Europäisches Beihilfenrecht Blog

State Aid Uncovered Blog

In Lexxions Blog „State Aid Uncovered” veröffentlicht Prof. Phedon Nicolaides wöchentlich kritische Analysen zu den neuesten Urteilen und Entscheidungen zu staatlichen Beihilfen. Jeder Beitrag stellt die wichtigsten Punkte eines Gerichtsurteils oder einer EU-Kommissionsentscheidung vor, ordnet sie in den Kontext ähnlicher Rechtsprechung oder Praxis ein, bewertet die zugrundeliegende Argumentation und zeigt etwaige Ungereimtheiten oder Widersprüche auf.

In loser Folge werden auf diesem Blog auch Gastbeiträge von anderen Experten für staatliche Beihilfen veröffentlicht, welche die Inhalte der Blogbeiträge ergänzen.

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Professor at Maastricht University; Professor at University of Nicosia, and Academic Director at Lexxion Training

State Aid Uncovered ×

30. April 2024 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Case of a Narrow Tax that Is Not Selective

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 11

Introduction On 17 April 2024, the General Court ruled, in case T-112/22, Ideella föreningen Svenska Bankföreningen med firma Svenska Bankföreningen, Näringsverksamhet & Länsförsäkringar Bank v Commission, that a Swedish tax on only nine banks was not selective by not taxing the many smaller banks.1 The applicants, a Swedish banking association and a Swedish bank, respectively, sought the annulment of Commission […]

Keine Kommentare

10. Oktober 2023 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Advance Tax Rulings

State Aid Blogs - Untitled design 26

Introduction In 2016, the Commission found, in decision 2016/1699, that advance tax rulings [ATRs] that had been provided by Belgium to multi-national companies [MNCs] with establishments in Belgium constituted State aid because the ATRs set the taxable income of those companies according to a hypothetical average income rather than their actual income. The profit that exceeded that hypothetical average was […]

Keine Kommentare

11. Oktober 2022 | von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity of Regional Schemes

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 4

Introduction Article 107(3)(a) areas and the outermost regions of the EU [defined in Article 349 TFEU] are more favourably treated under State aid rules. But they still have to comply with the terms of Commission authorising decisions. In case regional State aid is found to be incompatible with the internal market, their regional handicaps cannot justify any leniency in the […]

Keine Kommentare

6. September 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Special Economic Zones

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 29

Member States must check that the State aid claimed by undertakings established in special economic zones concern activities that are actually carried out within those zones. Introduction Several Member States have special economic zones in which companies enjoy preferential tax treatment. These zones can be divided into two categories: those that can be found mostly in the new Member States […]

Keine Kommentare

18. Januar 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Non-Selective Financial Tax with a Narrow Scope

State Aid Blogs - Social Media posts 3

The scope of a tax must be objectively defined in order for those excluded from the tax not to benefit from a selective advantage. Introduction Taxes are burdens, so they fall outside the scope of Article 107(1) TFEU which prohibits selective benefits funded with state resources. Normally, Article 107(1) applies to benefits from tax exemptions or tax derogations which result […]

Keine Kommentare

16. November 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity and Tax Measures

The reference system for determining the selectivity of a tax measure must have its own logic and be autonomous and its identification depends on the content, structure and specific effects of the applicable rules. A measure that does not exclude any particular undertaking can be selective if it treats differently undertakings which are in similar situations. Introduction On 6 October […]

Keine Kommentare

30. März 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

“Global” Assessment of Tax Schemes

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost13 Barcelona

It is incumbent on the Commission to carry out a global assessment of tax schemes. But it must take into account only those provisions of schemes that apply ex ante and do not depend on the circumstances of individual tax payers. Only when aid has to be recovered must the provisions that apply to the specific circumstances of individual tax […]

Keine Kommentare

21. Juli 2020 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Taxation of Multinational Companies: The Apple Case – A Political Setback for the Commission, but a Victory on Principle

MacBook on Table

Defects, incompleteness and inconsistencies in tax rulings are not sufficient to prove the existence of an advantage in the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. Update on Temporary Framework: Number of approved and published covid-19 measures, as of 17 July 2020: 213* Legal basis: Article 107(2)(b): 21; Article 107(3)(b): 179; Article 107(3)(c): 18 Five Member States have implemented 13 or more […]

Keine Kommentare

17. Dezember 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Can a Tax (rather than a Tax Exemption) Confer a Selective Advantage?

