General anti-avoidance rules (GAARs) have been a topic of great relevance in practice as well as in academia for decades. In a post-BEPS tax world, with national legislators introducing or tightening GAARs, and with the European Union and OECD suggesting the implementation of such rules, the topic seems more important than ever. The aim of this book is to give tax policymakers, tax authorities, tax courts and tax practitioners an idea of the various understandings of and approaches towards tax avoidance in 39 countries.
In order to do so, 39 national reports from countries across the globe have been compiled and are published in this volume. More than 100 experts, including the authors of the national reports, convened for a joint conference on “General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAARs) – A Key Element of Tax Systems in the Post-BEPS Tax World?” in Rust, Austria, from 3-5 July 2014. The national reports focus on the requirements for the application of GAARs and on the legal consequences of applying a GAAR. Moreover, the relationship between GAARs and SAARs, as well as tax treaties and EU law requirements, are given much attention. A further objective of this book is to shed light on recent European developments and on alternatives to GAARs.