Overview
- Presenting the concept in the Bundestag on Tuesday, the SPD proposes a lifetime tax‑free allowance of about €1 million per heir—€900,000 from family plus €100,000 from others—and the abolition of the current ten‑year reuse rule, with owner‑occupied homes remaining tax‑free if heirs stay.
- For business transfers, the paper outlines a €5 million company allowance with taxes due above that threshold and payment deferrals of up to 20 years.
- The party frames the shift as a fairness measure and projects additional revenue in the low single‑digit billions to be invested in education, including schools, universities and teaching staff.
- CDU/CSU leaders and business groups criticize the plan as a heavy burden on family‑owned SMEs, while economists such as Clemens Fuest and Lars Feld warn of weaker investment and job risks.
- SPD figures defend the proposal as simplifying and making the levy more equitable, with Wiebke Esdar highlighting long deferrals to protect jobs and Lars Klingbeil citing likely changes after a pending court decision.