Untaxed
European governments give huge tax benefits to real estate investors and owners - a policy that is common in many member states despite all political differences. Over the past months, Investigate Europe’s team analysed the taxation and loopholes for real estate investments in several European countries. This lures billions of euros to the overheated real estate market.
December 2022
The investigation found that Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK all have tax regimes that favour certain kind of real estate investments more than other types of business or investments. The most common privileges include full exemptions on capital gains, special free-tax guarantees for funds, and rent income taxed lower than other types of profits.
Economists, tax experts, lawyers and organisations interviewed by our reporters arrive to a clear conclusion: real estate, both commercial and residential, is under-taxed or untaxed in most countries.
The investigation reveals several examples of tax avoidance schemes by real estate investors. There is no European regulation nor oversight, so patterns are hard to prove. Still Investigate Europe’s research shows misallocation of capital in member states like Germany, Italy, Portugal or Belgium to the tune of billions of Euros due to these exemptions.
Investigate Europe spoke to people behind the figures and victims of the housing crisis in many European countries. The reporters also confronted national governments with the tax privileges and their social costs. Read those findings, human stories and political answers in our new investigation.
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Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland
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Benefícios fiscais ao imobiliário atraem dois mil milhões de euros por ano
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Kibírhatatlanul drága a lakhatás, és ehhez csendben a kormány is asszisztált
Telex, Hungary
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Blast, France
7 December 2022
La ingeniería fiscal en Luxemburgo explicada en cinco pasos
infoLibre, Spain
7 December 2022
Gobiernos europeos inflan el precio de la vivienda con privilegios fiscales para el sector inmobiliario
infoLibre, Spain
7 December 2022
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infoLibre, Spain
3 December 2022
Dark screen for transparency: public access to ultimate ownership data abolished by European Court of Justice
VSquare, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia
1 December 2022
Geldwäsche: EU-Gericht sperrt Zugang zum Transparenzregister
Der Tagesspiegel, Germany
1 December 2022
Chiuso il registro che svela chi gestisce fondi e fiduciarie
Il Fatto Quotidiano, Italy
30 November 2022