2013/0188(CNS) | [ParlTrack]

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1

(1) In recent years, the challenge posed by tax fraud and tax evasion has increased considerably and has become a major focus of concern within the Union and at global level. Unreported and untaxed income is considerably reducing national tax revenues. Tax fraud and tax evasion threaten government revenues and cost billions of euros each year. An increase in the efficiency and effectiveness of tax collection is therefore urgently needed. There should be effective systems in place to improve the efficiency of tax collection. The automatic exchange of information constitutes an important tool in this regard and the Commission in its Communication of 6 December 2012 containing an Action plan to strengthen the fight against tax fraud and tax evasion8 highlighted the need to promote vigorously the automatic exchange of information as the future European and international standard for transparency and exchange of information in tax matters. The European Council on 22 May 2013 requested the extension of automatic information exchange at Union and global levels with a view to combatting tax fraud, tax evasion and aggressive tax planning. __________________ 8 COM(2012)722 final. COM(2012)722 final.

Amendment 13 #

Krišjānis KARIŅŠ

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1

(1) In recent years, the challenge posed by tax fraud and tax evasion has increased considerably and has become a major focus of concern within the Union and at global level. Unreported and untaxed income is considerably reducing national tax revenues and creating conditions conducive to unfair competition. An increase in the efficiency and effectiveness of tax collection is therefore urgently needed. The automatic exchange of information constitutes an important tool in this regard and the Commission in its Communication of 6 December 2012 containing an Action plan to strengthen the fight against tax fraud and tax evasion8 highlighted the need to promote vigorously the automatic exchange of information as the future European and international standard for transparency and exchange of information in tax matters. The European Council on 22 May 2013 requested the extension of automatic information exchange at Union and global levels with a view to combatting tax fraud, tax evasion and aggressive tax planning. __________________ 8 COM(2012)722 final.

Amendment 14 #

Mojca KLEVA KEKUŠ

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 a (new)

(1a) In the European Council agreement from 22 May 2013 the Member States have committed to adopt the revised Directive on the taxation of savings income before the end of 2013. It is of the upmost importance that Member States follow up on their commitments and close existing loopholes in the fight against tax evasion by extending information sharing to trusts, pensions, investment funds and other innovative financial instruments.

Amendment 15 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 a (new)

(1a) For decades, tax policy was seen as an exclusively national matter, in which the EU does not matter. That time is past, however. Tax must be as a result of globalization also discussed at the EU level. It would be more efficient and effective for the European Commission to coordinate the exchange of information on tax on behalf of Member States than have a series of bilateral agreements between Member States. Different standards for automatic exchange of information vary from country to country. This is unnecessarily complex and imposes unnecessarily high costs for both Member States and financial institutions within the Union. It is important that the automatic exchange of information is extended to reflect as close as possible the information that follows the model of bilateral FATCA agreement with the US.

Amendment 16 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 a (new)

(1a) However, in more than half of the Member States automatic exchange of information is not allowed or applied domestically.

Amendment 17 #

Nikolaos CHOUNTIS

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 a (new)

(1a) The Union must show real determination in taking all necessary measures to deal effectively with ‘professional tax dodgers’ and tax the actual holders of wealth generated. To ensure social justice, these measures must not target the average taxpayer, who is already being confronted with austerity measures and pay cuts, as well as the imposition of socially unjust taxes, but focus on international business operations, multinational profits, intra- group transactions, tax havens and offshore companies.

Amendment 18 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 b (new)

(1b) In order to reduce ambiguities and inconsistencies, and to achieve cost savings, it is essential that the implementation of the provisions is coordinated with the implementation of Member States' agreement on FATCA.

Amendment 19 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 1 c (new)

(1c) The proposed amendments to the Directive lack a number of necessary explanations and definitions, which considerably complicates the understanding of the regulatory framework and overview of the impacts of the proposal. Therefore, the development of drafting definitions should be coordinated with the OECD's work in this aspect.

