Linking Rules Assessed Against European and National Legal Benchmarks - A Juridical Remedy to Mitigate Double Non-Taxation?

Abstract: This thesis provides a comprehensive analysis of linking rules, which were adapted as one of the alleged remedies against base erosion by the EU and the OECD. A number of issues emerge in connection with those recommended rules. This thesis will thus assess compliance of those rules against domestic and European legal benchmarks. German national law will serve as an example of domestic integration of those linking rules. Moreover, it discusses whether measures of this kind will eventually mitigate base erosion and double non- taxation and if so, what are their benefits/drawbacks in comparison to already existing juridical tools. Following an in-depth analysis of these recommendations, this thesis reveals that linking rules as proposed by the OECD will in all likelihood infringe EU law. Likewise, the new linking rule of the Parent-Subsidiary Directive bears in itself certain risk to be found to violate EU law. Furthermore, these rules do arguably disqualify as anti-avoidance measures, as they do not take account of well-established principles in this field.