59 Amendments of Jonás FERNÁNDEZ related to 2022/2146(INI)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
– having regard to the Commission communication of 15 January 2019 entitled ‘Commission launches debate on a gradual transition to more efficient and democratic decision-making in EU tax policy’14a _________________ 14a https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor ner/detail/en/IP_19_225
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 10 a (new)
Citation 10 a (new)
– having regard to the Commission communication of 22 December 2021 entitled ‘The Commission proposes the next generation of EU own resources’14b _________________ 14b https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor ner/detail/en/ip_21_7025
Amendment 3 #
– having regard to the Commission communication of 20 June 2023 entitled ‘EU budget: Commission puts forward an adjusted package for the next generation of own resources'15a _________________ 15a https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscor ner/detail/en/ip_23_3328
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 12 a (new)
Citation 12 a (new)
– having regard to Council Regulation (EU) 2022/1854 of 6 October 2022 on an emergency intervention to address high energy prices, which includes the temporary solidarity contribution15b _________________ 15b https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal- content/EN/ALL/?uri=CELEX%3A32022 R1854
Amendment 12 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 22 a (new)
Citation 22 a (new)
– having regard to its resolution of 10 March 2022 on a European Withholding Tax framework;19a _________________ 19a https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/A-9-2022-0011_EN.html
Amendment 13 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 22 b (new)
Citation 22 b (new)
– having regard to its resolution of 6 July 2022 on national vetoes to undermine the global tax deal;19b _________________ 19b https://www.europarl.europa.eu/doceo/doc ument/TA-9-2022-0290_EN.html
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 29 a (new)
Citation 29 a (new)
– having regard to the EU Tax Observatory study of October 2021 entitled ‘Revenue effects of the global minimum tax: country-by-country estimates’20a; _________________ 20a https://www.taxobservatory.eu/wp- content/uploads/2021/10/Note-2- November-2021-1.pdf
Amendment 28 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas Member States are free to decide on their own economic policies, in particular their own tax policies within the boundaries of the EU Treaties; whereas, although tax policy largely remains a responsibility of the Member States, the single market requires coordination and cooperation in setting tax policy in order to further single market integration and to avoid economic distortions;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas unanimity, as it appears in the Treaties, must be counterbalanced by a very high level of responsibility from Member States and must be in line with the principle of sincere cooperation based on Article 4(3) TEU; whereas national vetoes in tax matters have been abused by certain Member States to achieve concessions in other policy areas; whereas unanimity voting in the Council over tax policy, and corporate tax in particular, has often lead to delays and lack of progress in the harmonisation and coordination of tax rules across the Union that would be to the benefit of all; whereas the procedure laid down in Article 116 TFEU can be applied without altering the distribution of competences between the Union and the Member States;
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas European citizens, the most vulnerable in particular, and some companies are battling strong headwinds as a result of the current adverse economic and social situations; whereas other companies, particularly MNEs, have increased their profits;
Amendment 50 #
C. whereas the BEPS action plan managed to establish a global consensus on manyseveral issues regarding the fight against aggressive tax planning; whereas loopholes prevail and must be addressed, notably concerning the digitalisation of the economy as well as the role of intangible assets; whereas the BEPS action plan was only decided by OECD developed countries in 2015;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas the EU led by example in transposing international agreements into a high number of tax directives improving coordination and the EU’s fight against aggressive tax planning;
Amendment 58 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas the average headline corporate income tax rate in EU countries has been on a downwards trend in recent decades, from 35 % in 1995 to 21.2% in 2023; whereas the effective tax rate is often well below the headline tax rate;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D c (new)
Recital D c (new)
