Program Eucotax Wintercourse

Writing an esssay

The students of the participating universities, who are all close to graduation, write an essay regarding a subpart of the general issue. The preparation of this essay takes place at the home university during the semester before the start of the intensive seminar.The students are supervised by a lecturer of the home university. The essays are exchanged some weeks before the start of the intensive seminar, and serve as a basis for a presentation given by each student during the seminar.

Seminar

The intensive week starts with a seminar (mostly) concerning the general issue. One of the professors of each university gives an introduction on the national approach in his country. After these introductions a panel-discussion takes place. This seminar is open to all students and practitioners.

Workshops

During the next couple of days the participating students give a presentation on each subpart of the general subject in workshops, after which a legal comparative discussion takes place between the students and the lecturers. In the workshops the students prepare a legal comparative report (e.g. similarities and differences amongst the national systems) with conclusions with respect to and solutions for the European Community. At the end of the week, the final results are presented by each group of students (same subpart) during a plenary session on a 'case by case' base. A workshop is chaired by one or more people of the academic staff.

Certificate

The students are given full academic credit for participating in this program. Students who pass this instructional part are awarded a certificate. From each university six students participate in this program. Each university will make a selection in order to ensure that its most excellent students participate. The students must have a sufficient knowledge of the language used in research and instruction.

Become a group

To make the instructional part a success, it is necessary for the individual participants to become a group. Only a smoothly cooperating group can achieve the aims of the instructional part. Therefore, it is necessary to start the intensive week with a social program during the first weekend and to plan some joint activities in the evenings. The expenses of this program are to be defrayed by a subsidy.

English

Because of the composition of the group of participating universities, the exchange of essays and the scientific publication aimed at, the language of instruction and research is in English.

Coordination

The office of the European Tax College from Tilburg University (NL) takes care of the coordination of this project (both the instructional and the scientific part).

Location

Uppsala

Date

8-15 April 2021

Theme

Neutrality and Business taxation in a post BEPS/ATAD/Corona world

Subthemes

1. Business taxation and legal form neutrality
2. Business taxation and reorganisations
3. Group taxation
4. Fiscus versus commercial accounting
5. Business taxation and dept and equity financing
6. Business taxation and Tax Treaty Policy

Location

Online semimar

Date

16-23 April 2020

Theme

Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)

Subthemes

• General anti-abuse rule (BEPS Action 6/ATAD
• Interest limitation rules (BEPS Action 4/ATAD)
• Tax residence mismatches and exit taxation
• Controlled foreign companies and similar regimes (such as switch-over clauses)
• Mandatory disclosure rules, with emphasis on tax advisor’s and taxpayer’s positions (BEPS Action 12/DAC6)
• Dispute resolution mechanisms with the emphasis on cooperative compliance, mutual agreement procedures and arbitration (BEPS Action 14/Tax Dispute Resolution Mechanisms Directive)

Location

Amsterdam

Subthemes

1. Transfer pricing and 'developing countries'
2. Permanent establishments and 'developing countries'
3. Elimination of double taxation and 'developing countries'
4. Domestic and tax treaty anti-abuse provisions and 'developing countries'
5. Tax treaty policy and 'developing countries'
6. Mutual assistance and 'developing countries'

Location

| University of Edinburgh | Edinburgh | Scotland | Photos | 

Subthemes

1. Tax autonomy and allocation of tax jurisdiction between the central state and subnational levels
2. Tax autonomy and limits to incorporation of tax incentives and subsidies in domestic systems and treaties
3. Tax autonomy and exit taxation and CFC rules under the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directives
4. Tax autonomy and hybrid mismatches, reversed hybrid mismatches, and tax residency mismatches under the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directives
5. Tax autonomy and non-discrimination rules
6. Tax autonomy and the administration of tax law

Location

University of Zurich, Zurich (Switzerland)

Subthemes

1. Tax legislation and international influences
2. Tax legislation and international tax competition
3. Tax legislation and non-fiscal goals
4. Tax legislation and complexity of tax law
5. Tax legislation and constitutional principles/rights
6. Tax legislation and administrative practice

Location

| Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien | Vienna  | Austria | Photos |

Subthemes

1. Permanent establishment (PE) and similar concepts in the post BEPS world
2. Specific provisions on hybrid mismatches in the post BEPS world
3. General anti-abuse rules (GAAR) in a post-BEPS world
4. Specific anti-abuse rules (SAAR) in a post BEPS world
5. Procedural aspects in a post-BEPS world
6. Transfer Pricing in a post-BEPS world

