Peter Vaines examines some recent tax-related cases
The recent case of Bourges-Maunoury: C-558/10 [2012] All ER (D) 153 (Jul) has real possibilities. The issue here was that the taxpayers (actually, the non-taxpayers) were employed by the EU and received earnings and pensions as a result of that employment. They were resident in France and in principle liable to wealth tax. The French tax authorities regarded the funds derived from their employment with the EU as part of their wealth for wealth tax purposes and this was upheld by the French courts.
However, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has declared that member states cannot impose any taxation which is based wholly or partly on the payment of salary to the official by the EU.
We do not have any wealth tax in the UK but we do have inheritance tax and it is not difficult to conclude that funds which can be traced to the earnings from an EU employment, cannot have UK taxes imposed upon them.
Indeed, I do not see why the purchase of a UK residential property by a company funded entirely
