New Study Quantifies Billions from a Reintroduced German Wealth Tax
The FÖS analysis shows a wealth tax could raise large sums and help cash-strapped towns but legal rules and politics would still block direct aid to municipalities.
Overview
- A Forum Ökologische Marktwirtschaft study, including a Greenpeace-commissioned scenario, estimates plausible annual revenues between €11 billion and €28 billion and a specific model near €25 billion.
- The FÖS modeling gives concrete city-level examples, such as roughly €240 million for Munich, about €68 million for Halle, and nearly €15 million for Pirmasens that could fund schools, social housing and local transit.
- German municipalities face deep shortfalls — the Statistisches Bundesamt reported a €31.9 billion municipal financing deficit in 2025 and surveys put the accumulated investment backlog in the hundreds of billions.
- Major practical barriers remain: a 1995 Federal Constitutional Court ruling on unequal asset valuation requires any new tax to meet strict equality and valuation rules, and Article 106(2) of the Basic Law means revenues go to the Länder unless states choose to pass money to municipalities.
- Political and economic hurdles make adoption uncertain because the SPD supports a return, the Union opposes it, the federal government has not put it on the agenda, and officials warn of collection costs, avoidance and possible taxpayer relocation.