Access to Treaty Benefits

S. 281. Introduction

This contribution is going back to the core principles of tax treaty nexus criteria. It considers some fundamental questions relating to jurisdiction to tax and a nexus for tax jurisdiction purposes in light of the current developments. It should guide the reader from the basic principles of taxation to a precious or cursed good, namely, citizenship. This will be followed by two country examples that will both demonstrate a different application of the treaty use of citizenship for access or denial of tax treaty benefits. From there, the contribution will be leading to the analysis of the role and relevance of citizenship in the OECD MC 2017 in comparison with the US Model 2016 and its cases of expansion of citizenship-based taxation. This part is crucial to make the reader understand the relevant provisions, similarities, and differences regarding residence-based taxation versus citizenship-based taxation. The final chapter provides some thought pieces related to citizenship, globalisation, the digital economy, and Covid-19 that will make the reader think and might even provoke discussion.

2. Tax Treaty Nexus Criteria

“Nexus describes whether a taxpayer, property, or ...