EU states on Friday (21st June) adopted new rules to stamp out tax fraud in the electricity an natural gas markets, after a wave of abuse in the carbon market threatened to spill over to other commodities.
The measures will allow countries to reverse the duty to pay value added tax (VAT) from seller to buyer, to close a loophole that leaves cross-border transactions vulnerable to fraud.
Countries will also be able to act outside EU rules as a response to a surge in energy market tax fraud.
Both measures will apply until the end of 2018.
The anti-fraud package was first presented to the EU’s economic and financial affairs council in March (see ESGM 25 March 2013).
(THE ICIS HEREN REPORTS - EDEM 17119 / 21 June 2013)