Synopsis of German VAT legal text, VAT Directive 1999 (excerpt) and annexes of VAT legal text in German/English, with a bilingual introduction. Background: Increasing globalisation frequently calls for an English translation of the German VAT Law and a broad overview of specific articles of this law. Advantages: Easy, smooth understanding of German VAT Law helps international business transactions with German partners. Beneficial to Enterprises, lawyers, law firms, tax consultants, accountants, trade associations, chambers of commerce, banks, industry organizations: For everybody active in international trade, commerce and tax affairs. VAT-Law: Latest version Including all updates effective from January 1, 2004. Expertise: Editors with long time experience. Constanze Hubner works since many years as Office Manager for international companies in an exclusively English-speaking environment. She holds several certificates in Business English. Iris Schaefer is a certified auditor and tax adviser with focus on VAT. She has advised national and international companies for many years as a highly recognized VAT expert.
Providing treatment of landlord and tenant matters, this book covers both commercial and residential issues. The reader is informed with the changing complexities of legislation and case law in this area. The coverage of cases and legislation is complemented by practical advice on issues facing practitioners in their daily work
Detailed survey of tax treaty interpretations in 16 European countries taking into account court decisions since 1993, the OECD reports on partnership, changes in administrative practice at national level and recent Community law effecting taxation and tax practice.
Value-added tax (VAT) is a mainstay of revenue systems in more than 160 countries. Because consumption is a more stable revenue base than other tax bases, VAT is less distorting and hence more likely to encourage investment, savings, optimum labor supply decisions, and growth. VAT is not without criticism however, and faces its own specific technical and policy challenges. This book, the first to thoroughly evaluate VAT from a global policy perspective after over 50 years of experience with its intricacies, offers authoritative perspectives on VAT’s full spectrum—from its signal successes to the subtle ways its application can undermine revenue performance and economic neutrality. The contributors—leading tax practitioners and academics—examine the key policy issues and topics that are crucially relevant for measuring the success of the tax in the first part of the book, including: revenue generation and revenue efficiency; single rate versus multiple rates; susceptibility to fraud; exemptions and exceptions; compliance cost for businesses; policy and compliance gaps in revenue collection; adjustment rules caused by the transactional nature of the tax; transfer pricing issues; treatment of vouchers; permanent establishments and holding companies; payment of refunds; cross-border digital transactions; and supplies for free or below cost price. The second part offers six country reports—on New Zealand, Japan, China, Colombia, Ethiopia, and India—to demonstrate the different ways in which VAT operates in a variety of national economies. Whether a government is contemplating the imposition of a general consumption tax for the first time or new rules for applying an existing one, it is important for policymakers to keep central the aim to design a tax that realizes optimal efficiency and causes minimal distortions. This invaluable book serves as an expert guide to VAT policy development in this area. It will be welcomed not only by concerned government officials but also by tax professionals (both lawyers and accountants) and academics in tax law.
The most important and recent judgments of the CJEU Considering the ever increasing importance of indirect taxation as a source of revenue for governments, the intensifying complexity of the legal framework, and the proliferating number of countries adopting indirect taxation, it is essential to scrutinize how the law is actually applied in practice. The primary driving force in this area is, undoubtedly, the Court of Justice of the European Union. This book analyses selected topics (e.g. the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and VAT, taxable base and rates, exemptions, and deductions) by examining the most prominent and recent judgments of the Court of Justice of the European Union. Experts from all over the world, not just from academia but also government representatives and tax practitioners, have provided their input and helped us compile what is an informative and worthy read for anyone dealing with indirect taxation on a professional basis.
