EU - Amended Parent/Subsidiary Directive Promulgated

The amended Parent/Subsidiary Directive enters into force on February 2, 2004. Member states have until December 31, 2004 to transpose the changes into national law.

The amendment of December 22, 2003 to the EU Parent/Subsidiary Directive was officially published in the Official Journal on January 13, 2004. It enters into force 20 days later, that is on February 2, 2004. Member states have until December 31, 2004 to change their statutes, regulations and other provisions to comply.

There are six changes of substance:

• The subsidiary of a parent in the same or another EU country may now be held through the parent's permanent establishment in a different member state
• The term "permanent establishment" is to be defined as in the relevant tax treaty