Amendment 20 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 2

(2) Council Directive 2011/16/EU of 15 February 2011 on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation and repealing Directive 77/799/EEC9 already provides for the mandatory automatic exchange of information between Member States on certain categories of income and capital. It also establishes a step-by-step approach to reinforcing automatic exchange of information by its progressive extension to new categories of income and capital ~~and the removal of the condition that the information only has to be exchanged if available~~. __________________ 9 OJ L 64, 11.3.2011, p.1.

Amendment 21 #

Nikolaos CHOUNTIS

Proposal for a directive
Recital 2 a (new)

(2a) In order to nip tax avoidance and tax evasion in the bud, the provisions of Directive 2011/16/ΕΕ should apply to not only the income of Union taxpayers in the form of salaries and pensions but also property ownership. The mandatory automatic exchange of information must be extended to other areas such as VAT, excise and other duties and compulsory social security payments to any Member State or public-law social security institutions.

Amendment 22 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3

Amendment 23 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3

(3) As highlighted by the request of the European Council, it is appropriate to bring forward the extension of automatic information exchange already envisaged in Article 8(5) of Directive 2011/16/EU. A Union initiative ensures a coherent, consistent and comprehensive Union-wide approach to the automatic exchange of information in the internal market ~~which would lead to cost savings both for tax administrations and economic operator~~and is important in order to improve the efficiency of the tax systems.

Amendment 24 #

Elena BĂSESCU

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3

(3) As highlighted by the request of the European Council, it is appropriate to bring forward the extension of automatic information exchange already envisaged in Article 8(5) of Directive 2011/16/EU. A Union initiative ensures a coherent, consistent and comprehensive Union-wide approach to the automatic exchange of information in the internal market which would lead to cost savings both for tax administrations and economic operators. Therefore, Union tax policy reinforces its position as key element in the efforts to strengthen the single market in which the co-existence of 28 national tax systems raises issues of double taxation and distortion of competition.

Amendment 25 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3 a (new)

(3a) Member States should implement administrative cooperation and exchange of information that does not violate the taxpayers' procedural rights and right to privacy.

Amendment 26 #

Nikolaos CHOUNTIS

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3 a (new)

(3a) In order to combat tax evasion and tax fraud effectively, information relating to previous tax periods must be provided. A Member State must not refuse to provide information relating to tax periods prior to 1 January 2011. The problem of tax evasion and tax fraud has its roots in previous years, commencing with the onset of the crisis in 2008, prompting, massive tax evasion and fund concealment.

Amendment 27 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3 a (new)

(3a) According to the OECD report of 19 June 2013 and the St Petersburg G20 Leaders’ Declaration of 6 September 2013, the automatic exchange of information should be based on a common global model which ensures adequate confidentiality and the proper use of information exchanged. Expanding the scope of the automatic exchange of tax information will be the EU’s contribution to the work of the OECD and should increase the probability of a coherent global system, based on the new OECD standard to be presented in February 2014.

Amendment 28 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 3 b (new)

(3b) When data is submitted to tax authorities for the purpose of information exchange with other countries, it is important to clarify how those authorities may use that data.

Amendment 29 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 4

(4) The fact that Member States have concluded or have expressed an intention to conclude agreements with the United States of America relating to its legislation on Foreign Account Tax Compliance (commonly referred to as ‘FATCA’) means that they are providing or will provide for a wider cooperation within the meaning of Article 19 of Directive 2011/16/EU, and are or will be under an obligation to provide such wider cooperation to other Member States as well. It is important that the automatic exchange of information is extended to reflect as close as possible the information that follows the model of bilateral FATCA agreement with the U.S.

Amendment 30 #

Ivo STREJČEK

Proposal for a directive
Recital 5

(5) TIn order to avoid that the conclusion of parallel and uncoordinated agreements by Member States under Article 19 of Directive 2011/16/EU ~~would~~ leads to distortions that would be detrimental to the smooth functioning of the internal Market. Expanded automatic information exchange on the basis of a Union-wide legislative instrument would remove the need for Member States to invoke that provision, with a view to concluding bilateral or multilateral agreements that may be considered appropriate on the same subject in the absence of relevant Union legislat, all Member States should notify to the Commission their intention to negotiate such an agreement with a foreign third country and deposit a copy of the concluded agreement with the Commission. The Commission should report to the European Parliament and Council on an annual basis on all notifications and agreements received from Member States in order to ensure greater transparency and better coordination in tax matters in the Union.

