Tuesday, January 12, 2021
Corona aid does not arrive
Tax advisors criticize complicated rules
Corona aid to companies and self-employed people is only flowing slowly. Applying for bridging aid was much too bureaucratic, according to one allegation. In addition, tax advisors complain that the government has retrospectively adjusted the guidelines for the aid.
The criticism of the regulations for the state's bridging aid to companies in the corona crisis is growing. "The aids simply do not arrive at our companies. The application is far too bureaucratic," said the President of the German Craftsmen, Hans Peter Wollseifer, the "Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger". The Association of Tax Advisors also criticized the "far too complicated" regulations on bridging aid and promotional loans.
Crafts President Wollseifer called for a committee of experts to be set up in the Federal Ministry of Economics, on which "not only ministerials sit, but also representatives from business associations". In his opinion, it is extremely important "that we make the practical experience of our companies transparent and that politicians then act accordingly and precisely". The aid should now reach the companies.
The Vice President of the Association of Tax Advisors, Valentin Schmid, told the "Augsburger Allgemeine" that the complicated regulations were made more difficult by the fact that "practically no queries can be made and the electronic applications leave no room for information or additions." However, this would be urgently required for the applicants: "Because incorrect information can quickly lead to allegations of subsidy fraud."
Schmid also criticized a retroactive tightening of the corona bridging aid. The fact that the bridging aid, unlike announced, should only be paid for actual losses in the form of uncovered fixed costs, is fatal for the companies concerned, said the vice-president of the Federal Association of Tax Advisors in the newspaper. "The companies affected react with disappointment and frustration." His association expects a significant number of business failures "which tend to increase if subsequent restrictions are made".
According to reports, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Economic Affairs had adjusted the provisions several times in their question-and-answer catalog for bridging aids on the Internet in recent weeks. Since Monday, for example, there has been a maximum limit for so-called November and December aid of four million euros. FDP parliamentary group vice Michael Theurer called for a reform of the aid in the "Augsburger Allgemeine": "It is absolutely incomprehensible that the disbursement of the aid does not go through the tax offices and data that is already available." In the case of an arrangement in the form of a loss carry-back and payment via the tax office, the procedure would have been easier for everyone involved.
.