On June 8, 2016 the European Parliament voted in favour of a resolution that welcomes the European Commission’s proposal for an EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive. The resolution was passed by 486 votes to 88, with 103 abstentions. It should be noted however that the EU Member States still have to agree unanimously on the Directive.

By voting in favour of the resolution the Members of the European Parliament did not only welcome the European Commion’s proposal for an EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive, but they a.o. also recommended the following:

·        To replace the minimum taxation of “40% of the statutory tax rate that would have been charged under the applicable corporate tax system in the Member State” for the switchover-clause not to apply by a fixed minimum rate of 15%.

·        limiting the deductibility of exceeding borrowing costs only up to 20 % of the taxpayer's earnings or up to an amount of EUR 2 000 000, whichever is higher;

·        drawing up an exhaustive 'black list' of tax havens and countries, including those in the Union, complemented with a list of sanctions for non-cooperative jurisdictions and for financial institutions that operate within tax havens;

·        prohibiting the use of letterbox companies;

·        common rules for “patent box” tax reductions on intellectual property earnings;

·        swiftly introducing of a common consolidated corporate tax base (CCCTB);

·        increasing the transparency of trust funds and foundations;

·        introducing a common method for calculating the effective corporate tax rate in each member state, so as to allow for comparison across the EU;

·        a cross-border tax dispute resolution mechanism with clearer rules and timelines, to be introduced by January 2017; and

·        creating a harmonised, common European taxpayer identification number (TIN) to serve as a basis for effective automatic exchange of information between member states tax administrations.

Click here to be forwarded to the Provisional Edition of the Texts of the Resolution as Adopted by the European Parliament on June 8, 2016 as available on the website of the European Parliament, which will open in a new window.

The European Commission’s proposal for an Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive can be found here.

Copyright – internationaltaxplaza.info

Are you looking for a new member for your tax team? Then place your job ad on International Tax Plaza!

and

Stay informed: Subscribe to International Tax Plaza’s Newsletter! It’s completely FREE OF CHARGE!