Finance Ministry Drafts Bill Transposing EU Amendments

The finance ministry has published its draft bill to transpose various EU amendments and ECJ cases into national law whilst taking the opportunity to make a number of editorial changes. The main features of substance are:

• Conformity with the amended Parent/Subsidiary Directive, in particular revising the lists of legal forms covered by the Directive to include practically any entity within the EU subject to corporation tax except partnerships able to opt. The Directive provisions will now apply to dividends on shares held through a permanent establishment in a third member state of the EU and the minimum shareholding levels will fall from the present 25% to 20% in 2004-06, 15% in 2007/8 and to 10% thereafter.