Amendment 31 #

Elena BĂSESCU

Proposal for a directive
Recital 5

(5) The conclusion of parallel and uncoordinated agreements by Member States under Article 19 of Directive 2011/16/EU would lead to distortions that would be detrimental to the smooth functioning of the internal Market. Expanded automatic information exchange on the basis of a Union-wide legislative instrument would remove the need for Member States to invoke that provision, with a view to concluding bilateral or multilateral agreements that may be considered appropriate on the same subject in the absence of relevant Union legislation. Therefore, the Union will also be in a better negotiating position to push for higher standards of tax information exchange at a global level.

Amendment 32 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 5

(5) The conclusion of parallel and uncoordinated agreements by Member States under Article 19 of Directive 2011/16/EU would lead to distortions that would be detrimental to the smooth functioning of the internal Market. Expanded automatic information exchange on the basis of a Union-wide legislative instrument would remove the need for Member States to invoke that provision, with a view to concluding bilateral or multilateral agreements that may be considered appropriate on the same subject in the absence of relevant Union legislation. The "most favoured nation clause" in Article 19 of the existing DAC, can however not be invoked by Member States, when the automatic exchange of information is illegal from a constitutional point of view.

Amendment 33 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 5 a (new)

(5a) Work is in progress under the auspices of the OECD to develop bilateral and multilateral model agreements on exchanging information. Negotiations are also being held between the USA and many other countries on the implementation of FATCA by means of bilateral agreements (intergovernmental agreements). Many of the proposed amendments to Directive 2011/16/EU on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation regulate the same information exchange with which FATCA and the work at the OECD are concerned. The Commission should clarify the relationship between these regulatory provisions in order to make it in any way practicable for national tax authorities and the financial institutions concerned to apply the amendments to the Directive.

Amendment 34 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 6

(6) The scope of Article 8 of Directive 2011/16/EU, should be extended to include the following items covered by FATCA and related agreements by Member States: dividends, capital gains, other financial income and account balances, which are paid, secured or held by a financial institution for the direct or indirect benefit of a beneficial owner who is a natural person resident in other Member States and other financial income.

Amendment 35 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 6 a (new)

(6a) The new categories of income and capital in respect of which this Directive introduces an obligation to exchange information should be defined in accordance with their interpretation under the national legislation of the Member State communicating the information.

Amendment 36 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 6 a (new)

(6a) The Commission’s proposal concerning Article 8(3a) lacks the requisite explanations and definitions. It is not clear what the five proposed items listed in Article 1(3a) refer to. The proposal does not contain any precise definition of the terms, and it will result in considerable uncertainty as to what information should be provided and to what extent the existing reporting on supervisory tasks relating to income from capital has to be increased. Unlike the current Article 8(1), the proposed items in Article 1(3a) are not supposed to be interpreted in the light of national legislation in the Member State which supplies the information. As there will probably be differences between EU Member States as regards how income from capital is classified, it is important to have clear definitions of the five proposed items. This could also entail national tax authorities having to take on supervisory tasks which are not in line with national taxation of capital. The Commission proposal should be clarified with regard to the following points: 1. There is no definition of ‘financial institution’ or ‘financial account’. Without a clear and unambiguous definition, it is difficult to assess the impact of the proposal or which parties the exchange of information will apply to. 2. Points (c) and (d) of paragraph 3a are vaguely formulated and not clearly defined. It is therefore difficult to discern what information should be covered by exchanges relating to these items. There is a risk of duplication of regulation of reporting on certain income within the EU. For example, it might be possible for the new point 3a(c) to apply to the same income as is covered by the Savings Directive. The Commission should supplement the proposal with a clarification of the way in which duplication of regulation is to be avoided. 3. The proposal requires the competent authority in a Member State to provide information to the competent authority of any other Member State regarding a number of items which are paid, secured or held by a financial institution for the direct or indirect benefit of a beneficial owner who is a natural person resident in another Member State. However, it is not apparent what is meant by ‘direct or indirect benefit’. Does it apply to every natural person’s ownership of a company or financial instrument, irrespective of the size of the holding or stock exchange listing?

