Direct Claim Against Tax Authorities for Incorrectly Charged VAT: Legal Requirements and Case Analysis

The direct claim against the tax administration requires that a tax was incorrectly stated separately in an invoice for a service already provided or to be provided.
The Federal Fiscal Court adheres to its previous ruling from 2019.
The Reemtsma direct claim allows taxpayers to request a refund of incorrectly paid VAT directly from the tax office in certain exceptional cases.
This applies when the recipient of a service deducts the tax as input tax, but the tax office later demands it back if it was incorrectly invoiced.
If the service provider is insolvent, the recipient may have a claim against the tax authority under certain conditions.
The administrative view is that a direct VAT claim is decided within a discretionary procedure.
In the case, the plaintiff supplied food at a reduced tax rate and paid a bonus back, assuming a taxable service was provided.
The tax office objected and demanded the difference between the correct 7 percent reduction and the 16 percent input tax deduction.
The plaintiff’s appeal and request for leniency were rejected, and the court found no service was provided for the bonuses and discounts.