Overview

• SPD deputy floor leader Wiebke Esdar called for swift negotiations with the Union to target very large estates, saying the current burden falls unfairly on smaller inheritances.
• Greens parliamentary leader Katharina Dröge proposed abolishing key exemptions while allowing multi‑year payment deferrals for firm heirs to avoid jeopardizing jobs.
• Finance Ministry data show 463 transfers of €100 million or more in the past decade, with at least 258 incurring no inheritance or gift tax, even as 2024 receipts hit a record €13.3 billion.
• The CDU is split, with party labor wing chief Dennis Radtke open to cutting unjustified carve‑outs, while CDU general secretary Carsten Linnemann warned changes could unsettle family businesses.
• A ruling expected this year from the Constitutional Court on Bavaria’s complaint could compel changes to the law, but no concrete legislative proposal has been tabled.