Amendment 37 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 7

(7) The condition that automatic exchange may be subject to the availability of the information requested as provided for in Article 8(1) of Directive 2011/16/EU should not apply to the new items as information about those items must necessarily be made available by financial intermediaries to tax administrations under the agreements with the United States as regards FATCA.deleted

Amendment 38 #

Rui TAVARES

Proposal for a directive
Recital 7 a (new)

(7a) An EU equivalent to the US FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), fully compliant with relevant EU data protection legislation, should be established in case negotiations on automatic information exchange with third countries are not concluded before October 2014.

Amendment 39 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 7 a (new)

(7a) The purpose of the existing provision of information to national tax authorities on income from capital and services is firstly to provide a basis for taxation and secondly, inter alia, to provide a basis for exchanges of information with other countries. If the requirement to provide information is now altered and information is obtained purely for the purpose of exchanging it, it is important to make it clear how the national tax authorities are permitted to use this information.

Amendment 40 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 9

(9) The review of the condition of availability to be undertaken in 2017 should be extended to all the five categories referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2011/16/UE, so that the case for exchange of information by all Member States on all those categories be examined.deleted

Amendment 41 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 9

(9) The review of the condition of availability to be undertaken in 2017 should be extended to all the f~~ive~~ our categories referred to in Article 8(1) of Directive 2011/16/UE, so that the case for exchange of information by all Member States on all those categories be examined.

Amendment 42 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 9 a (new)

(9a) "Sanctions" and how a Member State proceed in order to meet its obligations should be up to each Member State to decide for themselves.

Amendment 43 #

Proposal for a directive
Recital 10

~~(10) This Directive respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles which are recognised in particular by the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.~~deleted

Amendment 44 #

Rui TAVARES

Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a

Directive 2011/16/EU
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 1

3. The competent authority of a Member State may no longer indicate to the competent authority of any other Member State that it does not wish to receive information on one or several of the categories of income and capital referred to in paragraph 1. ~~It shall also inform the Commission thereof.~~

Amendment 45 #

Rui TAVARES

Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point a

Directive 2011/16/EU
Article 8 – paragraph 3 – subparagraph 2

A Member State may ~~be considered as not wishing to receive information in accordance with paragraph 1, if it does not inform the Commission of any single category in respect of which it has~~not opt out of receiving information ~~available~~.

Amendment 46 #

Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point b

Directive 2011/16/EU
Article 8 – paragraph 3a – subparagraph 1

3a. The competent authority of each Member State shall, by automatic exchange, communicate, if available, to the competent authority of any other Member State, information regarding taxable periods as from 1 January 2014 concerning the following items which are paid, secured or held by a financial institution for the direct or indirect benefit of a beneficial owner who is a natural person resident in that other Member State:

Amendment 47 #

Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point b

Directive 2011/16/EU
Article 8 – paragraph 3a – subparagraph 1

3a. The competent authority of each Member State shall, by automatic exchange, communicate to the competent authority of any other Member State, information regarding taxable periods as from 1 January 2014 concerning the following items, in accordance with their interpretation under the national legislation of the Member State communicating the information, which are paid, secured or held by a financial institution for the direct or indirect benefit of a beneficial owner who is a natural person resident in that other Member State:

Amendment 48 #

Proposal for a directive
Article 1 – paragraph 1 – point b

Directive 2011/16/EU
Article 8 – paragraph 3a – point c

~~(c) any other income generated with respect to the assets held in a financial account;~~deleted

Amendment 49 #