Preface p. xi
Foreword p. xiii
Introduction p. xv
Some Theoretical Aspects of "Comparative Taxation" p. 1
What is comparative taxation? p. 1
Some possible approaches to the study of comparative tax law p. 2
The functional approach to comparative tax studies p. 4
Comparative tax law as a study of cultural differences p. 7
The critical approach to comparative tax studies p. 9
Comparative tax study as an exercise in economic analysis p. 10
The economic principles of taxation: efficiency, equity, and simplicity p. 12
What to expect next p. 16
Taxable Income p. 17
Taxable income definition: global vs. schedular and source vs. accretion p. 17
Taxation of fringe benefits p. 23
Imputed income from owner-occupied housing p. 27
Windfalls p. 32
Damage awards p. 34
Taxation of damage awards p. 35
The treatment of damage awards p. 35
The issue of deferred damage compensation p. 37
Which "damages" receive favorable treatment? physical? mental? reputation? p. 37
Cancellation of indebtedness p. 38
Inclusion of debt relief in gross income p. 38
Exceptions to inclusion p. 40
Gifts and bequests p. 40
Personal gifts and bequests p. 41
Commercial gifts p. 44
The realization requirement p. 45
Deductions p. 47
Business expenses p. 48
Commuting, clothing, and other nondeductible expenses p. 48
Commuting p. 48
Clothing p. 50
Child care costs p. 51
Travel and entertainment p. 53
Business entertainment p. 53
Business travel p. 54
Capital expenditures p. 55
Depreciation p. 56
Business interest p. 58
Losses p. 59
Capital losses p. 59
Other loss limitations p. 61
Personal expenses p. 61
Apportionment of personal/business expenses p. 61
Medical expenses p. 62
Charitable contributions p. 64
Home mortgage and other personal interest p. 65
The Taxpaying Unit p. 67
Introduction p. 67
The basic issue and the two main models: how should we define taxable units? individual vs. family taxation p. 67
Concrete examples of countries adopting the individual model p. 70
Concrete examples of countries adopting hybrid solutions p. 71
Concrete example of a country adopting the family model p. 73
Anti-assignment of income rules p. 73
The reason for anti-assignment of income rules p. 73
The solutions adopted by some industrialized countries: examples p. 74
Tax Accounting p. 77
The taxable period and the accounting period: general definitions p. 77
Definitions, main issues, and possible solutions p. 77
The solutions adopted by some countries: examples p. 78
Cash model versus accrual model p. 80
The accounting methods: cash versus accrual p. 80
The solutions adopted by some countries: examples p. 82
Net operating losses p. 84
Main issue and possible solutions p. 84
The solutions adopted by some countries: examples p. 84
Taxation of Capital Gains and Losses p. 87
General definitions: capital gain and losses, realization, basis p. 87
Definition of capital gain or loss p. 87
The concept of realization and recognition p. 89
The concepts of "basis" (or fiscal value) and "amount realized" p. 91
Nonrecognition transaction and exemption transactions p. 92
Nonrecognition transactions p. 92
Examples of concrete policy choices p. 94
Taxation of capital gains and capital losses: ordinary income vs. separate income p. 97
Tax Avoidance p. 101
General definitions: tax evasion, tax avoidance, and licit tax savings p. 101
Substance over form (the experience of common law countries) p. 104
Abuse of law (the experience of civil law countries) p. 105
Hybrid solutions p. 107
Selected Business Tax Issues p. 113
Introduction p. 113
The definition of a business entity for tax purposes p. 114
The importance of entity classification for tax purposes in the study of tax convergence p. 114
Corporate entity definitions for tax purposes: examples from the G7 countries p. 115
Canada p. 115
France p. 119
Germany p. 120
Italy p. 122
Japan p. 123
United Kingdom p. 124
United States p. 127
Summary p. 129
Corporate residency p. 130
Conventional determinants of corporate residency p. 130
Characterizing "real seat" of a corporate entity in the G7 p. 134
Summary p. 137
Corporate tax rates p. 137
Some general remarks on corporate tax base p. 140
Corporate/shareholders tax integration of distributed profits p. 143
Definition of integration and general issues p. 143
Some specific integration methods adopted by countries p. 146
Selected International Tax Issues p. 149
The basic distinction: global jurisdiction model vs. territorial jurisdiction model p. 150
Definition of residence and source p. 151
The two principles of international taxation: the single tax principle and the benefits principle p. 156
Outbound transactions p. 158
International tax rules that prevent double taxation p. 158
International tax rules that prevent double nontaxation p. 160
Inbound transactions p. 164
Tax treaty models: OECD, UN, and U.S. models p. 165
Conclusion p. 167
Index p. 169