Location

• Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona (Spain)

Subthemes

1. Place of residence (e.g., individuals, entities, dual residents) and PE concept (e.g., cloud computing, physical PE, agency PE, service PE)
2. Profits allocation to PEs/Transfer Pricing (arm’s length principle, formulary apportionment)
3. Characterization of income (e.g., influence of intellectual property law, commercial law, digital goods and services, bundled contracts, criteria to distinguish, e.g., business income, royalties, other income, capital gains)
4. Tax incentives and base erosion and profit shifting (e.g., digital goods and services, accelerated depreciation, patent boxes, tax credits, etc., state aid, anti-abuse measures, such as CFCs, non-deduction of expenses, no reduction of withholding taxes; covering two sides of the same coin: does your country use tax incentives and how does your country react on foreign tax incentives?)
5. VAT, sales tax, other (indirect) taxes, such as excises, web tax, bit tax, cd tax  (e.g., digital goods and services, allocation of taxing rights, anti-abuse measures)
6. Procedural aspects (internet governance, litigation, exchange of information, tax collection (e.g., in relation with service PE or digital PE)

Location

• University Paris 1 Panthéon- Sorbonne, Paris (France)

Subthemes 

1. e.g., progressivity, high net wealth individuals (taxing the rich), role of family circumstances, role of trusts, bonuses, excessive compensations, net wealth tax, limits of taxation
2. Fairness and taxation of different types of income
   e.g., dual income taxation, taxation of business profits and employment income, different kinds of entrepreneurs (entrepreneurs operating merely domestically (often SMEs) versus entrepreneurs operating transnational (MNEs, not limited to large MNEs, but includes also transnational operating SMEs), relevance of the legal form: partnership versus corporation; bank taxes etc), optional tax privileges in respect of transfer of enterprises in the context of gift and estate taxes
3. Fairness and anti-avoidance measures
   e.g., domestic rules (e.g. GAARs and similar rules and judicial doctrines), Treaty GAAR, definition of residence, specific LOB on residents, exclusion of dual residents from treaty benefits, beneficial owner concept, main purpose rules in respect of specific items of income (e.g., dividends, interest, and royalties), subject to tax clauses in respect to specific items of income, interaction between domestic and tax treaty rules, (e.g., conduit companies and domestic participation rules and exclusive allocation of dividends and capital gains to state of residence, conduit companies and no domestic WHT on interest and royalties and exclusive allocation to state or residence)
4. Fairness in procedural tax law
   e.g., disclosure initiatives, tax collection, protection of tax payers, horizontal supervision (i.e. enhanced cooperation: only for large MNEs?), interest compensation for late payment from the perspective of both taxpayers and tax administration, rulings, retroactivity, right to be heard, right to appeal
5. Fairness in allocating taxation rights between source and residence states
   e.g. allocation rules of tax treaty law, high versus low withholding tax rates, debt versus equity, e.g. leveraged acquisition with debt-push down and use of intermediate holding companies, distinction between Art. 7 and Art. 17 OECD (no PE in respect of the latter), distinction between Art. 15/18 and Art. 19 OECD
6. Fairness and taxation of residents and non-residents
   e.g., worldwide taxation, territorial systems, including taxation of nationals, exit taxes, extended residence mechanisms

Location

• University of Osnabruck, Osnabruck (Germany)

Subthemes

1. Emigration and immigration of a business
   (including: individuals, corporate entities and non-corporate entities (e.g. partnerships); transfer of assets from head office to permanent establishment, from permanent establishment to head office and form one permanent establishment to another permanent establishment);
2. Cross-border financing of business activities
   (including: debt versus equity; financing of subsidiaries and permanent establishments);
3. Taxation of cross-border employees
   (including residence; taxation of incentive scheme arrangements (bonuses, stock options, deferred remuneration etc.));
4. Taxation of cross-border investment income of individuals
   (including income from immovable property; interest; dividends; capital gains; received via foreign trusts; taxation of the rich: Buffet rule and progressive taxation, if relevant);

5. Pensions
   (Including: emigration and immigration of workers and retirees; deduction of contributions, payments, private retirement plans, government retirement plans, social security systems);

6. Exchange of information versus withholding taxes
   (including: automatic exchange of information; implementation of OECD standards; Savings Directive; FATCA; The Rubik model in Swiss; taxpayer's rights; use of information; European idea on exchange of information and transparency).