revision sheet taxation

What is the TEU?

The Treaty on European Union: sets EU values (Art. 2) and main institutions and procedures.

What is the TFEU?

The Treaty on the Functioning of the EU: defines EU competences (internal market, free movement, competition, some taxation) and institutional rules.

What is the GDPR?

EU General Data Protection Regulation: rules on personal data protection with extraterritorial reach (applies to non-EU firms targeting EU residents).

What is the Regulation on the Free Flow of Non-Personal Data?

EU regulation that bans unjustified data-localisation requirements for non-personal data within the EU.

What is the DSA (Digital Services Act)?

EU regulation to ensure a safe and accountable online environment, focusing on illegal content, transparency and systemic risk duties for (very) large platforms.

What is the DMA (Digital Markets Act)?

EU regulation imposing ex-ante rules on digital “gatekeepers”, banning self-preferencing and requiring interoperability and data access.

What is the DGA (Data Governance Act)?

EU regulation creating mechanisms and “data intermediaries” to enable trustworthy data sharing and build European data spaces.

What is the Data Act (2025)?

EU regulation granting users rights to access and use data from connected products/IoT, aiming to prevent lock-in and abusive data practices by gatekeepers.

What is the AI Act (2024)?

First horizontal EU AI regulation with a risk-based framework (unacceptable, high, limited, minimal risk) and strict obligations for high-risk systems.

What is the ePrivacy Regulation?

Planned EU regulation (lex specialis to GDPR) on electronic communications (cookies, metadata, messaging confidentiality); proposal, not yet in force.

What is the role of the European Commission?

EU institution that proposes legislation, acts as guardian of the Treaties, manages EU programmes and negotiates certain international agreements.

What is the role of the European Parliament?

Directly elected EU institution that co-legislates with the Council, adopts the budget, exercises democratic control, and can bring actions before the CJEU.

What is the role of the Council of the EU?

Institution of ministers from Member States that adopts EU laws (often unanimity in taxation) and coordinates policies.

What is the role of the European Council?

Body of heads of state or government that sets the EU’s general political directions and priorities.

What is the CJEU?

The Court of Justice of the European Union: ensures that “the law is observed” in the interpretation and application of the Treaties.

What is the European Court of Auditors?

EU body that audits EU finances, checking that revenue and spending are lawful and efficient.

What is the OECD?

International organisation that produces tax standards (Model Tax Convention, BEPS, global minimum tax) and broad economic guidelines.

What is the WTO?

The World Trade Organization: sets multilateral trade rules, enforces non-discrimination and hosts dispute settlement for its members.

What is the Council of Europe?

Pan-European organisation focused on human rights, democracy and rule of law (ECHR, GRECO, and the AI Convention).

What is the aim of EU competition policy?

To protect effective competition and the functioning of the internal market, not individual competitors.

What is antitrust in EU law?

Rules prohibiting cartels and abuses of dominant positions by undertakings.

What is merger control in EU competition law?

System of prior review and possible prohibition or conditioning of mergers that may significantly impede effective competition.

What is state aid control?

EU scrutiny of advantages granted by states to specific undertakings; illegal where aid distorts competition and affects trade (including selective tax rulings).

What is a “gatekeeper” under the DMA?

A large digital platform with a significant impact on the internal market, a strong intermediation position between users and businesses, and an entrenched, durable position.

What does the DMA do?

Imposes ex-ante obligations on gatekeeper platforms (no self-preferencing, data access, interoperability, data portability) to prevent unfair market leveraging.

What is the problem SMEs face in the Single Market?

High regulatory and compliance costs and cross-border complexity that are easier for large firms to handle.

What is the main message of the Letta Report / Competitiveness Compass?

The Single Market needs simplification and deeper integration (not pure deregulation) to support competitiveness and SMEs.

What is “creative destruction”?

Process by which continuous innovation drives growth by replacing old technologies, firms and sectors with new ones.

Why is managing creative destruction important?

To prevent incumbents from blocking innovation and to manage social conflicts during structural change.

What are trade conflicts (e.g. tariffs) likely to do?

Disrupt global value chains, reduce investor confidence, and trigger retaliation between trading partners.

Why does taxation struggle with globalisation?

Because mobile intangibles (IP, data, algorithms) and global structures allow easy profit shifting away from where economic activity occurs.

What is the “Code of Capital” idea?

Pistor’s concept that legal techniques turn assets (including data and IP) into capital by granting them priority, durability, universality and convertibility.

What is OECD BEPS?

Base Erosion and Profit Shifting project: a set of international tax reforms designed to curb tax avoidance by multinationals.

What is the global minimum tax?

Agreed minimum effective corporate tax rate (Pillar Two) to reduce incentives for profit shifting to low-tax jurisdictions.

How does the EU use state aid law in taxation?

By challenging selective tax rulings as illegal state aid, thereby indirectly enforcing fairer corporate taxation.

What are the main distributional effects of tax avoidance?

Shift of tax burden to labour and consumption, less money for public services, and greater inequality.

What does “Lost in taxation” refer to?

The mismatch between mobile capital and territorial tax systems, amplified by opacity and slow regulatory adaptation.

What is the estimated cost of corruption?

At least about €120 billion per year in the EU and roughly 5% of global GDP worldwide.

What is the EU Anti-Corruption Package (2023)?

A set of measures including a Directive that harmonises offences (public and private corruption), strengthens sanctions and requires specialised anti-corruption bodies and transparency.

What are CFSP corruption sanctions?

