Iseenesest ei ole „treaty shopping’u“ näol tegemist keelatud tegevusega, aga sellel väljendil on siiski juures tauniv varjund – see on midagi, mida maksulepingud tehniliselt võimaldavad, aga mis on moraalselt taunitav. Samas pole tegemist ebaseadusliku maksukohustuse vähendamisega, vaid seaduslike võimaluste mittesihipärase kasutamisega.
EUR-lex’i tõlge on vale – termin „topeltmaksustamislepingud“ viitaks justkui lepingutele, mille eesmärk on topelt maksustada. Ingliskeelse termini „tax treaty“ tõlkena kasutatakse väljendit „maksuleping“, mille pikem ja ametlik nimetus on inglise keeles „convention for the avoidance of double taxation“ ehk „topeltmaksustamise vältimise leping“.
Recent treaties of certain countries have contained an article intended to prevent "treaty shopping," which is the inappropriate use of tax treaties by residents of third states. These limitation on benefits articles deny the benefits of the tax treaty to residents that do not meet additional tests. Limitation on Benefits articles vary widely from treaty to treaty, and are often quite complex.
Further, national tax systems become increasingly vulnerable to tax avoidance schemes. In fact, income shifting and treaty shopping are naturally facilitated in a context of high mobility of productive factors.
Hea teada
A business that resides in a home country that doesn't have a tax treaty with the source country from which it receives income can establish an operation in a second source country that does have a favorable tax treaty in order to minimize its tax liability with the home country. Most countries have established anti-treaty shopping laws to circumvent the practice.