Dc. whereas the Code of Conduct Group on Business Taxation did not manage to fully eradicate unfair tax arrangements offered by some Member States to large companies; whereas the Code of Conduct Group on Business Taxation has failed to reform its mandate, notably in the issue of economic substance;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas as of 16 DecemberJune 20223, 138 state43 jurisdictions, including all EU Member States, had agreed on the reform of the international tax system through a two- pillar solution;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E a (new)
Recital E a (new)
Ea. whereas the EU Tax Observatory has estimated that the implementation of the OECD/G20 agreement’s Pillar II will lead to an immediate increase of EUR 63.9 billion in tax revenue for the 27 Member States;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E b (new)
Recital E b (new)
Eb. whereas the inter-institutional agreement establishing NextGeneration EU also refers the need to create new own resources to finance the respective repayments; whereas, in December 2021, the Commission proposed an own resource derived from the companies in- scope for Pillar One of the OECD/G20 agreement; whereas, in June 2023, the Commission proposed an own resource linked to the corporate sector, which is to be replaced by a possible contribution from BEFIT;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas the solidarity contribution applied to the windfall profits of some companies from the energy sector was an effective European approach to implement a top-up levy on their corporate income tax; whereas this approach was also successful in avoiding any fragmentation resulting from individual action by Member States; whereas some countries have applied similar taxes on windfall profits from other sectors;
Amendment 85 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the debt-equity bias inmost corporate taxation systems in the EU allows for generous tax deductions on interest payments; whereas equity financing costs cannot be deducted in a similar manner; , up to a cost of EUR 245 billion20d; whereas equity financing costs, which include dividend payments, cannot be deducted in a similar manner; _________________ 20d Impact assessment accompanying the document proposal for a Council directive on laying down rules on a debt-equity bias reduction and on limiting the deductibility of interest for corporate income tax purposes, p.48.
Amendment 104 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Recalls that EU Member States' cooperationg on corporate taxation is not a goal in itself, but rather a tool to complete, improve and further develop the single market; notes, in addition, that a common approach on tax policies is crucial to effectively curb tax evasion, avoidance and fraud, particularly by reducing loopholes arising from different national tax provisions;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Welcomes the European Council conclusions of 23 March 2023 calling for the general regulatory environment to be simplified and for the administrative burden to be reduced, and the Commission communications of 16 March 2023 underlining that the EU tax framework is key in supporting growth and private investment, in particular by removing tax barriers to cross-border investment, and that the EU’s active role on tax policies seeks to address distortions, ensure the good functioning of the Single Market and prevent its fragmentation;
Amendment 120 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines that it is paramount to fight aggressive profit shifting while promoting fiscal fairness, transparency and certainty, and while keeping; highlights that addressing tax evasion, tax avoidance and aggressive tax planning will provide additional tax revenue that helps national governments to keep taxes at levels that support sustainable economic growth;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Amendment 124 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Welcomes the remarks by Christine Lagarde, ECB President, in the Monetary Dialogue of 5th June 2023, acknowledging that some sectors’ firms increased their profit margins by pushing higher prices to the consumer, above the respective increases in costs; supports the comments by Ms Lagarde on the need to have better data on profits in order to fully appreciate their impact on inflation; encourages Member States to release statistics on profits margins and its impact on corporate taxation revenues;
Amendment 127 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Takes note of the numerous tax directives since 2011 that have led to fairer, simpler and more effective corporate taxation in the EU, and to a high number ofwhile stressing that loopholes prevail in the current framework; notes that benefits of said directives should outweigh its costs, and that tax compliance obligations on companies within the EU21 , particularly SMEs, should not be disproportionate; _________________ 21 See notably the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directives (ATAD I and ATAD II), the amendments of the Directive on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation (DAC 1 to DAC 7), the revision of the Parent Subsidiary Directive, the EU Dispute Settlement Directive, the Public Country-by-Country Reporting Directive, or the Pillar Two Directive.
