Germany to Strengthen Voluntary Disclosure Rules

On 27 August 2014, the German Federal Ministry of Finance issued a draft bill that would amended the country's voluntary disclosure program. The changes would apply from 1 January 2015, and include:

• The mandatory self-disclosure period (statute of limitations) is increased from 5 years to 10 years
• Additional penalties for evaded tax of 10% on evaded amounts exceeding €25,000, 15% on evaded amounts exceeding €100,000, and 20% on evaded amounts exceeding €1 million
• The statute of limitations p…