ECJ - Recent Developments in Value Added Tax
1. Aufl. 2014
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S. 56I. Introduction: the Abusive Practices as a ‘Grey Zone’
For tax practitioners, taxpayers, tax advisors and tax scholars it is extremely important to know in advance if a transaction is fully respectful of both the letter and the purpose of the tax law, and consequently, that no further controversies with the tax administration are likely to arise regarding the transactions as they are performed.
Legal certainty is thus a key element of every legal system, and tax system.
Nevertheless, as a lower level of taxation is always desirable for taxpayers, some transactions are performed in a way, the essential, or at least one of the most important aims of which, is to save taxes: this is so-called ‘tax planning’.
Whenever the main purpose of a transaction is to save tax, tax administrations can conclude that the transaction involved is not legally acceptable and consider it an ‘abusive practice’.
In an ideal legal and tax system every taxpayer would be sure in advance of the limits of legal practice. Unfortunately, this is not the case, and some generally expressed conditions have to be analysed, for instance, the ‘essential aim of a transaction’, or ‘the purpose’ of the legal provision.
These ...