The Effective Tax Burden Analysis after Société Générale, PMT and Brisal

This article focuses on the rulings of the EU Court of Justice in the Société Générale, PMT and Brisal cases, concluding that a tax burden analysis between non-residents and comparable residents should take into account a broad scope of directly linked expenses as defined by the national courts, based on the expenses that are deductible for residents. A direct deduction of expenses from the withholding tax base would be in breach of the autonomy of Member States in tax matters.