High Court Ruling: Germany Grants Tax Equality to Gay Couples

from Der Spiegel:



Gay and lesbian couples in civil unions should have the same joint tax filing rights as married heterosexual couples, Germany's highest court ruled Thursday, dealing a blow to Chancellor Merkel's conservatives.

Germany's top court ruled Thursday that civil partnerships, including those of same-sex couples, should have joint tax filing benefits equal to those of married opposite-sex couples.

The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe ruled that the unequal treatment of marriages and civil partnerships regarding taxes was unconstitutional, and demanded that the law be changed retroactively to August 1, 2001, the date that Germany legalized civil unions. Until new regulations exist, the current provisions for joint filings of married couples can be applied to civil partnerships, according to the decision.

The move had significant political support. All parties in the parliament, with the exception of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), had recently called for such equal treatment. ....................(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/german-high-court-supports-equal-tax-privileges-for-gay-couples-a-904111.html