EU: Update on minimum tax directive; priority of new presidency of the European Council
Main tax priorities for the second semester of 2022
Main tax priorities for the second semester of 2022
The Czech Presidency of the European Council expressed hope for reaching a unanimous agreement regarding the EU minimum tax directive at the October 2022 meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN).
The Czech Minister of Finance on 12 July 2022, during the first meeting of the ECOFIN under the Czech Presidency, presented the presidency’s main tax priorities for the second semester of 2022 (1 July 2022 through 31 December 2022). According to the statement, the Czech Presidency generally aims to:
- Simplify the tax system, address tax evasion, and reduce the number of unjustified tax exemptions
- Address current legislative proposals, including the implementation of the EU’s proposed minimum tax directive, introduced to give effect to the OECD BEPS 2.0 proposals under Pillar Two
In this context, the Czech Minister of Finance noted 13 July 2022 during a public dicussion with the European Parliament’s Subcommittee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (ECON) that the Czech Presidency will focus on the finalization of the implementation of the proposed EU minimum tax directive with a view to reach unanimous agreement in the ECOFIN Council at the next scheduled meeting on 4 October 2022.
- The Minister noted that the Czech Presidency aims to fully utilize the time until this October 2022 meeting to negotiate and find suitable solutions for all EU Member States concerned.
- The Minister expressed optimism that these negotiations will be successful, without a need to apply alternative solutions such as enhanced cooperation.
- An updated on the status of negotiations will likely be presented at an “informal” ECOFIN meeting in September 2022.
A replay of the discussion is available on the European Parliament’s website.
For more information, contact a tax professional with KPMG’s EU Tax Centre:
Raluca Enache | renache@kpmg.com
Vinod Kalloe | kalloe.vinod@kpmg.com
Cormac Golden |cormac.golden@kpmg.ie
Marco Dietrich | marcodietrich@kpmg.com
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