Red Eric

Ana Gomes MEP has written to 3 EU Commissioners requesting that they inform the PT government that the Non Habitual Resident tax scheme is in breach of 2 articles of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and instigate an immediate investigation into the negative impacts on Portugal and on other member states.

Can't say I'd hold out too much hope of it's getting a sympathetic or action-packed response (although you never know - they're apparently currently investigating Golden Visa schemes) but it makes for interesting reading

Tax dumping in Portugal

dingg

Unfortunately for Ana

The scheme does not discriminate at all.

Its open to all individuals no matter what nationality as long as not tax payers in portugal for 5 years.

EMR

Yes it does discriminate, it is not available to Portuguese residents.,
Those with incomes much lower than migrants or part time migrants taking advantage of NHR...

dingg

It is open to anyone who has not been tax resident for 5 years..


ANYONE

Thus not discriminatory.

EMR

​​​​​​
Discriminatory unfair and abused.

RichardHenshall

It would be a very generous government that would invent a scheme to give its existing taxpayers a 10-year holiday from tax on foreign income and capped income tax rates for specified professions. Even then, there would be discrimination against those in other professions or without foreign income.

mikemike

This is available to returning Portuguese Citizens, nonresidents who have been out of Portugal for more than 5 years. The same rule applies and is not therefore discriminatory.

I cannot think of a tax set up anywhere that is not discriminatory is some aspects. Nothing illegal about being discriminatory on taxation issues, unless specifically legislated for. where there is room for interpretation, being discriminatory may be the intent.

Red Eric

It's obvious that Ana Gomes is well aware that the scheme is open to Portuguese nationals as she makes a point of mentioning the numbers who have acquired the status in her letter. However, discrimination isn't the only grounds for her complaint - although as a law graduate with a further course specifically on Community Law and years of very active service as an MEP under her belt, we can probably assume she knows both what constitutes discrimination and how the Commission might see that aspect of her complaint in this particular case.

The Commission itself has a somewhat elastic definition, judging by a previous opinion of theirs involving Portugal. They deemed the system of exemptions and discounts available when tolls were first introduced on the ex SCUT roads for those residents who acquired a transponder and satisfied a couple of other conditions to be discriminatory on the grounds of nationality, despite the fact that as long as you satisfied the conditions, it didn't matter what nationality you were.

mikemike

Just goes to show that not all forms of discrimination are unlawful. just those discrimination's that are mandated against under law.

GeniB

It's interesting that she ,as a Portuguese MP -MEP? is making this complaint. The instigation of both the NHR and the Golden Visa was the primary engine that got Portugal out of a financial mess that most of the world thought they would be stuck in for ever. I wonder therefore if she has been unduly influenced by the Dutch,who are the main complainants ? Hypocrites to their toes. They have had the 35 % tax rule for foreigners for well over 30+years Plus any Dutch ex-pats who return to NL after 5 yrs . Plus they are a notorious tax haven for everyone from the Stones to Amazon

Red Eric

Even more so, perhaps, when you consider that she represents the Socialist Party and that it was the Socialists who introduced the scheme in 2009, the Socialists who are in government at the moment and the President of the Eurogroup to whom Gomes has also previously written is a Portuguese Socialist.

I don't think we need to look for outside influences just because she's being critical of a scheme that exists in the country she hails from - she can be quite forthright on any matter about which she feels strongly.

As it happens, she is a vice chair of the European Parliament Special Committee on Financial Crimes, Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance but I'm sure that appointment comes about as a result of her previous work rather than its being the prompt for her intervention in this case.

liveaboard

Asking for an investigation doesn't necessarily mean she opposes the scheme; perhaps she's confident in its legality, but wants that to be nailed down.
But in politics, this sort of thing is political. By asking for an investigation, she gets political points, regardless of the eventual findings.

Red Eric

I'm not sure what political points you think she might be trying to score but she's not standing for re-election to the European Parliament in the upcoming elections on a point of principle. She believes in limitation of mandates and is standing down as she's already served 3 terms.

dingg

that's her in my good books then as not many remove their snout from the trough once they're in it...

qianh