WTO and Direct Taxation

Book excerpt: WTO Law and Direct Taxation are linked in numerous ways. The WTO Agreements, thereof especially the GATT and GATS Agreements, contain several explicit provisions on the subject of direct taxes or even on its delimitation from Tax Treaty Law. To some extent, the scope of application of WTO Law has been broadened by case law to comprise also direct taxes. This entails overlappings particularly with regard to the law of subsidies, prohibitions of discrimination, and most-favoured-nation obligations. This book highlights increasingly relevant interdependencies between WTO Law and Direct Taxation from the viewpoint of 21 States. Special emphasis is placed on the conformity of national taxes on profits with WTO Law as well as on specifics of interpretation in several Member States. 21 National Reports from nearly all EU countries as well as Colombia, Israel, New Zealand, Norway and the USA dealt with this topic and were compiled and published in this volume. Additionally, a General Report prepared by Servatius van Thiel summarises the results of the National Reports. Moreover, experts in this field joining the Conference among them Reuven Avi-Yonah, Michael Lennard and Raymond Luja have volunteered contributions dealing with specific problems of WTO and Direct Taxation.