On January 18 and 19, WU's Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law and the Association Internationale de Droit Économique, with the support of the European Commission, will hold a high-level conference on the interface between tax policy, growth, and competitiveness. The event will take place in Vienna and it will bring together senior policymakers, academics, and representatives of business and civil society from around the globe.

The latest financial and economic crisis, the most severe since the Second World War, has raised new questions about the role of taxation in today's economic policy. It has underlined the importance of taxation for achieving budgetary stability, a return to economic growth, and an equitable distribution of the tax burden.

Challenges of international tax policy

The upcoming conference at WU seeks to develop a dialogue between decision makers, taxpayers, and other stakeholders about the possibilities of strengthening transparency and the convergence of national policies in the field of taxation, and developing generally agreed principles. The objective is to deepen the analysis of different forms of taxation and their implications for crisis management and longer-term growth strategies. As yet, it is generally not very well understood how international convergence of tax policies could be intensified in order to promote inclusive and sustainable growth and to counter base erosion and profit shifting. The goal of the conference is to strengthen awareness of these challenges and develop a future platform of action. You can find the detailed agenda here. You can download the participation form here or register online.
The Conference will be opened by Algirdas Gediminas Šemeta, European Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Union, Audit and Anti-Fraud, David,Gauke (member of the Parliament) and the italian economist Vieri Ceriani and will be attended by over 140 participants from over 40 countries. Jeffrey Owens, professor at WU's Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law and former Director of the OECD's Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, and Rainer Geiger, Member of the Board of the Association Internationale de Droit Économique and former OECD Deputy Director of Financial and Enterprise Affairs, are the main organizers of the conference.

Conference "Developing a Tax Environment for Growth and Competitiveness"
Date: Friday, January 18 (9:00) - Saturday, January 19 at WU, Festival Hall, Augasse 2-6
Contact:
Prof. Dr. Jeffrey Owens
Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law
Tel.: +43-1-31336-4280
jeffrey.owens@wu.ac.at
http://www.wu.ac.at/taxlaw