Feenstra Leads Letter to German Finance Minister over Unfair and Discriminatory Tax Targeted at American Businesses

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Last week, U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra (R-Hull) led eight of his Republican colleagues on the House Ways and Means Committee in sending a letter to the German Minister of Finance, Mr. Christian Lindner, over concerns that portions of Section 49 of the German tax code include a discriminatory and unfair tax that targets American businesses and their profits.

“Section 49 of the German tax code is the epitome of unfair taxation at the expense of American businesses and workers. This tax – which targets royalty payments for patents and trademarks registered in Germany – goes against longstanding international tax norms and leaves American companies at a competitive disadvantage,” said Rep. Feenstra. “Serving on the House Ways and Means Committee, it is my job to defend American industry from foreign tax schemes that threaten our economic vitality. I pledge that I will continue to urge German officials to end this ridiculous tax and restore fairness to their tax code.”

In the letter, the lawmakers note that Section 49 is a “discriminatory and extraterritorial tax that uniquely burdens U.S. companies and hampers their ability to compete fairly in the globally marketplace.”

They further add that, “This sort of discriminatory taxation is contradictory to the important political and economic relationship between our two nations, and we respectfully urge you to repeal the remaining portions of Sec. 49 that discriminate against U.S. companies.”

You can read the full letter HERE.

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