Should enterprise taxation within the EU be harmonised? (cont.)

Supplementing the discussion in ifo Schnelldienst 11/2004, Prof. Christoph Spengel, University of Gießen, argues for a harmonisation of the effective enterprise tax burden in the EU. What is needed “in addition to an convergence of corporation tax rates, at least in terms of setting lower limits, is a harmonisation of the national rules for computing profits. Dr. Wolfgang Eggert, Ifo Institute, regards as reasonable the harmonisation of enterprise taxation from an EU perspective “if, by means of harmonisation, existing distortions in capital allocation can be reduced, if the possibilities of multinational enterprises to shift international profits can be lowered, and if the administrative costs of enterprises and governments can be reduced.