New Taxation Rules for Flight and Ship Crews in Germany? Or a Long Way to Status Quo. Abstract in English of my Article published in the magazine “Deutsches Steuerrecht”

Under German tax law, domestic taxable income within the meaning of the limited income tax liability (“beschränkte Steuerpflicht”) is income from employment that is or has been carried out or was utilized in Germany. For decades this required physical exercise of the work in German territory to become insofar taxable with the salary. So workers living abroad with “German” employer but no tax residency in Germany have been taxable with their salaries only insofar as the work was rendered within German territory. COVID changes this and more and more mobile workers or home office simplification rules – such as between Luxemburg and Germany – were introduced and required a change which become effective in 2024.