Kirsten Fox and Dr. Gerhard Widmayer, partners at Kantenwein Zimmermann Spatscheck & Partner, welcomed the “Japan Federation of Certified Public Tax Accountants' Associations”, the national association of Japanese tax consultant chambers, to Theatinerstrasse 8 in the Fünf Höfe.

The seven-member delegation led by association president Naoki Ota exchanged views on various tax policy and practical issues in Germany and Japan with our firm's tax advisors.

After the welcoming address by the Deputy Consul General of Japan, Mr. Yakabe, Kirsten Fox, Dr. Gerhard Widmayer, Anna Haszprunar and Bastian Zielinski presented the activities of a tax consultancy in Germany and the course of tax proceedings. Kirsten Fox also explained the Tax Consultant Remuneration Ordinance and the remuneration of tax consultants in practice.

The guests from Japan were particularly interested in tax proceedings in Germany, which were presented to them using an example from the assignment by the client to the appeal to the Federal Fiscal Court. The presentation of statistics on appeals and their outcome as well as on legal proceedings met with interested questions from the Japanese tax consultants.

Another focus was on the inheritance and gift tax treatment of company succession, which Dr. Gerhard Widmayer explained. In particular, the requirements and legal consequences of the preferential treatment of company assets were described. The tax consultants from Japan were interested in how operationally active companies are favored. The procedures remain lengthy and require a great deal of explanation, which is why there is a need for reform.