By Carlo Garbarino (Bocconi University – Department of Law)

Migration has become an increasingly important phenomenon for societies, especially given its highly controversial political dimension. The complexity of the migrant integration process and its many varieties present challenges to policymakers who need high-quality information on which to base decisions. Nowhere is this necessity more pressing than in the development of relevant tax rules that meet the basic requirements of efficiency and equity. Moreover, the ascent of the so-called emerging economies coupled with the stagnation of the richest economies of the world implies reform of the current competition-based international tax regime and the adoption of a more cooperative paradigm. This important and timely book, for the first time in such depth, explores such aspects of the problem as the following:

1) migration for tax reasons, especially corporate “inversions” (change in corporate residence for tax purposes);

2) tax consequences related to individuals who receive free or subsidized education in one country and profit from it in another;

3) taxing cross-border retirement income; and

4) migration-related aspects of tax preferential treatment of the elderly.

With particular emphasis on the effects and opportunities created by the changing international tax regime – and with attention to the role of tax treaties and recent court cases – chapters by well known tax experts present evidence on the consequences of migration in all its facets and simulate the effects of several recently enacted and proposed changes in tax law in European countries, the United States, and other jurisdictions. The grounded propositions and recommendations offered in this deeply informed book will allow policymakers to draft tax-residence rules that minimize distortion and promote fairness. The book will also be of interest to tax law practitioners and other tax specialists, migration experts, and academics investigating one of the crucial political issues of our time.

Source: SSRN