GERMANY Law and Practice Contributed by: Christian von Oertzen and Philipp Windeknecht, Flick Gocke Schaumburg
zenship. Otherwise, EU citizens are held to the same standards as citizens of other countries.
German courts are increasingly dealing with mainte - nance issues, where parents demand maintenance payments from their children. To avoid court-supervised care of a parent in the case of mental incapacity or something similar, it is com - mon to produce a lasting power of attorney. However, such a power of attorney can only be established if the principal is still fully capable of acting in their own right. In this context, problems may arise, particularly in the event of dementia. The power of attorney may be revoked at any time. A living will is usually drawn up together with a power of attorney. 9. Planning for Non-Traditional Families 9.1 Children In German tax and civil law, children born out of wed - lock and adopted children are treated in the same way as children born in a marriage. 9.2 Same-Sex Marriage Same-sex marriages have been recognised in Ger - many since 1 October 2017; previously, it was pos - sible to enter into a so-called registered partnership. It is possible to have a partnership that was regis - tered before this date retroactively converted into a marriage. In addition, German registered partners are treated equally to other spouses regarding taxation. Due to the high reliefs under the German income, inheritance and gift tax regime, structuring non-profit organisations can be a good way to combine private clients’ charitable interests with favourable tax plan - ning. Tax Reliefs In general, tax reliefs are available for organisations that have tax-privileged purposes – that is, purposes that are in the public interest (defined as advancing the material, spiritual or ethical well-being of society), 10. Charitable Planning 10.1 Charitable Giving
8. Planning for Minors, Adults with Disabilities and Elders 8.1 Special Planning Mechanisms A last will can be designed to focus especially on the needs of disabled children. In these cases, parents tend to consider specific provisions that ensure full support of the disabled child by state subsidy after their death, while keeping the estate itself untouched with regard to the day-to-day support of the child. This objective is reached by pairing a preliminary/posterior heirship with an executorship. 8.2 Appointment of a Guardian Appointing a guardian, conservator or similar party requires a court proceeding and ongoing supervision by the court. The district court as family court has the function to appoint guardians for minors or for adults with disabilities. The guardian is under the supervision of the court and is especially obliged to file financial reports. A reform that became effective on 1 January 2023 has strengthened the right to self-determination and the autonomy of people in need of support. Regarding the custodianship law, the reform highlights the care of the person and the rights of the ward. Moreover, stricter rules apply to the care of property of the ward: gratuitous transfers of interest in partnerships and cor - porations to minors are treated equally, which implies that even the transfer of shares in a corporation will generally require a family court approval. In addition, in health emergency situations, one spouse may rep - resent the other spouse who is temporarily unable to manage their healthcare affairs due to unconscious - ness or illness for a limited amount of time. 8.3 Elder Law The social insurance system in Germany includes mandatory nursing care insurance, which provides coverage in the event of an individual becoming care- dependent. The coverage of this insurance is deter - mined by the level of the individual’s dependency on care.
185 CHAMBERS.COM
Powered by FlippingBook