The German Ministry of Finance issues first draft of its Growth Opportunities Act

On 17th July 2023, the German Ministry of Finance released its first draft of the so-called “Growth Opportunities Act”, aimed at strengthening competiveness and supporting economic growth opportunities for German businesses. The various proposed changes to current legislation, which cover a broad spectrum of fields, include the following points relating to VAT:

The threshold for cash-accounting would be increased from the EUR 600.000 to EUR 800.000, effective as of 1st January 2024.
The threshold for the submission of an annual VAT return would be increased from EUR 1000 output VAT, to EUR 2000 per annum, in a move aiming to reduce the number of companies filing quarterly VAT returns. This too would be effective as of 1st January 2024.
The draft also includes the introduction into German VAT legislation of obligatory B2B e-invoicing for the domestic sale of goods and services. Germany is currently awaiting final approval from the EU Commission to be allowed to introduce same, with a revised date of January 2026 (a year later than originally planned).