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EUROPEAN COMMISSION: Companies to be prevented from moving tax residency

The Privy Council has handed down judgment in Investec Trust (Guernsey) v Glenalla Properties (2018 UKPC 7), in which the former trustees of the Tchenguiz Discretionary Trust had made loans of over GBP200 million to various BVI companies.

INTERNATIONAL - FRANCE: Legal entities must comply with reporting obligations by April

'Foundation company' vehicle established in Cayman Islands

For many years now, in Italy and throughout the world,  the associative phenomenon has encountered ever greater consideration, in addition to a growing enthusiasm. The explanation of this progressive attention may be found in the ever more widespread awareness that the ideas, dreams and projects that each individual nourishes in the course of his/her existence may be concretely expressed, not only through acting in isolation, also by following a path which leads a number of persons to join f

En Italie et dans le monde, le phénomène associatif jouit, depuis de nombreuses années désormais, d’une considération particulièrement ample, et d’un enthousiasme croissant. Cette attention généralisée s’explique par la conscience, largement répandue, que les idées, les rêves et les projets que tout individu forme tout au long de son existence peuvent se concrétiser, non seulement par des actions individuelles, mais aussi à travers un parcours conduisant plusieurs personnes à conjuguer leurs

Le 14 novembre 2002, le Consiglio Nazionale del Notariato, l’Agence pour le Territoire et l’Association Nationale des Communes Italiennes (ANCI) ont signé un protocole d’entente pour promouvoir l’exemption de l’obligation de déclaration ICI, tant pour le vendeur que pour l’acheteur, dans tous les cas où l’acte notarié, dont dépend le transfert immobilier, est enregistré par la voie télématique. On a ensuite entrepris une phase d’expérimentations avec plusieurs Communes, qui ont fixé, en é

Notaries provide the community with a complex service, they carry out a public function of the State within the framework of an independent profession. The notarial deed not only regulates transactions between parties, but it provides added value in at least three respects: - a contract signed before a notary is unchallengable and hence it avoids expensive and time-consuming litigation procedures; - it is enforceable and hence it can be used to recover credits and it constitutes pri

Le notaire est un officier public habilité à recevoir les actes entre vifs (les ventes, les échanges, les partages, les prêts, etc.) et de dernière volonté (les testaments), à leur conférer la foi publique, à les conserver et à en délivrer copies, certificats (à savoir des résumés) et extraits (à savoir des copies partielles) (art. 1 loi not.). L’acte rédigé par le notaire est un acte public, puisque le notaire est autorisé à lui conférer la foi publique (c’est pourquoi il est un officier

In "land credit" contracts, the borrower has the legally-assured option of early repayment of the home loan; but generally, even in ordinary contracts, that possibility is foreseen. The borrower may decide, therefore, at a certain point in the repayment plan, to close out the contract and repay the remaining capital, on which obviously he will no longer pay interest. Given this loss of earnings, the bank could, if the contract so stipulates, demand compensation (a penalty). According to a

Dans les contrats de "crédit foncier", la loi offre à l’emprunteur la possibilité de rembourser le prêt en avance; en général cependant, les contrats de droit ordinaire aussi prévoient cette faculté. Arrivé à un certain moment de l’amortissement, l’emprunteur peut donc décider de mettre fin au contrat en restituant le capital qu’il doit encore et sur lequel bien entendu il ne paiera plus d’intérêts. À cause de ce manque à gagner, la banque pouvait, si le contrat le prévoyait, demander une

A company has a life of its own which is independent from that of its partners: it will go on living even after its partners die or it can be dissolved and wound up even if its partners are alive.All companies have a legal status and as such they have assets that are distinct from those of the partners that constitute the company. They have a name, a registered office and, hence are legal entities that are quite distinct from the individuals making up the company.They are non-personified col

Home loans are generally guaranteed by a mortgage and so are the preserve, in our legal system, of the notary. The presence of the notarial profession has become more significant with the recent increase in the number of such contracts, a result of the lower cost of money (though this is still subject to fluctuations) and improvements in living standards that allow an ever greater number of citizens to aspire to the ownership of their home and often of a second home as well. Year after ye

Les crédits obtenus pour le propre logement sont en général garantis par une hypothèque et sont donc, dans notre législation, du ressort du notaire. La présence du notariat devient encore plus évidente après la récente et forte augmentation du nombre de contrats de ce type, due à l’effet du faible coût de l’argent (encore qu’il reste toujours exposé au risque d’oscillations) et de l’amélioration des conditions de vie, qui permettent à un nombre croissant de personnes d’accéder à la propri

After long years of waiting, the decree-law that introduces greater protection for the purchasers of houses that are in the process of being built has finally been published in the Official Gazette (6 July 2005, n° 155).  The measures introduced under this new law will have a major impact: indeed, according to estimates made by trade associations, since 1995 more than 200,000 Italian families have been involved in thousands of bankruptcies of construction firms. Decree Law n° 122 of 20 Ju

