Tag: Savings tax

Germany is expected to lead calls for tighter EU rules on tax havens during a meeting of EU finance ministers this Tuesday (4 March), in the wake of a tax evasion scandal that has spread from Germany across Europe to the US and beyond.

Luxembourg bankers have threatened not to apply the EU Savings Directive unless the Commission gives assurances on how it will be applied in practice.

After 15 years of debate, the Council directive facilitating the taxation of cross-border interest income finally has a starting date. An agreement with Switzerland will also apply from 1 July, subject to Swiss constitutional requirements.

Belgium's decision to block a key element of the 3 June deal on an EU tax package has now put the fate of the package in a limbo again.

Concluding 14 years of discussions, the EU's finance ministers agreed on 3 June on a regime for the taxation of savings across Europe.

The EU's finance ministers will make another attempt on 13 May to end the prolonged impasse and create a new savings tax.

The year's first ECOFIN Council on 21 January will evaluate several Stability Programmes and will try to break the deadlock on the taxation of savings revenue.

The deal on the tax package reached at the Feira Council in 2000 might be in danger when EU ministers meet on 4 December to discuss the draft savings tax Directive. Three countries (Austria, Belgium and Luxemburg) might block progress on this issue because no "similar measures" are taken by third-countries.

EU finance ministers agree on timetable that should result in adoption of tax package before end of 2002

On 13 December the Economic and Finance minister came to an agreement on the text for the savings tax Directive. The text will be adopted after the conclusion of negotiations on similar measures in certain third countries.

Surprisingly, EU leaders at the Feira Summit reached an agreement on the so-called savings tax issue.

As expected, EU finance ministers could not reach a compromise on the proposals for an EU-wide tax on savings.