#436: No firework ban, Swedish-style tax declarations, enforcement chaos
Greens of Kreuzberg vs Friedrich Merz
Dear 20 Percent,
Good news: Germany has been learning from other countries.👏
At least when it comes to one thing.
As early as mid-2026, the Finanzamt (tax office) could be including pre-completed tax declaration forms in Elster, Germany’s online tax portal — the way they do in Sweden and other more advanced countries. If you’re a regular person with a job, your Steuererklärung (tax declaration) could take just a few minutes as opposed to hours now.
Germany may finally have identified one of the most annoying things about its bureaucracy: Filling out the same information again and again for state offices that should already have that information.
Bavaria, the part of Germany we Berliners love to hate, has spearheaded the intiative. If it works, let’s give credit where credit is due.
As the land of IKEA, H&M, long summer nights and saying du instead of Sie, Sweden is idealised by a lot of Germans. So pleasssssse, Deutschland, let’s get this over the finnish line. You can do it.
More news below.
Maurice
📆 The first 20 Percent News Quiz takes place Wednesday, November 12. Free and hosted by yours truly. Reserve your spot!
No firework ban
A mere 2 months till New Year’s Eve and German politicians are still dragging their feet about a firework ban, reports Tagesspiegel (paywall). Meaning: there will be no ban. Two-thirds of Germans favour outlawing private use of fireworks. More than two million signed a pro-ban petition by the police union GdP. You can still add your name. From the cops to animal rights activists who point out the affects of fireworks on wildlife, a huge coalition wants an end to the chaos, violence, pollution and destruction that Germany’s annual night of urban warfare brings with it. Berlin’s state interior minister Iris Spranger (SPD) pushed for nationwide talks about stricter rules on fireworks early this year after another insane Silvester. The 16 states discussed it briefly in the summer — since then nothing’s happened. “Another wasted year,” complained police union spokesman Benjamin Jendro.
More Unordnung
It’s weird how Germany has a repuation for order, isn’t it? Aside from not getting a grip on NYE mayhem, the Berlin adminstration is struggling to enforce rules on small businesses — in essence, allowing organised crime to do as it pleases in large parts of the city. In a joint letter of protest, the heads of all 12 Berlin Ordnungsämter (public order departments) warned that the city has been unable to fulfill its legal duties in commercial oversight for years, leading to a lack of controls when it comes to Spätis, betting offices and gambling venues. The letter warns of a breakdown in law and order. The Ordnungsamt wants responsibility for commercial oversight transferred from the police to them.
Kreuzberg v Merz
Bombshell of the week: The Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg chapter of the Green party has filed criminal charges against Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). They say he incited hatred with his controversial remark about “this problem in the cityscape (Stadtbild)” earlier this month. The Greens accuse Merz of racism because he implied with his remark that people with immigrant origins disrupted public spaces and that deportations could solve that “problem”. Green party bigwig Cem Özdemir’s criticism of Merz was more moderate. He said the subject of immigration should be approached with more sensitivity and said of Merz: “He would have been better off talking about how we need to solve the problem of irregular migration.”
🍺 🥨 Germany-wide news 🥨 🍺
🏭 Will military spending save German industry?
🚨 Police seize fake Picassos in Bavaria
Events this week, curated by The Next Day Berlin
🎷 Jazzfest Berlin 2025 – Where Will You Run When the World’s on Fire?
Thu-Sun, 30.10–02.11, various times. Haus der Berliner Festspiele, A-Trane, Quasimodo & Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtnis-Kirche. Tickets: €0–49
The 62nd edition gathers 120 artists from over 20 countries, from free improvisation to hip-hop and noise, tracing jazz as rebellion, reflection, and renewal. Highlights include Mary Halvorson, Wadada Leo Smith & Vijay Iyer, Patricia Brennan Septet, Makaya McCraven, James Brandon Lewis, Marc Ribot, and Fire! Orchestra.
👻 KOOKOO: No Such Thing as Spirits...
Friday, 31.10, 10 pm – 6 am. OHM, Köpenicker Str. 70, 10179 Berlin. Tickets: €13–15
KOOKOO’s Halloween edition brings DIEMAJIN (DJ Die Soon + MA) live, with Berenice Llorens, ARA, and Mieko Suzuki. Visuals by Carly Fischer and Yukihiro Taguchi summon Tokusatsu ghosts and ritual energy.
🎻 Tristan and Isolde by Richard Wagner (Premiere)
Saturday, 01.11, 4 pm (5 hours/ 2 intervals). In DE with DE and EN surtitles. Deutsche Oper Berlin, Bismarckstraße 35, 10627 Berlin. Tickets: €36–184.
A passionate tale of doomed love unfolds through Wagner’s powerful music, exploring desire and death in an intimate, psychological journey performed by two of today’s leading Wagnerian singers, the US tenor Clay Hilley and Norwegian soprano Elisabeth Teige. Directed by Michael Thalheimer.
🧪 Berlin Science Week 2025 – Beyond Now
Sat-Mon, 01–10.11, various times. Across Berlin. Most events are free
Marking its 10th year, Berlin Science Week turns the city into a playground for ideas, from quantum art to coral reef acoustics. For the curious of all ages, it blends research, art and imagination across 350 events in museums, labs, and cultural spaces.
Factoid
The 45-metre high ferris wheel from the former East German Spreepark amusement park in Treptow has been returned to the site following refurbishment. The 220-tonne ride orginally opened in October 1989 to commemorate the communist German Democratic Republic’s 40th birthday. Weeks later, on November 1989, the Berlin Wall fell. Spreepark closed its gates in 2001, shortly after German reunification. But now the fun-fair is undergoing rennovations and is scheduled to reopen in 2027.
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🎙️The 20% Berlin Podcast on Spotify
"The Ordnungsamt wants responsibility for commercial oversight transferred from the police to them."
Gotta say, this is a first for me. An office that wants to assume responsibility for something they don't currently manage instead of shifting it off their desk to someone (anyone) else's.
Spättis & gambling are one thing, but what about the nail parlours, massage parlours, and pole dancing bars? Does anyone check up to make sure there's no human trafficking going on?