Taxation and Property Rights under the European Convention on Human Rights

Article 1 of Protocol 1 to the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) guarantees to every natural or legal person the right to peaceful enjoyment of his possessions. Taxation and enforcement measures relating thereto are considered by the European Court of Human Rights as an interference with the right to property as set out in the preceding provision. The Court has, accordingly, developed a case law reviewing the compatibility of such measures with, among others, the requirements of legality and proportionality. Although the Court grants a wide margin of appreciation to states as to taxation rate, procedural enforcement rules might come under close scrutiny. Other safeguards laid down in the Convention, such as the prohibition of discrimination, might foster the rule of law in issues of taxation. The study purports to underline the often underestimated potentialities of the protection afforded by the European Convention to taxpayers.

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