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Fighting the use of shell entities and arrangements for tax purposes

Taxation

Several actions at EU level over the recent years provided new powerful instruments to tackle the use of abusive and aggressive tax structures by taxpayers operating cross-border. Even after these extremely important developments, legal entities and arrangements with no or only minimal substance and economic activity continue to pose a risk. The Commission will explore the most adequate options to ensure that entities in the EU without substance will not benefit from tax advantages.

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Public consultation

ID: 12999

Lobbying Activity

32 responses

Consultation response

American Chamber of Commerce to the European Union, 6 Apr 2022

Please find our feedback attached.

Consultation response

Fédération bancaire française, 22 Mar 2022

La présente note, jointe en PDF, vise à fournir la position du secteur bancaire français sur la proposition de directive de la Commission européenne établissant des règles pour empêcher l’utilisation abusive d’entités écrans à des fins fiscales et modifiant la directive 2011/16/UE.

Consultation response

OXFAM INTERNATIONAL EU ADVOCACY OFFICE, 17 Jun 2021

Oxfam strongly welcomes the initiative. The European Commission started addressing the problem of lack of real economic activity and substance economic presence in specific initiatives (e.g. state aid guidelines, fair taxation criteria in the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions) but there is a…

Finance industry seeks exemptions from shell entity rules

Association for Financial Markets in Europe, 6 Apr 2022

AFME requests exemptions for legitimate commercial arrangements and alignment with non-EU rules. They want clear definitions, procedural protections for rebutting shell presumptions, and harmonized standards across Member States to avoid fragmentation.
This would reduce compliance costs and avoid double taxation on legitimate cross-border investments.
Tax authorities lose tools to combat shell companies used for aggressive tax avoidance.

European Banking Federation Questions Need for New Shell Entity Rules

European Banking Federation, 6 Apr 2022

The federation questions whether new rules are needed given existing anti-tax avoidance measures. They request broader exclusions for banking groups and their subsidiaries to avoid unnecessary compliance costs. They want harmonized EU-wide interpretation to prevent chaotic application across member states.
This would allow banks to avoid substantial compliance costs already imposed by recent reporting rules.
Tax authorities lose stronger tools to identify and prevent cross-border tax avoidance schemes.

Consultation response

Mouvement des Entreprises de France, 4 Apr 2022

Dear Sir/Madam, We thank you for the opportunity to participate in the public consultation on the proposal for a directive on “shell companies” and would like to share with you the following detailed comments and proposed amendments (please see attached). As always, we stand ready to further…

Consultation response

Mouvement des Entreprises de France, 17 Jun 2021

In its Inception impact assessment, the European Commission indicates that the issue at stake is the use of legal entities with no or minimum substance and no real economic activities, by taxpayers operating cross-border to reduce their tax liability. MEDEF (Mouvement des Entreprises de France),…

Consultation response

Fortum Oyj, 6 Apr 2022

Please find attached the feedback on the proposed Directive laying down rules to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes and amending Directive 2011/16/EU.

Consultation response

Gesamtverband der Deutschen Versicherungswirtschaft e.V., 6 Apr 2022

Please find our comments attached.

Consultation response

Invest Europe, 6 Apr 2022

Please see attached Invest Europe's feedback to the European Commission's Proposal for a Directive to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes.

Consultation response

PwCIL, 6 Apr 2022

Please see attached our comment letter.

Consultation response

BVI Bundesverband Investment und Asset Management e.V., 1 Apr 2022

Please find our comments on "Tax avoidance – fighting the use of shell entities and arrangements for tax purposes" in the attached file.

KPMG Urges EU to Delay New Shell Entity Tax Rules

KPMG, 5 Apr 2022

KPMG recommends a period of monitoring existing anti-abuse measures before introducing new rules. They argue for safeguarding proportionality while reducing the administrative burden and reporting requirements for taxpayers. The firm also seeks more clarity regarding definitions and implementation to ensure legal certainty.
This would help clients avoid the high costs of modifying complex corporate structures.
The public and tax authorities lose tools to stop revenue loss from shell companies.

Consultation response

Association Luxembourgeoise des Fonds d'Investissement, 6 Apr 2022

The Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed Council Directive laying down rules to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes and amending Directive 2011/16/EU. Please find our comments in the attached file.

Consultation response

Associazione fra le società italiane per azioni, 5 Apr 2022

Assonime - Association of italian joint stock companies - welcomes the opportunity to provide comments on the Proposal for a Council directive laying down rules to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes and amending Directive 2011/16/EU. Assonime believes that the Proposal raises…

Consultation response

PensionsEurope, 6 Apr 2022

As the European umbrella organisation representing pensions in Europe, PensionsEurope would like to comment on the European Commission Proposal for a Council Directive laying down rules to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes and amending Directive 2011/16/EU. Please find our…

Consultation response

European Public Real Estate Association, 6 Apr 2022

The European Public Real Estate Association (EPRA) is the voice of Europe's listed real estate companies that derive income from the ownership, trading and development of income producing real estate assets. Listed real estate allows anyone, from retail investors to large institutional investors,…

Irish Funds warns shell entity rules threaten investment structures

Irish Funds Industry Association CLG, 6 Apr 2022

The group seeks to extend exemptions to fund subsidiaries and suggests industry-specific consultations. They argue that normal outsourcing practices should not be viewed as indicators of tax abuse.
The association would avoid significant compliance costs and regulatory interference with its fund management structures.