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost52 Stateaid Lexxion TAX Water Spain European Commission

A tax that is levied at one level of government and does not apply to products and activities at a different level of government need not be selective. Introduction A tax exemption normally confers a selective advantage, unless it is justified by the logic of the tax. Counterintuitively, a tax itself can be selectively advantageous if its scope is too […]

Keine Kommentare

10. April 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

What Makes a Public Health Care System Non-economic?

State Aid Blogs - 10.04.18 HealthCare StateAid Economic

Health services are not economic in nature when they are funded by the state through taxation, they are provided for free or at a nominal fee which is the same for all patients and they are available to all citizens on a universal basis and on the same terms. Introduction After the judgment of the General Court of […]

2 Kommentare

Nächste Seite »

State Aid Uncovered ×

30. April 2024 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Case of a Narrow Tax that Is Not Selective

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 11

Introduction On 17 April 2024, the General Court ruled, in case T-112/22, Ideella föreningen Svenska Bankföreningen med firma Svenska Bankföreningen, Näringsverksamhet & Länsförsäkringar Bank v Commission, that a Swedish tax on only nine banks was not selective by not taxing the many smaller banks.1 The applicants, a Swedish banking association and a Swedish bank, respectively, sought the annulment of Commission […]

Keine Kommentare

10. Oktober 2023 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Advance Tax Rulings

State Aid Blogs - Untitled design 26

Introduction In 2016, the Commission found, in decision 2016/1699, that advance tax rulings [ATRs] that had been provided by Belgium to multi-national companies [MNCs] with establishments in Belgium constituted State aid because the ATRs set the taxable income of those companies according to a hypothetical average income rather than their actual income. The profit that exceeded that hypothetical average was […]

Keine Kommentare

11. Oktober 2022 | von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity of Regional Schemes

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 4

Introduction Article 107(3)(a) areas and the outermost regions of the EU [defined in Article 349 TFEU] are more favourably treated under State aid rules. But they still have to comply with the terms of Commission authorising decisions. In case regional State aid is found to be incompatible with the internal market, their regional handicaps cannot justify any leniency in the […]

Keine Kommentare

6. September 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Special Economic Zones

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 29

Member States must check that the State aid claimed by undertakings established in special economic zones concern activities that are actually carried out within those zones. Introduction Several Member States have special economic zones in which companies enjoy preferential tax treatment. These zones can be divided into two categories: those that can be found mostly in the new Member States […]

Keine Kommentare

18. Januar 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Non-Selective Financial Tax with a Narrow Scope

State Aid Blogs - Social Media posts 3

The scope of a tax must be objectively defined in order for those excluded from the tax not to benefit from a selective advantage. Introduction Taxes are burdens, so they fall outside the scope of Article 107(1) TFEU which prohibits selective benefits funded with state resources. Normally, Article 107(1) applies to benefits from tax exemptions or tax derogations which result […]

Keine Kommentare

16. November 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity and Tax Measures

The reference system for determining the selectivity of a tax measure must have its own logic and be autonomous and its identification depends on the content, structure and specific effects of the applicable rules. A measure that does not exclude any particular undertaking can be selective if it treats differently undertakings which are in similar situations. Introduction On 6 October […]

Keine Kommentare

30. März 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

“Global” Assessment of Tax Schemes

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost13 Barcelona

It is incumbent on the Commission to carry out a global assessment of tax schemes. But it must take into account only those provisions of schemes that apply ex ante and do not depend on the circumstances of individual tax payers. Only when aid has to be recovered must the provisions that apply to the specific circumstances of individual tax […]

Keine Kommentare

21. Juli 2020 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Taxation of Multinational Companies: The Apple Case – A Political Setback for the Commission, but a Victory on Principle

MacBook on Table

Defects, incompleteness and inconsistencies in tax rulings are not sufficient to prove the existence of an advantage in the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. Update on Temporary Framework: Number of approved and published covid-19 measures, as of 17 July 2020: 213* Legal basis: Article 107(2)(b): 21; Article 107(3)(b): 179; Article 107(3)(c): 18 Five Member States have implemented 13 or more […]

Keine Kommentare

17. Dezember 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Can a Tax (rather than a Tax Exemption) Confer a Selective Advantage?

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost52 Stateaid Lexxion TAX Water Spain European Commission

A tax that is levied at one level of government and does not apply to products and activities at a different level of government need not be selective. Introduction A tax exemption normally confers a selective advantage, unless it is justified by the logic of the tax. Counterintuitively, a tax itself can be selectively advantageous if its scope is too […]

Keine Kommentare

10. April 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

What Makes a Public Health Care System Non-economic?

