Around 40% of German companies should have to make payments to the federal government. In these cases, the drop in sales during the Corona season was smaller than expected when the order was submitted.
Almost one in four German companies that received government aid during the Corona crisis has to repay part of it. This emerges from a preliminary assessment by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, which is available to the German Press Agency. This is based on samples of the 338,000 applications submitted so far for the final bill. However, about 40% of companies also receive additional payments from the federal government.
High drops in sales as a prerequisite
Temporary Corona aid was paid in an unbureaucratic way to companies whose existence was threatened and with a major decline in sales. However, this payment was linked to a final invoice – the actual decrease in sales and eligible fixed costs were compared with the forecast. Refunds may occur, for example, if the actual drop in sales is less than expected when the order was placed.
According to figures from the Ministry of Economy, around 13.1 billion euros were paid in emergency aid and 63.3 billion euros for programs such as November, December and restart aid.
The deadline for final accounts was October 31st. However, this can be extended without bureaucracy until January 31 and, upon request, until March 31 at the latest, the Ministry of Economy said. The numbers are, therefore, only a provisional balance. The ministry also emphasized that no company should be financially burdened by strict repayment periods. (APA)