The recent revelations of whisteblower Edward Snowden point out the fact that secure communication via the Internet is threatened. The communication between clients and advisor is affected, too. We would like to present you our services regarding secure communication and data transfers via the Internet. In this beinformed, we explain the problem of unencypted e-mail correspondence and how to significantly improve security by the use of simple tools.

Almost the entire tax amendments previously intended in the scope of the Annual Tax Act 2013 come into force now. Two of the most relevant amendments are the extension of corresponding taxation on hybrid financial instruments and the avoidance of the so called RETT-Blocker Models. Here particularly the modified provisions on application are important.

Yesterday, the German Parliament (Bundestag) enacted the Act Amending the German Investment Tax Act and Other Acts (AIFM Tax Amendment Act) after having made important amendments to the draft Act dated January 30, 2013 based on the Finance Committee's recommendations.

Equally important is what was not amended: although the opposition forcefully insisted on the introduction of a lump-sum taxation for accumulated earnings of investment corporations (Kapital-Investitionsgesellschaften), such lump-sum taxation did not find its way into the now enacted German Investment Tax Act.