State Aid Blogs - 10.04.18 HealthCare StateAid Economic

Health services are not economic in nature when they are funded by the state through taxation, they are provided for free or at a nominal fee which is the same for all patients and they are available to all citizens on a universal basis and on the same terms. Introduction After the judgment of the General Court of […]

2 Kommentare

Nächste Seite »

State Aid Uncovered ×

30. April 2024 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Case of a Narrow Tax that Is Not Selective

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered photos 11

Introduction On 17 April 2024, the General Court ruled, in case T-112/22, Ideella föreningen Svenska Bankföreningen med firma Svenska Bankföreningen, Näringsverksamhet & Länsförsäkringar Bank v Commission, that a Swedish tax on only nine banks was not selective by not taxing the many smaller banks.1 The applicants, a Swedish banking association and a Swedish bank, respectively, sought the annulment of Commission […]

Keine Kommentare

10. Oktober 2023 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Advance Tax Rulings

State Aid Blogs - Untitled design 26

Introduction In 2016, the Commission found, in decision 2016/1699, that advance tax rulings [ATRs] that had been provided by Belgium to multi-national companies [MNCs] with establishments in Belgium constituted State aid because the ATRs set the taxable income of those companies according to a hypothetical average income rather than their actual income. The profit that exceeded that hypothetical average was […]

Keine Kommentare

11. Oktober 2022 | von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity of Regional Schemes

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 4

Introduction Article 107(3)(a) areas and the outermost regions of the EU [defined in Article 349 TFEU] are more favourably treated under State aid rules. But they still have to comply with the terms of Commission authorising decisions. In case regional State aid is found to be incompatible with the internal market, their regional handicaps cannot justify any leniency in the […]

Keine Kommentare

6. September 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Special Economic Zones

State Aid Blogs - State Aid Uncovered SM posts 29

Member States must check that the State aid claimed by undertakings established in special economic zones concern activities that are actually carried out within those zones. Introduction Several Member States have special economic zones in which companies enjoy preferential tax treatment. These zones can be divided into two categories: those that can be found mostly in the new Member States […]

Keine Kommentare

18. Januar 2022 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

A Non-Selective Financial Tax with a Narrow Scope

State Aid Blogs - Social Media posts 3

The scope of a tax must be objectively defined in order for those excluded from the tax not to benefit from a selective advantage. Introduction Taxes are burdens, so they fall outside the scope of Article 107(1) TFEU which prohibits selective benefits funded with state resources. Normally, Article 107(1) applies to benefits from tax exemptions or tax derogations which result […]

Keine Kommentare

16. November 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Selectivity and Tax Measures

The reference system for determining the selectivity of a tax measure must have its own logic and be autonomous and its identification depends on the content, structure and specific effects of the applicable rules. A measure that does not exclude any particular undertaking can be selective if it treats differently undertakings which are in similar situations. Introduction On 6 October […]

Keine Kommentare

30. März 2021 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

“Global” Assessment of Tax Schemes

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost13 Barcelona

It is incumbent on the Commission to carry out a global assessment of tax schemes. But it must take into account only those provisions of schemes that apply ex ante and do not depend on the circumstances of individual tax payers. Only when aid has to be recovered must the provisions that apply to the specific circumstances of individual tax […]

Keine Kommentare

21. Juli 2020 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Taxation of Multinational Companies: The Apple Case – A Political Setback for the Commission, but a Victory on Principle

MacBook on Table

Defects, incompleteness and inconsistencies in tax rulings are not sufficient to prove the existence of an advantage in the meaning of Article 107(1) TFEU. Update on Temporary Framework: Number of approved and published covid-19 measures, as of 17 July 2020: 213* Legal basis: Article 107(2)(b): 21; Article 107(3)(b): 179; Article 107(3)(c): 18 Five Member States have implemented 13 or more […]

Keine Kommentare

17. Dezember 2019 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

Can a Tax (rather than a Tax Exemption) Confer a Selective Advantage?

State Aid Blogs - StateAidHub blogpost52 Stateaid Lexxion TAX Water Spain European Commission

A tax that is levied at one level of government and does not apply to products and activities at a different level of government need not be selective. Introduction A tax exemption normally confers a selective advantage, unless it is justified by the logic of the tax. Counterintuitively, a tax itself can be selectively advantageous if its scope is too […]

Keine Kommentare

10. April 2018 | State Aid Uncovered von Phedon Nicolaides

What Makes a Public Health Care System Non-economic?

State Aid Blogs - 10.04.18 HealthCare StateAid Economic

Health services are not economic in nature when they are funded by the state through taxation, they are provided for free or at a nominal fee which is the same for all patients and they are available to all citizens on a universal basis and on the same terms. Introduction After the judgment of the General Court of […]

2 Kommentare

Nächste Seite »

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