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Foreword – Malcolm Gammie QC
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xi
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Foreword – Professor Michael Lang
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xv
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Preface
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xvii
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Introduction
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1
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1 The historical background to EU corporate tax law
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3
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1.1 Introduction
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3
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1.2 The historical background
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9
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1.2.1 The Neumark Report
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9
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1.2.2 The Segrè Report
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11
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1.2.3 The Program for the Harmonisation of Direct Taxation
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13
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1.2.4 The Van den Tempel Report
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13
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1.2.5 The Commission’s 1975 proposal and its aftermath
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14
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1.2.6 The Ruding Report
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18
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1.3 Recent developments
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21
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1.3.1 Harmful tax competition and the tax package
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21
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1.3.2 The 2001 Company Tax Study
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22
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1.3.3 The aftermath to the 2001 Company Tax Study
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25
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1.3.4 Good governance in tax matters
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27
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1.4 The future of EU corporate tax law
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29
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2 EU corporate tax legislation
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31
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2.1 The Parent–Subsidiary Directive
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31
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2.1.1 Profit distribution
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33
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2.1.2 Eligibility requirements
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36
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2.1.3 Taxing the profit distribution
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41
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2.1.4 What is a withholding tax?
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45
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2.2 The Merger Directive
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50
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2.3 The Interest and Royalties Directive
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51
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2.3.1 Eligible companies, permanent establishments and beneficial ownership
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53
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2.3.2 Interest, royalties and excluded payments
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57
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2.3.3 The taxation of the payer/debtor
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62
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2.3.4 Reform of the Interest and Royalties Directive
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64
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2.4 The Savings Directive
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65
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2.5 The Arbitration Convention
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70
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2.6 The Code of Conduct on Business Taxation
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75
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2.7 The Mutual Assistance Directives
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76
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2.8 The Draft Directive for Cross-Border Loss Relief
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78
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3 The Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base
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81
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3.1 Introduction – unanimity or enhanced cooperation?
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81
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3.2 Key features of the Draft CCCTB Directive
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84
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3.2.1 Eligibility and membership tests
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84
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3.2.2 Optionality: coexistence of domestic regimes and the CCCTB
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88
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3.2.3 The new tax base
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90
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3.2.4 Consolidation and other benefits
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93
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3.2.5 The administration of the CCCTB
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98
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3.3 Taxation of inbound and outbound payments
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102
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3.3.1 Inbound payments
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102
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3.3.2 Outbound payments
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105
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3.4 Anti-abuse rules
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108
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3.4.1 The GAAR
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108
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3.4.2 Controlled foreign companies
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109
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3.4.3 Thin capitalisation
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112
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3.5 Formulary apportionment
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117
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3.6 The future of the CCCTB
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120
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4 The Court of Justice and the development of EU corporate tax law
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123
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4.1 Tax litigation in the Court of Justice
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123
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4.2 Fundamental freedoms, state aid and direct taxation
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129
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4.2.1 Free movement of goods
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129
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4.2.2 Free movement of persons
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129
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4.2.3 Freedom to provide services
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132
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4.2.4 Free movement of capital
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135
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4.2.5 Citizenship rights
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142
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4.2.6 The state aid prohibition
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144
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4.3 Methodology of the Court of Justice
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148
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4.3.1 Finding the relevant freedom
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148
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4.3.2 Discrimination and restriction approach
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151
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4.3.3 Tax treaties and double taxation
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157
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4.3.4 Overall or per-country approach?
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165
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4.4 Conclusion
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169
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5 Tax obstacles to the cross-border movement of companies: direct investment
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171
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5.1 Company residence
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171
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5.2 Issues with the taxation of corporate groups
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175
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5.2.1 Expenses in foreign holdings
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177
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5.2.2 Cross-border loss relief
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182
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5.2.3 Controlled foreign companies
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196
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5.3 Issues with the taxation of permanent establishments
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196
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5.3.1 Defining permanent establishments
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196
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5.3.2 The different treatment of permanent establishments and companies
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198
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5.3.3 Rules for the attribution of profits and expenses
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207
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5.3.4 Notional payments and expenses
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212
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5.3.5 Cross-border loss relief
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214
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6 Tax obstacles to cross-border portfolio investment
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229
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6.1 Double taxation relief mechanisms
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229
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6.2 The taxation of inbound dividends
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235
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6.2.1 The early cases: individual shareholders
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237
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6.2.2 Later cases: corporate shareholders
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238
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6.2.3 Economic and juridical double taxation – the home state perspective
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249
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6.3 The taxation of outbound dividends
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252
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6.3.1 The early cases – Fokus Bank, ACT GLO, Denkavit and Amurta
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252
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6.3.2 Later cases – consolidation of the Court’s principles
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257
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6.3.3 The relevance of tax treaties – neutralisation of host state taxes?
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264
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6.3.4 Economic and juridical double taxation – the host state perspective?
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268
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6.3.5 Taxation on gross basis or net basis?
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270
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6.3.6 Other developments
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273
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6.4 The taxation of interest and royalties
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275
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7 Reorganisations under EU tax law
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282
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7.1 Corporate reorganisations and the Merger Directive
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283
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7.1.1 The scope of the Merger Directive
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284
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7.1.2 Reliefs under the Merger Directive
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286
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7.1.3 Case law on the Merger Directive
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290
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7.2 Corporate migration
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299
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|
7.2.1 Corporate law restrictions
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299
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7.2.2 The transfer of tax residence
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306
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7.2.2.1 Exit taxes
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307
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7.2.2.2 The case law of the Court of Justice: emigrating individuals v. emigrating companies?
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310
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7.2.3 The EU’s corporate vehicles
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326
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7.3 Transfer of assets
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328
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8 Tax avoidance and EU law
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333
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8.1 An EU principle of abuse of tax law?
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333
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8.2 Anti-deferral regimes
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338
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8.2.1 CFCs in international tax law
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339
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8.2.2 CFCs in EU tax law
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342
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8.3 Thin capitalisation
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349
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8.4 Transfer pricing
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360
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9 EU corporate tax law: interim conclusions and thoughts
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365
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Index
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385
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