Cross-border inheritance tax problems within the EU

Taxation

There are several reasons for launching this public consultation. On 15 December 2011 the Commission adopted a Recommendation suggesting how EU countries could, via some adjustments to their national provisions for relief for foreign inheritance taxes, ensure comprehensive relief from double taxation of inheritances in the Internal Market. The Commission committed itself to reviewing the state of play of cross-border relief for inheritances taxes within the EU and preparing a report at the end of 2014. At the same time, the Commission published a Working document setting out how inheritance taxation systems should be designed so as not to breach EU law.

The Commission services would, via this public consultation, primarily like to obtain information about the legislative and administrative developments in inheritance taxation in EU countries since 2011. We are also interested in receiving any information stakeholders may like to provide on cross-border inheritance tax problems which have arisen in practice, why the problems arose and which EU countries were involved. Finally, we would like to obtain views on the solutions to double taxation that the Commission proposed in its Recommendation as well as on any other feasible solutions.

On the basis of the above information the Commission would be in a position to assess whether cross-border inheritance tax problems persist within the EU and to evaluate the impact of its Recommendation on EU countries' inheritance tax rules and practices. Should problems persist and should EU countries' actions to tackle the problems prove to have been insufficient, the Commission will assess whether there is a need to propose further action at EU level.

We welcome contributions from citizens, organisations and public authorities.

• If you are answering this consultation as a citizen, please click TAXUD-CITIZENS-TAX-CITIZENec [dot] europa [dot] eu (here )to submit your contribution.
• If you are answering this consultation on behalf of an organisation, please click TAXUD-CITIZENS-TAX-ORGANISATIONec [dot] europa [dot] eu (here )to submit your contribution.
• If you are answering this consultation on behalf of a public authority, please click TAXUD-CITIZENS-TAX-AUTHORITIESec [dot] europa [dot] eu (here)to submit your contribution.

Received contributions will be published on the Internet. It is important to read the specific privacy statement attached to this consultation for information on how your personal data and contribution will be dealt with..

COM(2011) 864 final : Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on Tackling cross-border inheritance tax obstacles within the EU.
2011/856/EU : Commission Recommendation regarding relief for double taxation of inheritances.
SEC(2011) 1488 final : Commission staff working paper Non-discriminatory inheritance tax systems: principles drawn from EU case-law.
COM(2010)769 final : Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on removing cross-border tax obstacles for EU citizens.

Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union, Unit D2 Direct Tax Policy and Cooperation

TAXUD-INHERITANCE-TAX-CITIZENec [dot] europa [dot] eu (TAXUD-INHERITANCE-TAX-CITIZEN[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu)

European Commission
Directorate-General for Taxation and Customs Union
Unit D2 – Direct Tax Policy and Cooperation
Rue de Spa 3
B-1049 Brussels
Belgium

In the interests of transparency, organisations have been invited to provide the public with relevant information about themselves by registering in the Interest Representative Register and subscribing to its Code of Conduct. If the organisation is not registered, the submission is published separately from the registered organisations.