As said before, the area of international and European tax law is a notoriously complex branch in legal studies. For this reason, this course does not aim to be comprehensive. In contrast, we will not discuss some very relevant issues. This course aims to provide you with the necessary theoretical background and legal skills to study these other topics by yourself or in advanced courses. This course is more about legal thinking and problem solving, than about practical or technical application of the law.

The master course "International & European Tax Law" invites its students to study the principles and foundations of international and EU law as it relates to direct taxation. Each state has its own tax system that has evolved throughout history differently from other tax systems due to the exogenous and endogenous natural, cultural, sociological and economical forces that have shaped its design. However, there are rules of law connecting these systems, providing ideas and concepts common to many states. The course ‘International & European Tax Law’ is about the international interaction of legal systems.
The topics that will be covered in this course include - inter alia - the law of double tax conventions (DTCs), avoidance of double taxation, the Vienna convention on the law of treaties, the impact of EU law on national tax systems and the interaction between the international and European legal order. The area of international and European tax law is a notoriously complex branch in legal studies. Accordingly, it is rather difficult to get an overview of all the rules and principles that may be applicable when it comes to deal with practical cases. We will try to make the interactions visible and understandable.

The texts and documents needed will be electronically available.
Recommendations for reading will be found in the course book.

The course International and European Tax Law is a compulsory course in all LL.M Tax tracks and the M.Sc tracks Fiscal Economics and International Tax Management. Students are assumed to be familiar with the structure of their national tax systems, especially limited liability to tax. Students who have earned an LL.B in Tax Law or a B.Sc in Fiscal Economics at Maastricht University have followed the compulsory course ‘Nederlands Internationaal Belastingrecht’ which covers this prerequisite. Maastricht LL.B graduates in European Law School and B.Sc graduates in economics or international business who took the electives ‘Comparative Income Taxation’ and ‘International Business & Taxation’ should also fulfill this prerequisite.