ECOFIN Council’s publication of the EU list of third country non-cooperative jurisdictions in tax matters
On 5 December 2017, the ECOFIN Council published its conclusions on the EU common list of (third country) non-cooperative jurisdictions in tax matters, also referred to as the ‘blacklist’ consisting of 17 jurisdictions. This initiative forms part of the EU’s broader agenda on furthering tax transparency, fair taxation and the implementation of anti-BEPS measures with the
CJEU judgment in Argenta Spaarbank on compatibility of interest payment deduction rules with Parent-Subsidiary Directive
On 26 October 2017, the EU’s Court of Justice (CJEU) ruled on the compatibility of the Belgian interest payment deduction rules with the Parent-Subsidiary Directive (PSD) in the case C-39/16 Argenta Spaarbank vs. Belgische Staat. The case concerns the Belgian interest payment deduction rules laid down in Article 198(10) of the 1992 Income Tax Code
EU Commission takes next steps against Ireland and Luxembourg in Apple and Amazon State aid cases
On October 4, 2017, the European Commission (EC) continued its ongoing challenges to Member States’ transfer pricing tax regimes by advancing two high profile cases to the next stages. In the Apple case, the EC referred Ireland to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for failing to enforce an August 2016 State aid recovery decision,
Circular letter on exit taxation
On 11 August 2017, an administrative circular letter was issued with respect to the Belgian exit taxation rules. Belgium amended, via the Act of 1 December 2016, the Belgian tax provisions on exit taxation largely in line with the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive (ATAD) requirements on exit taxation. More precisely, the Act introduced amongst others the option
Insights into the EU proposal on mandatory disclosure of tax information by taxpayers and intermediaries
The European Commission, on 21 June 2017, published a draft Directive that would impose mandatory reporting by taxpayers and intermediaries to the tax administrations of EU Member States for various cross-border transactions and arrangements, and the automatic exchange of this information among Member States (see previous coverage). Taxpayers and intermediaries (such as consultants, banks, and
EU Commission requires Belgium and France to abolish tax exemptions for ports
Belgium and France must abolish the corporate tax exemptions for their ports by the end of 2017 and ensure that all ports are subject to the normally applicable rules starting from 1 January 2018. Read the newsalert here.
OECD releases the draft contents of the 2017 update to the OECD Model Tax Convention
The OECD announced that earlier this week, on 11 July 2017, the OECD Committee on Fiscal Affairs released the draft contents of the 2017 update to the OECD Model Tax Convention (‘MTC’) prepared by the Committee’s Working Party 1. The draft contents of the 2017 update to the OECD MTC has not yet been approved by
Draft MLI positions of different territories reflect a range of views on BEPS implementation
As a result of a new legal instrument, changes to the allocation of taxing rights and the introduction of new anti-avoidance rules mean that, once ratified, businesses and individuals may no longer qualify for double taxation relief on a range of cross-border transactions and activities. Taxable presences, compliance burdens, and tax liabilities could increase, and
