International Arbitration in Tax Matters

International Arbitration in Tax Matters

This book contributes to the ongoing debate on how to resolve cross-border tax disputes by examining the concerns put forward against arbitration and exploring possible solutions.

Volume 2 in the WU Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law - Tax Law and Policy Series

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The last two decades have seen an unprecedented integration of national economies, the emergence of new players and the growth of global corporations. These forces of globalization have an impact on all aspects of economic life. Tax has not been immune to these pressures – it has become increasingly challenging to operate national tax systems in a borderless world. Politicians, the press and citizens have engaged in an intense debate on whether multinational enterprises (MNEs) are paying their fair share of the tax burden and whether the tax they pay in each of the jurisdictions in which they operate reflects where the value is created. All these developments have been accompanied by an intensification of tax competition, with countries using their tax systems to attract increasingly mobile economic activities.

The lack of a globally accepted set of rules to govern the taxation of MNEs has led to a very significant increase in cross-border tax disputes. Yet, little has changed in the way that governments try to resolve them. The mutual agreement procedures (MAPs) found in tax treaties are the main mechanism to resolve such disputes. Despite some improvements in the MAP process, a MAP is slow and the number of unresolved cases continues to grow, which has led to an increase in unrelieved double taxation. In today’s uncertain economic environment, MNEs have the right to expect that differences of views between national tax authorities will be resolved in a principled and timely manner.

This publication brings together the main papers discussed at a conference in January 2015 at the Vienna University of Economics and Business (WU). It examines the concerns put forward against arbitration and explores possible solutions. This book aims to contribute to the ongoing debate on how to resolve cross-border tax disputes.

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Prof. Dr Dr h.c. Michael Lang is Head of the Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law at the WU (Vienna University of Economics and Business) and Academic Director of both the LLM Program in International Tax Law and of the Doctoral Program in International Business Taxation (DIBT) of this university. He is President of the Austrian Branch of the International Fiscal Association (IFA) and has been a visiting professor at a number of universities.

Prof. Dr Jeffrey Owens is Head of the WU Global Tax Policy Center of the Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law. He has successfully combined an academic career (Visiting Professor at the American University of Paris, Bocconi University (Milan) and Queen Mary’s College, London) with his career as an international civil servant. His focus has been on tax policy and tax administration, with emphasis on international taxation and related domestic issues. He has established a major taxation programme at the OECD and developed extensive OECD contacts with non-member countries.

The information in this book was last reviewed on 15 October 2015.