This will depend on whether the Member State chooses to collect the plastic tax by way of a tax on specific taxpayers; the definition of taxed products; the mechanism to collect the tax; and the refund options, if appropriate.
Until more details are made publicly available, we can only predict that companies from a variety of industries will be impacted. For now, what we do know is that if a plastic tax is introduced in a Member State, the tax burden will be both fiscal and compliance related. And the obligation to implement robust and compliant tax assessment and collection processes to impacted companies, will likely be required within a very short timeframe. With the new year quickly approaching, it’s imperative that organizations start thinking about a high-level impact assessment of plastic tax, based on the latest developments and information currently available. As a first step, it will be important to get transparency in the complete supply chain to understand where and to what extent non-recyclable plastic is purchased, used, produced or sold. Consulting with industry associations, professional services firms, and other channels will also bring great value in the discussion on how this tax can be best implemented, efficiently and effectively.
Looking ahead, the EU’s recovery package has the potential to act as a driver for sustainable growth and a green economy. We look forward to exploring the EU’s ESG initiatives in subsequent blogs. For further reading in the interim, we encourage you look at KPMG’ response to the European Commission’s recent public consultations on the Energy Tax Directive (ETD) and Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on our Responsible Tax site.