Overview
- The court found no legal basis for charging non-residential properties higher multipliers than housing, invoking the constitutional principle of tax fairness.
- Judges overturned the four plaintiffs’ assessments and voided city bylaws where they set different rates, preventing their use in other open cases.
- The decisions target Bochum, Essen, Dortmund and Gelsenkirchen, where business rates run about 1,190–1,397% versus 625–715% for housing, depending on the city.
- The judgments are not final, with both an appeal to the NRW Higher Administrative Court and a rare leap to the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig allowed.
- NRW enabled differentiated multipliers in July 2024 to cushion housing costs; roughly 120 municipalities adopted the model, business groups warn of site disadvantages, and more lawsuits are pending.