This books examines the problems and opportunities of VAT/GST regimes in relation to the digital economy. The issues covered are: VAT collection and compliance in the digital economy ; VAT issues for intermediated delivery and third party billing; treatment of digital products and e-services under VAT; characterization of "cryptocurrencies" for VAT/GST purposes; dispute resolution and prevention; and administrative cooperation.

This working paper gives a broad-sweep consideration to the future of VAT in a digital economy, focussing on four broad, interrelated questions: does anything need to be done, and if yes, who should do it, what should be done, and how should it be done? Noting the historical development of the OECD work on cross-border VAT rules for digital and other services - and the expansion and increased attention to that work as a result of its inclusion in the BEPS process - the author answers the first question in the affirmative and then turns to the remaining questions. A strong preference is expressed for continuing the existing multifaceted, multipronged, diffuse approach to improving and coordinating the collection of VAT in a cross-border context. After rejecting the notion of a VAT multilateral tax instrument, along the lines of the OECD Model Tax Convention, the paper concludes with a more small-picture list of specific things that could be done, and/or which currently are being done in some countries, and which could be elevated to the status of international best practice and widely adopted by countries operating a fully-fledged VAT.Though written in 2014, prior to the release of the final version of the OECD International VAT/GST Guidelines and recent or proposed extensions of consumption tax to inbound digital services in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Korea, and other countries, the paper remains highly topical and relevant to the current discourse on cross-border rules for VAT and GST laws.A version of this paper was published as Chapter 5 in Michael Lang and Ine Lejeune (eds.), VAT/GST in a Global Digital Economy (2015 Kluwer Law International Alphen aan den Rijn:), pp. 173-196.

Time to discuss anti-BEPS measures around digitalization In the course of the BEPS Report on Action 1, it was concluded that there was no instantaneous need for specific rules to address base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) made possible by the digitalization of enterprises and new digital businesses. At the same time, it was acknowledged that general measures may not suffice with the assessment of results to begin in 2020. While awaiting possible fundamental reforms of the tax framework, it is time to discuss anti-BEPS measures bearing in mind the peculiar features of the digital economy such as increased mobility, no need for physical presence, and dematerialization. The Book focuses on five key areas of interest:International Tax PolicyTax Treaty LawTransfer PricingIndirect Taxation IssuesEU Law “Taxation in a Global Digital Economy” analyses the issues and addresses the five key areas of interest from various viewpoints.

This report provides practical guidance to tax authorities on the design and implementation of a variety of solutions for digital platforms, including e-commerce marketplaces, in the effective and efficient collection of VAT/GST on the digital trade of goods, services and intangibles. In particular, it includes new measures to make digital platforms liable for the VAT/GST on sales made by online traders through these platforms, along with other measures including data sharing and enhanced co-operation between tax authorities and digital platforms.

This paper set forth internationally agreed principles and standards for the value added tax (VAT) treatment of the most common types of international transactions, with a particular focus on trade in services and intangibles. Its aim is to minimise inconsistencies in the application of VAT in a cross-border context with a view to reducing uncertainty and risks of double taxation and unintended non-taxation in international trade. It also includes the recommended principles and mechanisms to address the challenges for the collection of VAT on crossborder sales of digital products that had been identified in the context of the OECD/G20 Project on Base and Erosion and Profit Shifting (the BEPS Project).

This volume presents contributions that analyse the extraordinary impact of digital technology on business, services, and the production of value in many sectors of the economy. At the heart of this book is the fact that the entire digital economy is now worth almost 6% of global GDP, and it continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. The volume covers the general debate on taxation and the digital economy with the chapters by Russo, Makiyama and Boccia, before completing the analysis with discussion of three national case studies covering the U.S. (Pagano), U.K. (Leonardi) and Italy (Boccia and Leonardi). Contributors are leading experts in the fields of taxation and the digital economy and contextualise the key issues surrounding the digitalisation of the economy from an international perspective.

Deconstruct to reconstruct seeks to use a modern benefit principle theory that will allow tax authorities to tax companies in the digital economy, assuring they pay taxes in the countries in which they operate. The emergence of a new business models such as app stores, online advertising, cloud computing, participative network platforms, high-speed trading, and online payment services has reshaped the global economy and made it difficult for tax authorities to determine what and where to tax. Technologies in the new digital economy make it possible for companies to operate in countries without being physically present. While companies such as Netflix, Google, and AirBnB provide services and earn profits in different countries, tax loopholes and intricate tax planning enable them to pay little-to-no taxes in many of these countries. For example, Netflix earned more than US$100 billion in Colombia in 2016, but it did not pay any direct or indirect taxes in the country. The absence of a specific tax or legal rule that targets digital companies has prevented Colombian tax authorities from taxing Netflix or any other company of the sort. Many tax authorities around the world have similar experiences.