France Invest Warns Against Burdensome EU Shell Company Rules

FRANCE INVEST, 6 Apr 2022

The organization argues current measures are sufficient to combat tax evasion and requests clarity on key concepts like outsourcing. They propose lowering the five-employee threshold and allowing for shared office premises.
This would reduce significant compliance costs and avoid burdensome administrative follow-ups for investment firms.
European start-ups and small businesses risk losing investment if funding structures face regulatory hurdles.

Consultation response

Deutscher Steuerberaterverband e.V., 4 Apr 2022

Der Deutsche Steuerberaterverband e.V. (DStV) repräsentiert rund 36.500 Berufsangehörige und damit über 60% der selbstständig in eigener Kanzlei tätigen Steuerberater, Steuerbevollmächtigten, Wirtschaftsprüfer, vereidigte Buchprüfer und Berufsgesellschaften in Deutschland. Der DStV vertritt ihre…

European Tax Advisers Urge Lower Burden in Shell Company Crackdown

European Tax Adviser Federation, 6 Apr 2022

The organization calls for a simplified single set of indicators to reduce complexity and administrative costs. They suggest that the presumption of substance should remain valid until a substantial change occurs, rather than requiring annual proof.
These changes would reduce the workload and compliance costs for tax advisers and their clients.
Tax authorities may find it harder to monitor and identify shell entities without annual reporting updates.

Consultation response

Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation, 6 Apr 2022

The Global Legal Entity Identifier Foundation (GLEIF) is pleased to provide comments to the European Commission Inception Impact Assessment titled Fighting the Use of Shell Entities and Arrangements for Tax Purposes. GLEIF welcomes the European Commission’s initiative to ensure fair and effective…

Consultation response

Baker McKenzie, 6 Apr 2022

Please find our response in the letter attached.

Consultation response

Irish Tax Institute, 6 Apr 2022

Please find attached the Irish Tax Institute's response to the European Commission’s call for feedback on the proposed Directive to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes.

Consultation response

European Association for Investors in Non-Listed Real Estate Vehicles, 5 Apr 2022

INREV hopes the views in the attached response reflect a few clear points. The first is that the primary purpose of real estate non-listed funds is to enable collective investment in real estate assets for multiple institutional investors such as pension funds and insurance companies. Second, it…

Consultation response

International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation, 17 Mar 2022

The IBFD Task Force on EU Law comprises a group of IBFD Academic researchers habitually devoted to independent research on EU law. All of the members of the Task Force are independent scholars. The IBFD Task Force on EU Law is entirely funded by IBFD and does not receive additional funds from…

Consultation response

The Association of Real Estate Funds, 6 Apr 2022

Attached is the response of the Association of Real Estate Funds to the Commission's draft Directive on the misuse of Shell Entities ("UNSHELL").

Consultation response

Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, 6 Apr 2022

STEP response to the European Commission’s (EC) proposal for a draft directive laying down rules to prevent the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes, can be found in the attached paper.

Consultation response

Tax Executives Institute, Inc., 5 Apr 2022

On behalf of Tax Executives Institute, Inc. ("TEI"), please find attached a letter to the European Commission providing TEI's feedback on the proposed directive regarding the misuse of shell entities for tax purposes.

Consultation response

CYPRUS INTERNATIONAL BUSINESSES ASSOCIATION, 5 Apr 2022

Kindly find uploaded the Cyprus International Businesses Association (CIBA) submission dated April 5th 2022, regarding the "UNSHELL" EU Commission legislative initiative.

Consultation response

Global Institute for Structure relevance, Anonymity and Decentralisation i.G., 17 Jun 2021

GISAD begrüßt die Initiative der europäischen Kommission zur Steuervermeidung. Im Zuge der Digitalisierung hat die Steuervermeidung zugenommen. Globale digitale Unternehmen haben ihren Standort in einem steuergünstigen Land und erwirtschaften ihre Wertschöpfung in einem anderen Land. Diese…

Consultation response

F.I.R. Federazione Italiana Ristorazione, 7 Jun 2021

L'elusione fiscale è il comportamento messo in pratica dal contribuente che pone in essere un negozio giuridico o una concatenazione di atti giuridici di per sé leciti, al solo scopo di ridurre l'obbligazione tributaria. Attraverso alcuni esempi preciso meglio la situazione che accade in Italia Ad…