Ask a tax advisor on the topic of Balance sheet

Financial injection by shareholders

January 5, 2018 | 25,00 EUR | answered by

I ask for specific answers with references to the relevant sections or other sources.

The GmbH was founded in 2013 with 2 managing directors, who are also shareholders at 50% each. The shareholders are not liable for tax in Germany. The share capital is €25,000.
In 2016, the shareholders paid €12,650 into the GmbH's account. In the 2016 financial year, the money was only booked as a "private deposit" under 02180 (SkR 04) and the balance sheet looked as follows:
Assets
B. Current assets
II. Receivables and other assets
4. Other assets €708.70
IV. Cash on hand, balances with credit institutions, post office €18,779.84
___________________
Total assets €19,488.54

Liabilities:
A. Equity
I. Capital
Share capital €25,000.00
Variable capital
Deposits/withdrawals €12,650.00
IV. Profit and loss brought forward -€14,685.00
V. Surplus/deficit for the year -€4,076.46
C. Provisions
3. Other provisions €600.00
___________________
Total liabilities €19,488.54

Upon inquiry from the tax office regarding the amount of €12,650, it was explained that it was a "private deposit."

The tax office replied that there is no private deposit for the GmbH (this is clear and does not need further discussion) and asked if it was a capital reserve, and that based on the balance sheet presentation, the share capital would amount to €37,650, although only €25,000 is registered in the commercial register.

Questions:
1. In our understanding, this is a capital reserve according to §272 II No. 4 HGB, which is not subject to registration and since it was NOT a loan (shareholders to the GmbH), no liability had to be booked.
1.1. Is this correct?
1.2. Are the relevant balance sheet positions correct:
Liabilities:
A. Equity
I. Capital
Share capital €25,000.00
Variable capital
Deposits/withdrawals €12,650.00?
1.3. Do we need to prepare a shareholders' resolution or other documents for this transaction, and if so, which ones?
1.4. Should the response to the tax office be: "Yes, it was a capital reserve"?

2. If 1.1. is negative:
How can we easily resolve this situation (correcting the balance sheet, registering in the commercial register)? The shareholders do not care whether the payment is recorded as a loan or as a "gift." Illegal income is not the issue.