News
Commission invites comments on inheritance tax and obstacles for cross-border services and establishment
The European Commission has opened two public consultations: The consultation launched on 25 June 2010 seeks to identify and remedy cross-border inheritance tax issues; another consultation opened on 30 June 2010 aims at finding obstacles to the temporary cross-border provision of (tax advisory and other) services and the establishment of service providers.
Cross-border inheritance tax problems
From an increasing number of inheritance tax cases since 2003, the Commission has gained the impression that inheritance tax rules are hindering EU citizens from moving and operating freely across borders within the internal market. The purpose of the current consultation is the collection of evidence of both discriminatory taxation by one member state and double taxation situations. Participants are also invited to suggest solutions and comment on a possible binding mechanism of EU law.
The consultation which addresses all interested stakeholders was started on 25 June 2010 and is open until 22 September 2010. The consultation document is available in EN, DE and FR. More information can be found on the Commission´s website.
Obstacles to the establishment of service providers and temporary service provision
On 30 June 2010, the Commission launched a public consultation on the implementation of the Services Directive (2006/123/EC). The Directive had to be implemented by the EU member states until 28 December 2009. Since 2010, the Commission is in a “mutual evaluation” process involving the national governments to ensure that implementation is carried out consistently throughout the EU. In order to obtain views also from businesses, advisers and citizens, the Commission asks for their opinion on whether the member states have done their homework to remove or at least to report restrictions on permanent establishment and temporary activity of service providers from other EU countries. Among the aspects the Commission is particularly interested in are e.g. authorisation schemes, requirements relating to ownership, legal form, reserved activities, fixed tariffs and limitations to multidisciplinary activities. The Commission also provides an overview on what changes have been adopted on national level to comply with the Services Directive.
Contributions can be submitted until 13 September 2010. The consultation paper is available in EN,DE and FR. More information: press release (22 languages) and the Commission´s website.
Professional Affairs Conference on 1 December 2010
Time:
1 Dec 2010 - 14:00Place:
Düsseldorf / GermanySave the date: 1 December 2010
CFE PAC Conference: “A developing relationship: tax authority – taxpayer – tax adviser”
CFE is planning to host a Professional Affairs Conference on 1 December 2010 in Düsseldorf/Germany.
The conference will address the recent efforts of tax administrations to increase compliance of taxpayers through various initiatives that do or do not include tax advisers. Tax authorities in different countries have chosen different approaches such as increasing transparency through additional disclosure obligations, enhanced mutual trust, compliance monitoring by tax advisers or risk management by tax authorities. It seems worth asking whether these new forms of cooperation will create to win-win-situations for all parties involved or to what extent they will have the effect of preventing taxpayers from making use of their rights.
The half-day conference seeks to provide views from France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, including both tax administrations and businesses.
The 2010 Indirect Taxes Conference - The recognised professional body for those specialising in indirect taxation
Time:
16 Sep 2010 - 09:00 - 16 Sep 2010 - 17:10Place:
London Hilton on Park Lane, 22 Park Lane , London W1Y4BEThe Institute of Indirect Taxation is organising on 16 September, the 2010 Indirect Taxes Conference, in London. The chosen topic is "the recognised professional body for those specialising in indirect taxation". There will be two concurent morning conferences, with three speakers prominent in their fields speaking at each. One will be dedicated to current VAT issues which are of particular concern to those advising on VAT matters and the other dedicated to current Customs issues which will be of particular concern to those advising on customs issues. The afternoon session will cover current issues and developments of importance to all those advising on indirect taxes.
For more information, please find attached the progamme.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| IITCon2010 programme.pdf | 258 kB |
The future of Indirect Taxation: recent trends is VAT and GST systems around the world - a global comparison
Time:
9 Sep 2010 - 09:30 - 11 Sep 2010 - 17:00Place:
Rust, AustriaWU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) and PricewaterhouseCoopers have the pleasure to invite you to join an exclusive two days conference which will take place in Rust, Austria on 9-11 September 2010. The conference will focus on a comparison of different consumption tax regimes, will compare approaches, assess the impact on governments and taxpayers and identify best practices that could be applied elsewhere.
