[Enclosure—Translation85]
The German Foreign
Office to the American
Embassy
No.V Steu 30/B 2556
Note Verbale
The Foreign Office has the honor to inform the Embassy of the United
States of America, in reply to the latter’s note
verbale of
[Page 191]
October 27, 1923 (No. 543),86 and supplementing its own note verbale of September 5, 1923 (V Steu
1496),87 that, by an ordinance
dated January 5, 1924,88 the Federal Minister of Finance has instructed
the competent financial authorities that incomes derived from the
operation of ships by citizens of the United States of America
(individual persons) who have no residence in Germany are likewise
to be exempted from the income tax, under the condition of
reciprocity and the reservation of repeal at any time, as has
already been ordered by a proclamation of August 10, 1923,89 relating to American
commercial companies as affected by the corporation tax.
Furthermore, according to the investigations undertaken by the German
Government, citizens of the United States who have no residence in
Germany, as well as American shipping companies which receive their
incomes from the operation of ships, have not been subjected in
Germany to either the income or corporation tax since January 1,
1921.
The Foreign Office would be grateful for a statement as to whether
now the Government of the United States of America will grant to
German shipping companies and individual persons engaged in shipping
the same exemption from taxation of incomes derived from the
operation of ships, and particularly so with retroactive effect from
January 1, 1921.
Berlin, January 19,
1924.