Amendment 134 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. DeploRegrets the fact that the Member States have implemented and applied tax directives in a divergent manner, undermining theat the implementation of some tax directives did not fully address divergences in national legislative framework, thus limiting its benefits; calls on Member States to ensure that tax directives are applied as closely as possible to its intention in order to ensure a proper functioning of the single market, and leading to misalignment in tax bases, more red tape and higher compliance costprevent unnecessary administrative and compliance costs, and the proliferation of tax schemes due to regulatory mismatches between EU jurisdictions;
Amendment 146 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 1
Subheading 1
Reducing the burden of compliance on EU companies, particularly SMEs
Amendment 148 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Notes that the estimated tax compliance costs for large multinational enterprises (MNEs) amount to about 2 % of taxes paid, while for SMEs the estimate is about 30 % of taxes paid; recalls that European companies, in particulardeplores how the significant disparity between effective tax rates between MNEs and SMEs creates a regressive tax system that harms the latter; recalls that SMEs, are the main enhancers of economic growth and job creation;
Amendment 155 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls on the Commission to present an overall evaluation of actions taken on corporate taxation since 2011 and to immediately ease the burden on businesses by invoking a regulatory moratorium and delaying those tax acts that would unnecessarily increase costs for businesses already under strain; calls on the Commission to carry out competitiveness checks for new legislative tax proposals, as requested by the European Council for all new proposals onassess the best options towards easing the administrative burden on businesses, particularly SMEs; notes the European Council's request for competitiveness checks for all new proposals, aiming to simplify the general regulatory environment and to reduce the administrative burden, from 22 March 2023;
Amendment 167 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Welcomes the proposal of the Conference on the Future of Europe of 9 May 2022 for a competitiveness check to analyse the impact, among other things, of new tax legislation on companies and their business environments; awaits impatiently the implementation of theharmonising and coordinating tax policies within the Member States of the EU in order to prevent tax evasion and avoidance, and for a competitiveness check; awaits the proposal announcementd by Commission President Ursula von der Leyen ofn 19 October 2022 to introducinge a standard competitiveness check in EU regulation; warns that competitiveness checks cannot be used to undermine labour and social standards;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Takes note of the renewed debate on tax incentives following the US Inflation Reduction Act; calls on the Commission to allow for experimentation with tax creditsadoption of Pillar Two Model Rules guaranteeing a minimum level of effective corporate income taxation at 15% and in the aftermath of the US Inflation Reduction Act; notes that any experimentation with tax credits, most notably within the revised framework of EU state aid, must be strictly conditional to safeguarding workers’ conditions, while prioritising green innovation and climate adaptation; insists, nevertheless, that all decisions should be taken in a coordinated manner to preserve the functioning of the single market;
Amendment 175 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9 a (new)
Paragraph 9 a (new)
9a. Notes that tax credits are de facto limited by the global minimum tax under Pillar Two which could lead to increased competition on refundable tax credits and subsidies; recalls that the absence of common rules and procedures that ensure the effective taxation of intra-EU flows of dividends, interest and royalty payments, can also provide conduits for these flows to leave the EU untaxed for low-tax third jurisdictions, thus imposing significant losses in tax collection for Member States; invites the Commission to monitor the such developments and to publish its recommendations and observations in an annual report;
Amendment 181 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Member States to engage in policies of full expensing for capital investments and to make capital allowance provisions permanent in Highlights full expensing for capital investments require a careful design and significant administrative diligence to prevent a vehicle for unwarranted tax subsidies or for tax abuse; stresses, therefore, that such policies should go hand-in-hand with regular and public monitoring of tax expenditure reporting and spillover analyses; notes that capital allowance provisions must be conditional to improving wordker to improve real investments and to assiss' conditions, while also increasing investments in the real economy, with a priority for green innovation and climate adaptation, and support Europe’s competitiveness;
Amendment 184 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 11
Paragraph 11
11. Calls on the Member States, in the light of high inflation rates, to use the additional revenues based on higher energy prices directly toto provide direct and targeted relievef to the burden on companies, especially SMEmost vulnerable citizens and the middle class;
Amendment 188 #
