Unsuccessful Constitutional Complaint Regarding the Solidarity Surcharge Tax Act

The solidarity surcharge, introduced on 1 January 1995, is a supplementary tax in accordance with Article 106, Sec. 1 (6) of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (GG). In its ruling, the BVerfG clarifies that such a supplementary tax requires the federal government to have an additional financial need related to specific tasks. This need, however, only needs to be outlined in its fundamental aspects by the legislature. For the solidarity surcharge, this financial need arises from the federal government's expenditures due to the reunification of Germany.

If it becomes evident that this additional financial need has ceased to exist, the legislature would be obligated to abolish the surcharge or adjust its conditions. The federal legislature must remain vigilant when such a supplementary tax is collected over an extended period. At present, it cannot be conclusively determined that the additional financial need of the federal government, resulting from the integration of the former East German states, has entirely disappeared. Thus, there was and remains no obligation for the legislature to abolish the solidarity surcharge from the 2020 assessment period onwards.