The German Association of Energy and Water Industries (BDEW) has called for a reform of the country’s current inheritance tax treatment of agricultural land leased to ground-mounted solar PV.
Kerstin Andreae, chair of the BDEW executive board, said that if agricultural land is leased for PV systems, it would no longer be considered agricultural or forestry assets for tax purposes.
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Because of this uncertainty, the trade body added that it would complicate lease agreements and consequently slow the expansion of ground-mounted PV systems in Germany.
“The expansion of ground-mounted photovoltaic (PV) systems requires reliable access to suitable land. Unfortunately, current inheritance law regulations mean that agricultural land, if leased for PV systems, is no longer considered agricultural or forestry assets for tax purposes. This threatens the loss of inheritance and gift tax benefits,” said Andreae.
This loss of inheritance and gift tax benefits outlined by Andreae could result in “significant tax burdens” in the event of inheritance or gifts. According to BDEW, these tax burdens could, in some cases, exceed the total lifetime lease income of a solar PV plant.
For this reason, the trade body has called for legal clarification and published a paper with proposals (in German) to reform the inheritance and gift tax treatment of ground-mounted PV systems.
Among the propositions is to keep these areas classified as agricultural and forestry assets while a PV system is operating on them. The BDEW also proposed the need for a separate incentive provision for ground-mounted PV installations, for instance, through a flat-rate valuation discount or tax-free allowance.
Germany remains one of the leading European markets for new solar PV installations, with 16.2GW of new capacity additions last year. However, in the first three months of 2026, ground-mounted solar has been the only PV sector in Germany to experience year-on-year growth, accounting for nearly half of the 3.51GW added in the first quarter.
