Personal Genuine Links under Domestic Inheritance Tax Rules in the Light of International and European Standards

Abstract:

The first section of the article deals with the characterization of genuine links in general, and the comparative analysis of personal genuine links present in the selected national inheritance tax statutes. The aim of this section is to show the diversity and incompatibility of personal genuine links, which may lead to dozens of cases of international double (or even multiple) taxation of cross-border inheritances. This is followed by an attempt to talk about international and European standards in respect of personal genuine links in national law as well as to comment on the comparability between the personal genuine links depicted in the first section with the aforementioned standards. The article is finished with a plea for adequacy in describing conflicts of genuine links in inheritance tax cases and for more impact of the European legislator on potential harmonization mechanisms.