Mistrust in the IP and innovation tax boxes

Description

In this conference I addressed issues related to the erosion of trust in tax governance and in trade due to abuses by Revenue Services and/ or by taxpayers (business enterprises amongst other). As indicated by Iveta Alexicova my presentation and paper "discusses the topical and highly controversial practice of tax incentives used by countries to attract corporations to invest in their economies. The public exposure of such tax incentives practices in recent years has certainly contributed to the backlash against economic globalisation in developed states. The general public perception that corporations eventually always find – and are even offered – a possibility not to pay (a fair amount of) taxes and, consequently, become increasingly wealthier at the expense of ordinary citizens, could not but erode trust in the fairness of the system. The present article considers a specific type of tax incentives referred to as patent boxes. Such incentives are said to encourage corporate research and development by providing for a very low corporate tax for revenues from patents, and/or other intellectual property rights, in contrast to the corporate tax that applies to other revenues. In her contribution, Diaz assesses whether soft-law measures adopted by G-20 and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in reaction to the criticisms on this type of tax incentives are appropriate and suitable to restore public trust while at the same time refraining from hindering innovation and entrepreneurship, which are to be the actual objectives of patent boxes. The article shows a number of difficulties and shortages related to the adopted measures and argue against a pure disciplinary tax approach to the problem. In her conclusions, Diaz pleads for further multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary and empirical research, which is needed in order to meet the challenge of encouraging the flows of knowledge and capital as well as for restoring public trust without sacrificing innovation". Alexicova I, Introduction, Int. J. Public Law and Policy, Vol. 6, No. 3, 2019, page 187

Period	22 Jan 2018
Event title	Trust in Trade: Collaborative Project Workshop
Event type	Workshop
Location	Maastricht, NetherlandsShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International