali­fies those pay­ments as repay­ments of previously contri­buted capital.

Under German invest­ment law, it is possible to set up a contrac­tual fund vehicle under the co-owner­ship prin­ciple. The Fiscal Court of Cologne held that the contri­bution of real estate by a single investor in such a fund vehicle does not trigger real estate transfer taxes if such fund is set up under the co-owner­ship principle. However, fiscal autho­rities have appealed and the Federal Tax Court, Germany´s highest tax court, will now have to decide.

In early September, the European Parliament's Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) objected to the regulatory technical standards relating to the PRIIP Regulation proposed by the EU Commission. Thereafter, on September 14th, the European Parliament resolved to reject the Commission's proposal. The Commission must now submit a new delegated act that takes the EU Parliament's concerns into account. Therefore, the application date of the PRIIP Regulation will have to be postponed.