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Corporate Tax Audits in Germany Fall to Decade Low, Recoveries Drop Below €11 Billion

Staffing shortages blamed by states have eroded Germany’s audit capacity, prompting expert warnings of mounting revenue losses.

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Die Summe der Steuernachzahlungen, die im Zuge von Kontrollen eingetrieben werden, geht tendenziell immer weiter zurück. (Symbolbild)
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Overview

  • Audit volume has declined by nearly 60% since 2015 to around 140,000 annual corporate reviews.
  • Auditor headcount shrank by almost 10% over the past decade to about 12,359 positions in 2024.
  • Annual tax repayments secured through audits have fallen from roughly €16 billion in the 2000s to under €11 billion in the latest year.
  • Audit coverage now reaches just 1.7% of all firms and 17.8% of large companies, while small and micro-enterprises face inspections only every 38 and 150 years on average.
  • Financial watchdogs and anti-fraud experts have demanded major staffing increases, IT modernization and federal intervention after states blamed staffing shortages and growing case complexity.