Introduction to the Law of Double Taxation Conventions

16Cross-border activities or transactions may trigger tax liability in two or more jurisdictions. In order to mitigate the financial burden resulting from these situations, States have entered into numerous double taxation conventions, which provide for rules that allocate the taxing rights between the contracting states.This handbook aims at providing an introduction to the law of double taxation conventions. It is designed for students irrespective of their national background, but the author believes that it will also be of great help for tax experts who wish to know more about double taxation conventions, as well as for international law experts who wish to understand more about tax law. The handbook does not consider one jurisdiction in particular but rather takes examples from a wide range of different countries and their jurisdictions. It includes an overview of the problem of double taxation, the state practice in the conclusion of DTCs and their effects, the interpretation16 of double taxation conventions and treaty abuse. Furthermore, this updated handbook takes new developments into account: it deals with the new UN Model published in 2011, the latest version of article 7 of the OECD Model published in 2010, the on-going discussions relating to bank secrecy, the question of an effective exchange of information and the beneficial ownership concept. The latest versions of the OECD and UN Model Tax Conventions on Income and Capital as well as the OECD Model Convention with Respect to Estate, Inheritance and Gift Taxes are also included.01Univ.-Prof. Dr. Dr. h.c. Michael Lang, Vorstand des Instituts für Österreichisches und Internationales Steuerrecht der WU; wissenschaftlicher Leiter des LL.M.-Studiums International Tax Law der WU; Schriftleiter der Fachzeitschrift Steuer und Wirtschaft International (SWI) , Präsident der International Fiscal Association (IFA) Österreich, Chairman des Academic Committee (AC) der European Association of Tax Law Professors (EATLP); vormals Partner bei Deloitte (bis 2004).