Tax arrears, staff shortages, IT issues – Berlin’s tax offices have repeatedly faced problems. But when it comes to digitalization, they are making steady progress. That’s according to a written response to an inquiry submitted by SPD tax policy expert Sebastian Schlüsselburg in the Berlin House of Representatives. The Berliner Morgenpost obtained and evaluated the response in advance.

According to the document, the so-called Autofallquote — essentially, the share of fully digitalized tax procedures—has risen from around four to roughly 25 percent on average across the city since 2016. The biggest laggard is Zehlendorf, where the rate is just 19.8 percent. The frontrunner is Marzahn-Hellersdorf, with 33 percent. Schlüsselburg interprets these numbers as evidence of “tangible progress” in automation. “That’s a remarkable step forward and a sign of the strong commitment of staff in the tax offices,” he says.

“Inheritance tax must finally be processed completely digitally”

At the same time, he stresses, efforts must continue. “If Berlin wants to secure tax fairness and strengthen the revenue base for future investments, we need to keep pressing ahead with digitalization.” The Autofallquote must continue to rise, and automation should be expanded to additional types of taxes. Beyond corporate and sales taxes, Schlüsselburg particularly mentions inheritance tax: “It must finally be fully processed digitally to avoid media disruptions and make more efficient use of personnel resources,” he demands.

According to the current draft budget, however, the black-red (CDU-SPD) state government plans to reduce funding for digitalization across Berlin. The justification: funds allocated in previous years were not fully used. Yet a look at the financial administration’s budget shows that allocations to Berlin’s state IT service provider (ITDZ) for the tax offices are set to increase significantly—from €14.7 million in 2025 to €27.2 million in 2026, and €29.2 million in 2027.

Schlüsselburg, who left the Left Party a year ago and joined the SPD earlier this year, continues to keep a close eye on the city’s tax administration. As recently as August, a response to one of his inquiries revealed that Berlin’s current tax arrears amount to €886 million—the majority stemming from unpaid sales taxes. The reason, according to Schlüsselburg: staff shortages in the tax offices.

This article was originally written and published on the 7th of October in German. It was translated in English with the use of Artificial Intelligence.