Overview
- A draft law from the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, reported July 2, would require Deutsche Post to charge value-added tax on business mail it takes from other firms and forwards.
- Ministry documents estimate the change would bring roughly €115 million in extra annual revenue to the federal budget.
- The Bundesverband Briefdienste welcomed the move and says the true tax gap may be closer to €500 million a year because the Post’s exemption has long disadvantaged rivals.
- Deutsche Post opposes the plan, citing EU VAT rules and the Postgesetz 2024 as grounds for its current exemption and warning the measure could face legal challenges.
- The shift reverses an earlier, unfinished Ampel-era idea to exempt all market players, and it could affect prices for business-mail customers, competitive balance in the postal market, and a likely political decision followed by possible EU-level court review.