In order to develop a suitable framework for the analysis of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) case law, it is first analysed what significance, if any, the concept of 'sovereignty' has in the contemporary supranational environment of the European Union. All too often, tax scholars equate 'sovereignty' with the concepts of 'competence' or 'jurisdiction'. It will be established in this thesis that a much more specific and higher-level meaning is to be attributed to the 'sovereignty' concept, which goes beyond the strictly legal concepts of 'competence' or 'jurisdiction'. The cornerstone of this thesis, however, is an extensive analysis of the case law of the ECJ in direct tax matters, including a comparison with its non-tax case law. A new kind of methodology is used in discussing the cases: they are categorized according to whether a discrimination - or a restriction - based analysis was applied by the ECJ.
Following each Member State's need to rebuild a strong and stable economy after the 2007 financial crisis, the European Union (EU) has developed a robust new transparency framework with binding anti-abuse measures and stronger instruments to challenge external threats of base erosion. This is the first and only book to provide a complete detailed analysis of the Anti-Tax Avoidance Package and other recent and ongoing European actions taken in direct taxation. With contributions from both prominent tax academics and Spain's delegates to the European meetings where these rules are debated and promulgated, the book covers such issues and topics as the following: – the development of the EU Strategy towards Aggressive Tax Planning; – recent tax-related jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice; – the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive; – tax treaties and non-tax treaties with tax consequences both between Member States and between Member States and third countries; – code of conduct for business taxation; – automatic exchange of information; – country-by-country reporting; – arbitration in tax matters; – external strategy for effective taxation regarding non-EU countries; – competition and state aid developments in direct taxation; – the Common Consolidated Tax Base; and – digital significant presence and permanent establishment. As the EU pursues its ambitious tax agenda, taxation's contribution to EU growth and competitiveness and its part in relations with the rest of the world will come into ever clearer focus. In addition to its insights into these trends, the book's unparalleled practical information and analysis will be of great value to tax practitioners dealing with investment analysis, tax planning schemes, and other features of the current international tax landscape.
Issues in 27 member states that might have an impact on their own cases. A new way of thinking is necessary in order to achieve a homogeneous application of non-harmonized community law dealing with direct taxation
This book focuses on the status quo of European tax integration, combining law, policy and politics. Good policy should identify and address problems when they arise, achieving suitable solutions that law implements. Within the European Union, this relation is malfunctioning or entirely missing in direct tax matters. Positive tax integration in the European Union has mostly failed to transform supranational policy goals into actual measures of harmonization and coordination, except for the recent reaction to tax avoidance. The topical studies contained in this book hold that without a proper action that removes cross-border tax obstacles, positive tax integration shifts away from its original goals. Furthermore, such a scenario leaves the bulk of European tax integration in the hands of the limits established by negative tax integration, with little room for developing a structured policy in the interest of the European Union. This peer-reviewed publication aims to stimulate debate among scholars, decision-makers, practitioners, politicians and interpreters of European international tax law, with a view to bringing European tax integration back on the right track.
This book investigates whether the European Commission (EC) has the mandate to legislate on direct taxation in sovereign states and ultimately questions whether the EC’s enforcement action in recent tax ruling cases, in the area of state aid, respects the rule of law.
How does EU membership affect national sovereignty? This edited volume offers a broader perspective on sovereignty relying on the international law concept.
Judicial review of taxation in the world’s two most economically significant multistate systems, the European Union and the United States, has exposed a remarkable divergence. Although there are important differences between the competences of the two tribunals, the fact remains that the European Court of Justice has been much more aggressive in striking down Member State income tax rules than has the United States Supreme Court in comparable cases. This book – the only full-scale comparative analysis of the tax jurisprudence of the two judicial systems, now in an updated second edition – asks: Why this divergence? And what can the two tribunals learn from each other about adjudicating issues that arise from the interaction of tax regimes in the context of a single market? Among the contributory issues and topics covered are the following: – conceptions of sovereignty and federalism; – discrimination in direct tax matters as an obstacle to a meaningful single market; – allocation of taxation competences; – nonresident versus resident taxation; – double burdens on cross-border economic activity; – retroactive recovery of unlawful state aid in the European Union; – role of competition law; – the revenue interests of states; – levels of corporate taxation; – the OECD Model’s nondiscrimination rules; and – the preliminary interpretation mechanism of the Court of Justice. An insightful and penetrating analysis of a topic of material importance to governments, tax policy makers, and tax lawyers on both sides of the Atlantic, this book clearly explains how the Supreme Court and the Court of Justice continue to struggle with the conflict between generally accepted tax principles and the effective prevention of discriminatory treatment of taxpayers. All tax professionals concerned with the interaction of sovereignty, tax assignment, legislation, and judicial decisions in tax law will benefit greatly from its clearsighted and comprehensive treatment, as well as from its perspectives on the practical implications of each tribunal’s decision making.
Tax competition in the form of harmful tax practices can distort trade and investment patterns, erode national tax bases and shift part of the tax burden onto less mobile tax bases. The Report emphasises that governments must intensify their cooperative actions to curb harmful tax practices.
This revised and expanded Encyclopedia is the new benchmark and flagship reference work for the study of international economic law. A comprehensive resource, its pages present the breadth of the field in a real-world context. Organized thematically rather than alphabetically, the Encyclopedia includes four significant thematic sections: the foundations, architecture and principles of international economic law; regulatory framework; regulatory areas; and regulatory challenges. Including updated and new entries, traditional international economic law topics are now supplemented by coverage of critical perspectives and a broader range of newly developing areas such as taxation, sustainability, and digitalization. Concepts and rules of trade, investment, finance, competition, and international tax law are found alongside entries examining how international economic law impacts on environmental protection, labor standards, development, and human rights. Embedded within its own legal context, each concise entry presents an accessible and condensed understanding of what it means and why it is significant. Contributors offer insight into how institutions interact with each other and other legal systems, in addition to providing individual overviews of their history, structure, principles and procedures. Entries are followed by selected references suggesting directions for further study. Completely new to this edition is an entire section of extended entries on specific jurisdictions focusing on how these contribute to and engage with international economic law. These longer pieces describe the national legal frameworks responsible for developing international policies on trade investment, financial regulation, and tax, offering insight into how international rules actually work at the national level. Key Features: Concise, structured entries from top experts and new voices in the field Organised thematically, covering newly developing areas of international economic law Selected references for further study
