1. General news
1.1. EC reference to ECJ concerning the UK's restriction of
the limitation period in old actions for mistake of law to direct
tax
The European Commission has decided to refer the United Kingdom
to the EU's Court of Justice for abolishing the "remedy
for repayment of taxes paid in mistake of law" without proper
transitional rules. On 30 September 2010 the Commission formally
requested the United Kingdom (IP/10/1251) to ensure compliance with
the EU rules, but the latter refused to change its law. The
September 2010 request took the following form:
The European Commission has formally requested the United
Kingdom to change its Finance Act 2007 to ensure that the abolition
of the "remedy for repayment of taxes paid in mistake of
law" is subject to proper transitional rules. Under EU law,
the reimbursement of taxes paid in violation of EU rules should be
granted according to the national rules on internal tax
reimbursements and should not be made
