40-90 rule
The 40-90 rule is a rule in German tax law that determines what is to be regarded as leasing for tax purposes in contrast to other forms of financing .
The financial ownership of the leased object is only assigned to the leasing company if the basic rental period is in reasonable proportion to the normal useful life. This ratio is set between 40 and 90%.
The leased object is therefore only ascribed to the lessee, the user of the mobile object, as beneficial ownership if the useful life
- less than 40% or
- more than 90%
the usual useful life. In such cases, the tax office usually assesses the leasing contract as a hire purchase . If, on the other hand, it lies between the limits, the ownership is assigned to the lessor and the leasing contract is recognized as such. In addition, there is a further criterion that the acquisition or production costs of the leasing company (lessor) and all ancillary costs including the lessor's financing costs are only partially covered by the leasing rates during the basic rental period.
The depreciation table is usually decisive for the useful life .
