- Payments from public authorities to a shepherd for conservation purposes are subject to value-added tax
- Niedersächsisches FG, judgment of 20.7.2023
- The Niedersächsisches FG has ruled that a shepherd who grazes a heathland with his flock of sheep and goats in accordance with nature conservation requirements and receives payment from the public authorities is subject to value-added tax, as there is no genuine non-taxable subsidy.
- Official guiding principles: Payments from a local authority to a shepherd for grazing leased areas in a nature reserve according to the requirements of the local nature conservation authority for the preservation and maintenance of the nature reserve constitute a taxable exchange of services.
- If a local authority uses a third party to provide grazing services in a nature reserve for its preservation, the local authority as the recipient of the service also receives the corresponding consumable benefit.
- The local authority derives individual benefits from the grazing services simply by not having to provide the necessary services for the preservation of the nature reserve itself or through another party.
Source: datenbank.nwb.de
Note that this post was (partially) written with the help of AI. It is always useful to review the original source material, and where needed to obtain (local) advice from a specialist.
