ESADE faculty and experts from EY Abogados recently gathered at ESADEFORUM for the first annual Tax Trends Meeting, where they analysed major tax-related issues and debated the main tax trends of the coming months. 

The Tax Trends Meeting brought together more than 200 executives and tax advisers from major Spanish companies. The format of the event incorporated two visions of the same professional world: the administration’s perspective and the tax advisers’ perspective. 

“In the coming months, Spanish companies will need to take into account many changes in tax regulations at both the national and international levels. Now more than ever, it is essential for the private sector and the administration to analyse these changes collaboratively,” commented José Luis Prada, Managing Partner at EY and Academic Assistant at ESADE. 

“Educational institutions need to be at the forefront of the debate surrounding these new changes and the thorniest aspects of tax law so that we can develop a global vision in collaboration with the private sector and the administration,” commented Diana Ferrer, Assistant Professor and Director of Postgraduate Taxation Programmes at ESADE. 

Tax news 

Carlos Serrano, member of the Spanish Tax Agency’s International Taxation Office and representative of Spain at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and José María Remacha, Academic Assistant at ESADE and Partner at EY Abogados, discussed a recent report published by the aforementioned organisation on the assessment of linked financial transactions. The speakers’ analysis confirmed that no consensus has been reached on this subject and that we are a long way from having a clear vision on how to evaluate transactions of this sort. 

Jaime Barril, Academic Assistant at ESADE and head of the Spanish Tax Agency’s regional team for Catalonia, and Gorka Crespo, Partner at EY Abogados, discussed thorny tax issues that the agency’s inspectors are currently working to resolve.

Specific issues related to family businesses

Natàlia Caba, Director General of Taxation of the Catalan Government, and Antoni Murt, Academic Assistant and Partner at EY Abogados, discussed various issues that are currently affecting family businesses. They analysed new taxation figures recently introduced in Catalonia, including those affecting unproductive assets owned by companies. They also discussed relevant practical aspects that should be taken into account in the application of tax benefits for family businesses. 

The next speaker was Lorena Echeverría, the Spanish Tax Agency’s Deputy Regional Director of Tax Management for Catalonia, who is an expert on the telematic information system for the value-added tax. Ms. Echeverría spoke alongside María Lorente, Partner at EY Abogados, on practical tips identified during the first year of the system’s implementation. 

The meeting also featured a panel discussion between Jesús María Calderón, Judge in the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the Spanish National Court, and Xavier Suñé, President of the Regional Economic-Administrative Court of Catalonia. The discussion focused on the current framework of disputes between taxpayers and the administration. During this portion of the meeting, attendees took part in an interactive live vote that gave them a chance to express their views on various issues discussed throughout the day. 

The session ended with remarks by José Luis Prada, Managing Partner at EY and Academic Assistant at ESADE, and Jesús Gascón, Director General of the Spanish Tax Agency, who reviewed the main steps taken by the agency over the past year and offered a preview of the challenges that the organisation plans to address in the future.