International Tax Strategy

The aim of the course "International Tax Strategy" is to give insights into the international taxation of corporations, shareholders, and businesses as well as tax planning. The course, for example, deals with the tax influence on international investment and financing strategies. The lecture focuses on concepts that can be applied to different tax systems around the world. After successfully participating in the course"International Tax Strategy", participants understand the role of taxes in key international business decisions and are able to apply the concepts to practical problems. The course addresses students interested in general management positions as well as students with a focus on finance, accounting, investment banking, or strategy consulting. The course content comprises, for example:

1. Introduction to tax strategy

2. Taxation in the national context

• Fundamentals of income and corporate taxation
• Partnerships: The after-tax ‘Standard Model’
• Corporations: Corporate tax systems
• Investment and payout decisions of corporations

3. Foundations of international taxation

• Introduction to international taxation
• Definition of residency
• Principles of international taxation
• Double taxation relief mechanism

4. International tax strategy

• Measuring tax planning: The effective tax rate
• Profit shifting of multinationals: Financing structures
• Profit shifting of multinationals: Transfer pricing
• Location decision of multinationals
• Anti-avoidance rules

The grading of the course is based on the final exam (90 min).

The aim is to give advanced insights into international tax law (corporate taxation and personal income taxation) and tax planning, and to show how international investment and financing strategies are affected by taxes.

Schanz, Deborah / Schanz, Sebastian: Business Taxation and Financial Decisions, 2011 (online available).Scholes, Myron S. / Wolfson, Mark A. et al.: Taxes and Business Strategy. A Planning Approach, 5th ed., 2015 (online available).

Lecture and discussion, case studies.

Exam (100%)

Prerequisite: Basic finance knowledge, e.g., NPV calculation. Prerequisite in taxation: none.

150