Tax & Legal

The European Commission presented its Proposal for a Digital Fairness Act (DFA) - a major update of the EU consumer protection rules to ensure that consumers in the EU enjoy the same high level of protection online as they do offline.

The Council today agreed further measures to improve value-added tax (VAT) collection on e-commerce sales into the EU. The new rules make the framework for collecting this VAT fully aligned with recent reforms in the EU’s customs system, in turn leading to better tax compliance and collection.

The Supreme Tax Court submitted four questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a preliminary ruling regarding the right to carry forward tax credits under EU law. In his Opinion, Advocate General Rimvydas Norkus concludes that Directive 2011/96/EU (the Parent-Subsidiary Directive) precludes the German rule under which foreign taxes on dividends paid by a subsidiary - in case of loss carryforwards of the parent company - are final and permanently excluded from being credited.

The Supreme Tax Court has referred several questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) for a preliminary ruling pertaining to the withholding tax on dividends paid to companies in third countries (in this case, a Japanese corporation). Advocate General Laulhé Shaelou has now presented her Opinion.

The Commission calls on Germany to correctly transpose and apply the VAT exemption for credit management and credit guarantee management services

The European Commission decided to refer Germany to the European Court of Justice for having failed to remedy the infringement of the free movement of capital (Article 63 TFEU and Article 40 of the EEA Agreement) due to its discriminatory tax treatment of reinvested capital gains upon sale of real estate located in Germany.

The Council of the European Union has updated its list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, reaffirming its focus on tax transparency, fair taxation, and action against tax avoidance.

Last week, the Members of the European Parliament approved a major reform of the EU Customs Code that introduces stricter rules for e-commerce and establishes a new customs authority.

In a request for a preliminary ruling from Italy regarding state aid, the European Court of Justice decided that an ‘undertaking in difficulty’ may not benefit from advantages provided for undertakings with high consumption of natural gas or electricity.

Following a request for a preliminary ruling from Belgium, the General Court of the EU held that a business owner must proportionally adjust the original input tax credit for a commercial building if he transfers the business and, at the same time, leases the building to the transferee on a VAT-exempt basis.

The European General Court of the EU handed down its preliminary ruling on the VAT treatment of the contribution of immovable property to a wholly owned company. The court found, among others, that EU members generally cannot restrict the no-supply treatment for full asset transfers unless justified to prevent competition distortion, tax evasion, or tax avoidance.

The European Commission adopted Guidelines on the application of Article 102 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) to abusive exclusionary conduct by dominant companies. The adoption of the guidelines marks the end of a three-year process where the Commission consulted extensively with stakeholders.

NIS2 is the European Union’s second directive on network and information system security aimed at strengthening cybersecurity across critical sectors and digital infrastructure. It is much more than just an update to the cybersecurity requirements. Its implementation is not merely an IT project.

In a recently published ruling, the Supreme Tax Court has referred a question to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for a preliminary ruling on whether a remotely controlled technical drying plant located in Germany constitutes a ‘fixed establishment’ within the meaning of the VAT System Directive, where the operator does not employ its own staff and subcontractors are instead working on site.

The German Supreme Tax Court has referred a question to the Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) concerning the compatibility of German tax law with the EU Merger Directive's tax-neutrality provisions (Article 7(1) of Directive 2009/133/EC). The key issue is whether a Member State can impose a flat-rate non-deductibility rule on business expenses—specifically, a 5% add-back of tax-exempt merger gains resulting from a parent company absorbing its subsidiaries.

Through targeted surveys of various stakeholders, a public consultation, and later an in-depth interview with some of the affected companies, the European Commission will conduct a comprehensive review of the EU Dual-Use Regulation.

Today, the European Commission and the United Kingdom have signed the EU-UK Agreement in respect of Gibraltar. Once the Parliament's consent is obtained, the Council can proceed with the adoption of its decision on conclusion of the Agreement.

In a most recent decision, the General Court of the EU held that a person appointed as tax representative may be liable for payment of the VAT and that a tax representative who is not appointed as the person liable for payment of VAT but who is responsible for various formal administrative functions (e. g. carrying out VAT filing obligations) cannot be held jointly and severally liable for the VAT due given the observance of the principle of proportionality.

The EU Commission calls on Germany, France and Italy to adapt its local tax legislation of dividends received from subsidiaries in other Member States to the Parent-Subsidiary Directive.

In its decision of today, the General Court held that the VAT exemption for “the management of credit by the person granting it” under Article 135(1)(b) of the VAT Directive does not apply in a case where the credit is sold to a third company and whilst the management of that credit is retained by the seller.