ECJ: Ruling on Outbound Dividends and Free Movement of Capital
On 9 March 2020 a ruling by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in a case on free movement of capital was published. The case State of Canada v Autoridade Tributaria e Aduaneira related to dividends paid to the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board
See MoreEuropean Commission proposes far reaching VAT reform plans
The European Commission published plans on 4 October 2017 that would fundamentally change the current VAT system applied by EU Member States. The proposals are aimed on the one hand at cutting back on VAT fraud, and on the other at simplifying
See MoreEuropean Commission Communication on taxation of digital business
Following on from a call for action from four EU finance ministers, the European Commission published a report on 21 September 2017 setting out the issues on how to tax digital business and some possible solutions. These included, by way of short
See MoreEuropean Commission Presents Tax Transparency Package
On 18 March 2015 the European Commission issued a range of measures aimed at tacking corporate tax avoidance and harmful tax competition. Corporate tax avoidance distorts economic decisions and prevents fair competition. The complexity of tax rules
See MoreGreek Tax Provisions has been challenged by European Union
It was asked by the European Commission to end the Greek discriminatory taxation of foreign-flagged ships and amend legislation on duty-free service stations. Greek-flagged ships and certain vessels managed from Greece are exempt from income tax as
See MoreIreland – Taxation of Termination Payments Challenged
European Commission has requested Ireland to change its legislation on termination payments paid to individuals when their employment contracts end, as the Commission is of the opinion that the Irish rules are a restriction on the free movement of
See MoreEU – Expanded scope of Savings Taxation Directive
According to information released on 21 March 2014 the European Council has given the go ahead to the amended Savings Tax Directive. Luxembourg agreed to the proposed changes and this removed the final obstacle to the adoption of the revised
See MoreEU Report Tracks Protectionist Trade Measures
The European Commission has issued the latest edition of the publication entitled Trade and Investment Barriers Report (TIBR). This looks at the amount of progress made in removing barriers to trade by local companies with third countries and
See MoreEU – Frequently asked questions on EU Savings Taxation Directive
Recently the European Commission provided a discussion of frequently asked questions (FAQs) concerning the EU Savings Taxation Directive. The Savings Directive aims to address cross-border tax evasion by creating an information exchange system for
See MoreEU – Status update of financial transaction tax
The European Commission on 5 March 2014 posted an update of the status of the proposed financial transaction tax. According to the Commission a February 2013 proposal for “enhanced cooperation” reflected the scope and objectives of original
See MoreEU – Excise tax rates for alcohol, tobacco and energy for 2014
Recently, the European Commission posted updated (as of 1 January 2014) indirect tax rates for excise duties on alcohol, tobacco, and energy. Updated rates are available on the EC
See MoreEU – European Commission Looks At Green Tax Options
An increase in taxes on the causes of air and water pollution in the European Union could generate revenues of EUR35bn (USD47.2bn) in real terms in 2016 alone, the European Commission has claimed in a new report. A new study from the European
See MoreEU – European Commission takes action to close the gender pay gap
On 8th March, 2014 the European Commission adopted a Recommendation asking Member States to improve pay transparency for women and men in a bid to help close the gender pay gap. The pay gap – the average difference between women and men’s hourly
See MoreEuropean Parliament Urged To Outlaw Anonymous Shell Companies
The European Parliament has been urged to support the creation of public registries of corporate ownership. This suggestion has been made by a Washington DC-based research and advocacy organization. Global Financial Integrity (GIF) studies and
See MoreEU: Digital economy taxation expert group
The high-level expert group on digital taxation of the EC met for the second time on 14 to 15 January 2014. The meeting focused on the interaction of the group’s work with the OECD, understanding business models in the digital economy, VAT issues
See MoreUnited Kingdom – Changes of tax refund-procedure not compatible with EU law
The Court of Justice for the European Union (CJEU) issued a judgment on 12 December 2013 concluding that EU law precludes UK measures effect of which is to deprive taxpayers and that happened without notice and retroactively. It was focused on
See MoreEU: Planning to change the intrastate reporting process
The European Commission is plans to changes the Intrastate reporting process which is the month to month reporting procedure for EU VAT registered businesses. This enables the countries to follow the movement of goods in the free trade
See MoreBelgium: EC investigates R&D incentives, tax exemption
An “in-depth investigation” is launched which will determine whether Belgium’s implementation of a system of support for innovative companies i.e., research and development (R&D) incentives is consistent with the EU rules on state aid. It
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