11a. Recalls that the solidarity contribution of the Union was designed as an appropriate mean to tackle surplus profits in the energy sector, in the event of unforeseen circumstances; requests that an automatic contribution on profits which do not correspond to any regular profits that Union companies or permanent establishments in the Union could have expected in the absence of a major unpredictable event affecting the EU as a whole should be levied according to similar design features;
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 2
Subheading 2
Amendment 193 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Takes note ofWelcomes the two-pillar solution reached at the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on the allocation of taxing rights and the application of a minimum effective tax rate of 15 % on the global profits of MNEs; understands that the minimum rate should be subject to a periodic upwards review, also taking into account the proposal by the Biden administration of a 21% minimum effective corporate tax rate; considers that this agreement contributes to a fairer playing field between MNEs and SMEs; calls on Member States to assess other multilateral initiatives that can fix shortcomings in the EU tax framework, including at UN level;
Amendment 203 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Observes that, in addition to coping with a volatile business environment and an increasing number of EU tax directives, companies are focusing their financial and human resources on applying the Pillar Two rules; calls on the Commission to give companies breathing space and enough time to prepare for the possibl Pillar One and Pillar Two rules are only applicable for MNEs with a turnover above the thresholds, respectively, of EUR 20 billion and EUR 750 million; stresses that most companies, notably SMEs, are therefore exempt from this agreement, calls on the Commission to ensure full coherence and consistency of Pillar One and Pillar Two with the new BEFIT rules;
Amendment 213 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Calls for the introduction of Pillar Two in the criteria used for assessing third countries in the EU listing of non- cooperative jurisdictions; considers that the EU listing process needs to be reformed, including its formalisation in EU law, notably via a binding instrument;
Amendment 214 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 b (new)
Paragraph 13 b (new)
13b. Notes that since 1997 the Code of Conduct for Business Taxation has been the Union’s primary instrument to prevent harmful tax competition for companies; stresses that there need to be common principles on the extent to which Member States can use their tax regimes and policies to attract businesses and profits to end a "beggar thy neighbour" policies within the Single market;
Amendment 217 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 c (new)
Paragraph 13 c (new)
13c. Calls on the Commission to evaluate the effectiveness of patent boxes and other intellectual property (IP) regimes under the new nexus approach defined by Action 5 of the BEPS Action Plan on harmful tax practices, including the impact on revenue losses; calls on the Commission to come forward with proposals in the event that the evaluation establishes an absence of impact of IP regimes on real economic activity;
Amendment 218 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 d (new)
Paragraph 13 d (new)
Amendment 219 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 e (new)
Paragraph 13 e (new)
13e. Recalls that the European Union is required to establish new own resources in order to repay the financing to NextGeneration EU; welcomes that a contribution from the corporate sector, most notably through Pillar One, has been proposed by the European Commission; stresses that, if the implementation of Pillar One is delayed beyond the current mandate, the Commission must put forward alternative proposals to fulfil this purpose, for instance, a single market levy or a digital levy that would restore fair competition between physical stores and e-commerce; welcomes the proposal of the Commission to create a temporary contribution from the corporate sector, to be replaced by a possible contribution via BEFIT;
Amendment 222 #
Motion for a resolution
Subheading 3
Subheading 3
Towards a simplified corporate tax regime (BEFIT)
Amendment 225 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Commission to guide all the Member Stateswork towards a simplified tax system to reduce theunnecessary administrative burden for companies, especially SMEs; acknowledges that simplifying refund procedures, deductions and litigation are other solutions to reduce theunnecessary administrative burden, especially for SMEs; takes note, in this regard, of the Commission proposal from June 2023 aiming to boost cross-border investment and help fight tax abuse via a reform of withholding tax procedures;
Amendment 235 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Recalls that simplifyharmonising and reducing the complexity of the legal framework for corporate tax systems helps to attract foreign direct investment and reduces the risk of companies relocating to non-EU countries;
Amendment 247 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Considers that fixing loopholes that allow for tax evasion, avoidance and fraud should be a priority for legislative initiatives in the realm of taxation; notes that the corporate tax framework can also be improved in this regard; urges, therefore, the Commission to introduce strong safeguards against tax evasion, avoidance and fraud in BEFIT; stresses that such tax schemes undermine the law, the sustainability of public finances, and the sovereignty of Member States;
