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Marriage allows for joint tax assessment under Section 26b of the German Income Tax Act (EStG). The income of both spouses is then combined and taxed uniformly. This does not necessarily entail joint criminal liability under tax law.

The mere signing of a joint tax return does not in itself constitute tax evasion. According to the Federal Court of Justice (BGH), only the spouse whose income fulfills the criteria for the respective type of income is considered to be "making a declaration."

However, a spouse can contribute to the offense if they assist the other spouse in tax evasion—for example, by providing access to a foreign bank account.