For more information, please find attached the invitation and the registration form.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Invitation Letter.pdf | 1 MB |
| SaveTheDate_final.pdf | 836 kB |
| VATGST2010_ApplicationForm.doc | 235 kB |
CFE FORUM 2010 - INFORMATION ACROSS BORDERS IN INDIRECT AND DIRECT TAX
Time:
15 Apr 2010 - 09:00 - 15 Apr 2010 - 17:15Speaker:
Pascal Hinny, Dónal Godfrey, Philip Kermode, Jacques Gombeer, Alain Steichen, Alexander Wiedow, Thorsten Lang, Ian YoungPlace:
Representation of the State Saxony-Anhalt to the European Union in Brussels, Boulevard Saint-Michel 80, 1040 BrusselsThe annual Forum of the Confédération Fiscale Européenne
(CFE) on:
“INFORMATION ACROSS BORDERS
In Indirect and Direct Tax”
took place on Thursday 15 April 2010 from 9:00 hrs to 17:15 hrs at the Representation of Saxony-Anhalt to the European Union, Boulevard Saint Michel 80, 1040 Brussels.
The overall aim was to look at the developments that have taken place in the past 12 months to bring about greater exchange of information across borders, greater transparency within borders and a willingness to pursue taxation liabilities across borders more effectively. While the debate usually focuses on fighting fraudulent practices and restoring public finances, the impacts of these initiatives on businesses are often considered less closely. Those include a threat to confidentiality of business data and to the principle of fair proceedings as well as possibly imposing administrative burdens on businesses which urgently need to grow in the wake if the economic crisis.
The Forum sought to examine the impact of the desire for greater information both in direct tax (morning session) and indirect tax (afternoon session) matters.
Presentations Panel 1:
- Dónal Godfrey
- Philip Kermode
Comparison of the situation in 3 countries:
- Belgium: Jacques Gombeer
- Luxembourg : Prof. Dr. Alain Steichen
- Switzerland: Prof. Dr. Pascal Hinny - not available
Presentations Panel 2:
Report:
Follow this link to see the photos from the CFE Forum 2010
Price: €300.00
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Forum_programme_15 April 10_EN.pdf | 245 kB |
| Forum_programm_15 April 10_FR.pdf | 241 kB |
| Forum_Programm_15 April 10_DE.pdf | 244 kB |
| Report RR CFE Forum 2010.pdf | 113 kB |
Manifesto: TAX ADVISERS ARE HIGHLY QUALIFIED, INDEPENDENT LIBERAL PROFESSIONALS
In a recently published manifesto, the Confédération Fiscale Européenne emphasised the crucial role of the tax adviser profession in the tax system in Europe. On the occasion of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the CFE on 26 September 2009, the 32 Members and Observers adopted at the General Assembly the manifesto in Paris.
Henk Koller, chairman of the CFE Professional Affairs Committee and member of the CFE Executive Board said in Brussels: “CFE has the responsibility to represent the high quality of the tax adviser profession in Europe. The manifesto is the explicit declaration of the aim of the CFE to continue to demonstrate the tax professions integrity, independency and expertise by providing balanced opinion statements in both taxation issues and professional affairs”.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| CFE_Manifesto_50thanniversary_2009.pdf | 28 kB |
CIOT comments on Reverse Charge Mechanism
The CIOT supported a limited reverse charge covering goods most closely linked to goods when previous consultations were undertaken on the combating of fraud. However, even at that stage, the CIOT suggested that a better solution would be to look to more real-time monitoring of significant transactions. This was because, based on values that were disclosed in cases in the United Kingdom, it appeared that the major frauds involved relatively high value transactions. There were also suggestions at the time by the Government that, in fact, the vast majority of “MTIC” or “carousel” frauds were being undertaken by a very small number of crime gangs.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| CIOT comments on optional reverse charge mechanism | 81 kB |
