Widespread Challenges Arise with Germany's New Property Tax Reform

Thousands of objections and errors highlight issues with the recalculated property tax system implemented after a constitutional mandate.

The 2025 property tax reform in Germany has led to significant public pushback, with thousands of objections filed against tax assessments in various regions, including 26,700 in Mittelsachsen alone.
The reform was mandated after the Federal Constitutional Court declared the previous system unconstitutional in 2018 due to outdated valuation methods dating back decades.
Errors in property tax calculations, often due to incorrect data inputs like misclassifying spaces, have caused financial discrepancies for property owners, prompting calls for corrections even after deadlines have passed.
Some regional governments, such as in Lower Saxony, have announced measures to retroactively address calculation mistakes and evaluate the impact of the reform earlier than initially planned.
Local governments, including Potsdam, have delayed issuing new tax bills to finalize updated rates, while some municipalities report mixed outcomes with both increased and decreased tax burdens for property owners.