EU foreign policy sanctions that can target individuals and entities worldwide responsible for serious acts of corruption.

What is the US FCPA?

The US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act: prohibits US firms (and listed foreign firms) from bribing foreign public officials and imposes accounting requirements.

Why is weak KYC/AML in crypto problematic?

Because it creates a “fast lane” for money laundering and other illicit financial flows.

What does it mean that law turns data into capital?

Through legal attributes (priority, durability, universality, convertibility), data and IP become capital assets with enforceable claims.

What is “behavioural surplus”?

In Zuboff’s theory, the portion of personal data about behaviour that goes beyond what is needed for service provision and is used for commercial prediction.

What are “behavioural futures”?

Products created by predicting users’ future behaviour, sold to advertisers or third parties.

What is “instrumentarian power”?

Power exercised by shaping and tuning behaviour through digital architectures and data-driven techniques rather than through direct coercion.

What is the EU data strategy goal?

To create a digital single market where data can flow freely and securely across sectors and borders.

What are European data spaces?

Thematic frameworks and infrastructures for sharing data (e.g. health, finance, mobility) under common rules and standards.

How is the US data protection model characterised?

By a fragmented, sector-based approach without a single GDPR-style federal law.

How is China’s PIPL model characterised?

By strong state oversight, data localisation tendencies and strict rules on cross-border data transfers.

How is India’s DPDP Act characterised?

By its focus on digital personal data protection with a more centralised framework.

Why regulate AI?

To capture benefits while managing risks such as bias, discrimination, opacity, safety failures and large-scale misinformation.

What is an “unacceptable-risk” AI system under the AI Act?

An AI use that is prohibited because it is incompatible with EU values (e.g. certain types of social scoring or manipulative systems).

What is a “high-risk” AI system under the AI Act?

AI in critical areas (e.g. safety components, certain public functions) subject to strict requirements on risk management, data, documentation and human oversight.

What is a “limited-risk” AI system under the AI Act?

AI systems with mainly transparency obligations (e.g. chatbots, some generative AI uses where users must know they interact with AI).

What is a “minimal-risk” AI system under the AI Act?

AI systems considered low-risk and largely unregulated (free use) under the AI Act.

What is the Council of Europe AI Convention?

The first binding international treaty on AI that focuses on safeguarding human rights, democracy and the rule of law across the AI lifecycle.

What characterises Big Tech in Surveillance Capitalism?

The extraction and processing of behavioural surplus to predict and influence user behaviour at scale.

What is the shift from Free Culture to Permission Culture (Lessig)?

The move from a culture of broad reuse of creative works to one where long, strong copyright requires prior permission for many uses.

Why is Trafigura often cited in corruption discussions?

Because its bribery cases illustrate corporate liability and the role of large commodity firms in corruption.

What are “vulture funds”?

Investors that buy distressed assets or sovereign debt at deep discounts and seek high returns, raising questions about fairness and regulation.

What are cultural commons?

Shared cultural resources (knowledge, art, code) governed by rules promoting access and reuse rather than pure exclusion.

What are Creative Commons licences?

Standard licences that allow creators to grant certain rights in advance (e.g. reuse, remix) under specified conditions.

What are data/knowledge commons?

Shared data and knowledge infrastructures (e.g. EU data spaces, open science, open government data) governed to enable broad access.

What are global commons?

Resources like climate, oceans or cyberspace that transcend national borders and require cooperative governance and sometimes global funding mechanisms.

What is a Rule of Law State?

A state where public powers are limited by constitution and treaties, with independent courts and respect for fundamental rights.

What is a Brutal State?

A state where electoral victory is seen as granting unlimited power and where the executive attacks courts, media and international norms.

What is Rémy Heitz’s idea of the moral contract?

The notion that rule of law is grounded in a moral contract among executive, legislature and judiciary to obey higher legal rules.

What is Christophe Soulard’s view of judicial legitimacy?

That courts derive legitimacy from reasoned decisions, prudence and open debate, not from election, making courts places of social appeasement.

How does rule of law support capitalism?

By providing predictable, impartial enforcement that supports investment and long-term contracts.

What is the problem with chaotic or selective enforcement?

It increases uncertainty, undermines trust and discourages investment and economic activity.

What is substantive legal analysis (Farjat)?

A method that looks beyond formal text to real effects, asking who benefits and how a rule works in practice.

What is “material law” (Farjat)?

The effective law as actually applied and experienced in reality, as opposed to law on the books.

Which concepts are linked to Jean-Jacques Rousseau?

Rule of Law State and Brutal State.

Which concept is linked to Rémy Heitz?

Moral contract behind the rule of law.

Which concept is linked to Christophe Soulard?

Judicial legitimacy based on reasoning and prudence; courts as places of appeasement.

Which concepts are linked to Katharina Pistor?

Code of Capital and the legal construction of intangibles enabling tax gaps.

Which concepts are linked to Shoshana Zuboff?

Surveillance Capitalism, behavioural surplus, behavioural futures, instrumentarian power.

Which concepts are linked to Enrico Letta?

Letta Report / Competitiveness Compass on the Single Market and SMEs.

Which concepts are linked to Lawrence Lessig?

Free Culture, Permission Culture, Cultural Commons, Creative Commons licences.

Which concept is linked to Joel Mokyr?

Creative destruction.

Which concepts are linked to Philippe Aghion & Peter Howitt?

Theory of creative destruction and innovation-driven growth.

Which concepts are linked to Georges Farjat?

Substantive legal analysis and material law.