Until September 30, 2022, the person who was the owner of a real property on January 1, 2022, is obliged to submit the declaration for the determination of the real property tax value for the main determination date of January 1, 2022, according to the officially prescribed data set. Since the effects of the submission of these declarations will not take effect until the real estate tax calculation in 2025, in the case of real estate sales taking place in 2022, it is predominantly in the interest of the purchaser that the declaration has been properly submitted.

Therefore, a provision should be included in real estate purchase agreements stating whether the seller has already submitted the corresponding declaration to the tax office. If this is not yet the case, it is advisable to make a provision that enables the buyer to co-determine the content of the declaration if necessary. The partially proposed solution of allowing the buyer to make the declaration on behalf of the seller is probably not permissible. Pursuant to Section 228 of the Valuation Act (BewG), which governs the submission of the declaration, it must be signed by the owner (para. 5), so that representation, unless by lawyers or tax advisors, is not possible. However, it should then be stipulated that the seller only submits the declaration in consultation with the buyer. Although the seller cannot be obliged to make the declaration in a possibly incorrect manner, such coordination can avoid later disagreements between the contracting parties and vis-à-vis the tax authorities.

In addition, it should be included in the contract that the seller is obliged to notify the buyer of the notices still to be served on him (notice of real property tax value pursuant to Section 219 (1) BewG and the notice of real property tax measurement pursuant to Sections 13,16 of the Real Property Tax Act) immediately after service.

If you have any questions on this subject, please contact attorney and notary Dr. Wolfgang Probandt.