Looks at the process of state-building in Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus, and Russia from a political economy and institutional perspective. Weak and distorted state capacity has come to be widely recognized as a key obstacle to successful transformation—including economic modernization and growth as well as the consolidation of democracy. However, so far little systematic research has been carried out on state capacity per se and on how to explain its development. The book provides new insights in considering the evolution of Ukraine since 1992, offering an in-depth view of institutional development in crucial areas and thus tracing the process of state-building. It draws comparisons with developments in Belarus, Lithuania, and Russia (based on field research). To capture the process of state-building empirically, focuses on the extraction and expenditure systems which are a central pillar of state capacity and also a central link between citizens and the state. The book also sheds light on how Ukraine’s potential ‘second transition’ currently under way will have an impact on its institutional system.
Insolvency law reform has become a subject of public urgency in many countries in the past two decades and particularly in much of Asia over the last ten years. This volume provides an overview of insolvency laws and related rules and procedures in the countries of East Asia. The book comprises two introductory chapters dealing with issues such as legal culture and cross-border insolvency, before examining the fourteen principal jurisdictions in the region. Each chapter addresses the key themes of different insolvency regimes, such as: the legal system and culture; personal insolvency laws; corporate insolvency rules; court-based schemes of arrangement; winding-up procedures; liquidators; enforcement; and offences. This title will be an invaluable guide to academics, practitioners and policy makers working in the areas of comparative and commercial law.
Value added tax (VAT) is often considered the most important development in tax of the past century. Although generally successful – it can account for a large proportion of state revenue – it has spawned its own set of complex problems that require a corresponding set of legal skills to resolve. This book, by systematically drawing out the rules from a thorough analysis of the VAT Directive and as good as every VAT case ever decided by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) (850 in all), is the ideal day-to-day guide to European VAT law. The rules – and their applications – for such VAT matters as the following are clearly described with examples: distinction between supplies of goods and services for VAT purposes; bundled supplies; intra-Community acquisitions; when tax liability starts and ends; place of supply rules and their exceptions; exemptions in the real estate, finance, and insurance sectors; import and export exemptions; right to deduct VAT; abuse of rights; the problem of incorrect invoices; refund of VAT; and special schemes. An extensive keyword register facilitates navigating the book. Developed from the author’s daily practice as a tax counsel, this book will be of immeasurable value to tax consultants, lawyers, in-house counsel, tax authority officials, and taxation academics, not only in Europe but beyond.
Parties to cross-border disputes arising anywhere in the vast Portuguese-speaking world – a community of more than 230 million in a space that offers a wide array of investment opportunities across four continents – increasingly seek Portugal as their preferred seat of arbitration. A signatory to all relevant international conventions, Portugal has proven to be an ‘arbitration-friendly’ jurisdiction. This volume is the first and so far only book in English that provides a thorough, in-depth analysis of international arbitration law and practice in Portugal. Its contributing authors are among the most highly regarded legal names in the country, including scholars, arbitrators, and practitioners. The authors describe how international arbitration proceedings are conducted in Portugal, what cautions should be taken, and what procedural strategies may be suitable in particular cases. They provide insightful answers to questions such as the following: What matters can be submitted to arbitration under Portuguese law? What are the validity requirements for an arbitration agreement? How do the State courts interact with arbitration proceedings and what is the attitude of such courts toward international arbitration? What are the rules governing evidentiary matters in arbitration? How is an arbitration tribunal constituted? How are arbitrators appointed? How may they be challenged? How can an international arbitral award be recognized and enforced? How does the Portuguese legal system address the issue of damages and what specific damages are admitted? How are the costs of arbitration proceedings estimated and allocated? The book includes analyses of arbitration related to specific fields of the law, notably sports, administrative, tax, intellectual property rights (especially regarding reference and generic medicines), and corporate disputes. Each chapter provides, for the topics it addresses, an examination of the applicable laws, rules, arbitration practice, and views taken by arbitral tribunals and state courts as well as those of the most highly considered scholars. As a detailed examination of the legal framework and of all procedural steps of an arbitration in Portugal, from the drafting of an arbitration agreement to the enforcement of an award, this book constitutes an invaluable resource for parties involved in or considering an international arbitration in this country. The guidance that it seeks to provide in respect of any problem likely to arise in this context can be useful to arbitrators, judges, academics, and interested lawyers.
