Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? ": Tax on profits

If you successfully participate in the program "Who Wants to be a Millionaire", the question arises whether you have to pay tax on the profit. We have researched the answer for you.

"Who wants to be a millionaire" - profit does not have to be taxed

German tax law is extremely complicated. This becomes apparent when it comes to the question of whether profits have to be taxed.

• For example, you do not have to pay tax on a lottery win. If you are lucky, the win does not count as income.
• Winnings become taxable, however, if you are regularly successful, for example in poker tournaments.
• The tax office also sees winners of certain shows such as "Big Brother" as income. A service is performed here and the person is in the spotlight for a long time.
• This is not the case with "Who wants to be a millionaire". The time the person is in public is limited. Not much of his person is revealed here either.
• According to Dr. Franziska Peters from the Finanzgericht Münster is therefore no reason for taxation if the game show wins. However, there have also been cases in which tax offices have levied taxes on profits.
• So the legal situation is not entirely clear. So if you are lucky and have extensive knowledge of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire", but bad luck with the tax office, you may still have to tax the profit.

If you would like to take part in the competition yourself, we will show in our next article how to apply for “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire”.