Amendment 252 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Takes note of the BEFIT objectives, as addressed in the Commission’s call for evidence for an impact assessment, to increase businesses’ resilience by reducing the complexity ofcaused by different sets of national tax rules and the respective compliance costs faced by EU businesses with cross-border operations, to remove obstacles to cross- border investment and make the single market a more attractive location for international investment, to create an environment conducive to fair and sustainable growth by paving the way for administrative simplification, and to provide sustainabled tax revenues, which is particularly important in the current challenging economic climate;
Amendment 258 #
18a. Considers that all very large firms operating in the EU should be in the scope of the future BEFIT proposal; welcomes, nonetheless, any proposal allowing smaller firms to rely on a simplified and harmonised corporate taxation framework; considers essential to ensure all sectors are covered by the future BEFIT reform, including the financial sector;
Amendment 260 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 b (new)
Paragraph 18 b (new)
18b. Suggests that any adjustments to financial statements should be aligned with Pillar Two and must not leave possibilities for further unilateral adjustments, at the risk of losing the benefits of tax base harmonisation;
Amendment 261 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 c (new)
Paragraph 18 c (new)
18c. Recalls the long standing demand of the Parliament to establish an allocation formula based on three criteria: (i) tangible assets (ii) labour (equally shared between personnel and salaries); (iii) sales by destination;
Amendment 262 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 d (new)
Paragraph 18 d (new)
18d. Recalls that intangibles assets have the particularity of being highly mobile; considers that any future allocation formula must refrain from including intangible assets, in order not to incentivise rent-seeking business models;
Amendment 263 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 e (new)
Paragraph 18 e (new)
18e. Highlights that harmonising the EU rules on corporate income taxation would not solve the complexities and vulnerabilities for base erosion related to transfer prices involving third countries; demands the Commission to propose an alternative methodology to transfer pricing, in order to limit its exploitation for base erosion and profit shifting, including the usage of formulary apportionment;
Amendment 264 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 f (new)
Paragraph 18 f (new)
18f. Highlight the prominent role of tax administrations in ensuring the implementation of a future BEFIT reform; advises that sufficient means, including training, is allocated by Member States and through the future FISCALIS program;
Amendment 267 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. HighlightNotes the idea of a one-stop- shop allowing for the filing of one consolidated tax return; calls on the Commission toacknowledges that the introducetion of a one-stop-shop for the application of the BEFIT rules in a test phase and torequires further harmonisation of the corporate tax base and the establishment of a formula for fair and effective allocation of taxing rights among Member States, and an expansion of reportable income to be exchanged between national tax authorities; notes that a one-stop-shop may be introduced via a test phase for a limited number of taxpayers, and only incorporate itd as a permanent feature of BEFIT if thesuch test phase is successful;
Amendment 271 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Takes note ofStresses its reservations towards the Commission proposal of 11 May 2022 addressing the debt-equity bias; deplor, particularly the costs it could generate for Member States; notes the Council's decision of 6 December 2022 to suspend the examination of the proposal; recalls on the Council to relaunch negotiations on this proposalthat, in the past, allowances for corporate equity have been exploited as tax loopholes in the Union; supports the incorporation of strong anti- avoidance provisions to prevent any allowance on equity to be used as a new tool for base erosion if an allowance for corporate equity should be set up;
Amendment 278 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Amendment 284 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Highlights that targeted tax incentives applied in a fiscally responsible manner for private research and development (e.g. via tax credits, enhanced allowances or adjusted depreciation schedules) can help lift an economy’s overall spending towards research and development, which often comes with positive externalitiescan help lift private spending towards these purposes, which often can come with positive externalities; stresses that regular analysis of such positive externalities should be conducted and, whenever appropriate, lead to the termination of incentives that failed to produce the intended results; highlights that such incentives are more effective for SMEs if they are expenditure-based21b; underlines that such tax incentives must be strictly conditional to safeguarding workers’ conditions, while prioritising green innovation and climate adaptation; recalls that corporate spending on research and development was equal to 1.5 % of EU GDP in 2020, compared to 2.6 % in the US and Japan, according to the European Investment Bank’s 2022/2023 investment report; calls on the Commission to present an assessment of the most effective and efficient tax incentives for private research and development; calls on the Commission to produce guidelines on how to design fair and transparent tax incentives while preventing a market distortion; _________________ 21b Subcommittee on Tax affairs, hearing on "The role of tax incentives and exemptions in the framework of the reform of corporate taxation and in the promotion of European economies' competitiveness" July 11 2022