Une loi qu’on attend depuis des années Au bout de longues années d’attente, le Journal Officiel (du 6 juillet 2005 n° 155) a enfin publié le décret législatif qui protège mieux ceux qui achètent un logement en cours de construction. Les innovations mises en place ont une portée sociale très forte:comme simple exemple, d’après les estimations de certaines associations de catégorie, plus de 200.000 familles italiennes ont été impliquées dans les milliers de faillites d’entreprises de constr

Fluctuations in the cost of money may, in some cases, make it advisable to “make running changes” to the terms of a mortgage: such changes, in economics, are known as renegotiation. There are various legal methods for achieving this: a) discharge of the old home loan and granting of new financing with a new mortgage (“replacement” home loan); b) merely changing the terms of the old home loan (renegotiation in the strictest sense); c) from 2 February 2007, subrog

Les variations dans le cours du coût de l’argent peuvent dans certains cas faire qu’un “changement en cours de route” des conditions régissant le contrat devienne avantageux : en économie on appelle cette modification une renégociation. Juridiquement, elle peut prendre différentes forme:a) l’extinction de la vieille dette et la constitution d’un nouveau financement et d’une nouvelle hypothèque (crédit “de substitution”);b) un accord qui modifie simplement le vieux contrat de prêt (renégoc

If the parties wish to set up an general partnership, they must respect the specific rules laid down in this regard by the Civil Code, bearing in mind, in any case that, for many aspects, the law refers the reader to the provisions regulating informal partnerships, which consequently apply equally to general partnerships. So that, in the light the foregoing, the present file foresees multiple referrals to the subjects already dealt with and developed with regard to the informal partners

Sales must be subject to stamp duty (so sales subject to VAT are excluded) and the purchasers must be physical persons who are not acting in the interests of a commercial, artistic or professional business activity. So the price-value system also applies to sales made by companies, businesses or entities, so long as the purchasers are "physical persons" and the transaction is subject to stamp duty (not VAT). In other words, in addition to all sales where both parties are “private”, the price-val

Il doit s’agir de cessions sujettes à l’impôt de registre (à l’exclusion, donc, des cessions qui prévoient la TVA) à des personnes physiques n’agissant pas dans l’exercice d’activités commerciales, artistiques ou professionnelles. Sont donc également concernées par le prix-valeur les cessions effectuées par des sociétés, des entreprises ou des organismes, à condition qu’elles soient faites à des "personnes physiques" et que l’impôt de registre (et non à la TVA) trouve application. En d’autres te

Law no. 52 of 1996 introduced rules into the Italian legal system to protect the consumer in his contractual relations with professionals. In order to rationalize regulations which have been complicated by a long sequence of amendments, a Consumer Code was recently published (Legislative Decree no. 206 of 6 September 2005), which contains a thorough reworking of most of the consumer-protection rules. Article 3 of the Consumer Code defines a "consumer" as a physical individual who acts

La loi n° 52 de 1996 a introduit dans la législation italienne des normes de protection des consommateurs dans leurs relations contractuelles avec les professionnels. Pour rationaliser la réglementation, alourdie par de nombreuses interventions législatives successives, on a récemment promulgué le Code de la consommation (décret-loi du 6 septembre 2005 n° 206), qui contient un remaniement global de la majeure partie des normes visant la protection du consommateur. Aux termes de l'artic

A foreigner may set up a company in Italy, create an association, or undertake any other operation on the same conditions mentioned for the purchase of a house. With one caveat: reciprocity may exist only with regard to certain matters. If, for example, in a particular country an Italian may set up a company but not buy a house, a foreigner from that country (not officially resident in Italy) may set up a company in Italy but not buy a house.

L’étranger peut constituer un société en Italie, créer une association ou effectuer n’importe quelle autre opération aux mêmes conditions que celles précisées pour l’achat de l’habitation. Il faut cependant signaler quela réciprocité ne peut exister que pour des situations données.Si par exemple, dans un certain pays, un Italien peut constituer une société, mais ne peut pas acheter une habitation, l’étranger (ne séjournant pas régulièrement en Italie) originaire de ce même pays aura le droit de

In order to avoid the notary's fees, which like any other professional service are calculated on the real price, becoming a possible disincentive for the application of the new rule, the lawmakers stipulated that those fees should be reduced; the reduction is set at 30 per cent. The National Council of Notaries, in order to ensure the full application of this new regulation and to meet the demands of Consumer Associations, has determined that the reduction should apply not only to the specific i

Afin d’éviter que les honoraires du notaire, qui, comme toute prestation professionnelle, sont calculés sur le prix réel ne dissuadent éventuellement de l’application de la nouvelle législation, le législateur a prescrit que ceux-ci soient réduits; cette réduction est fixée à 30 pour cent. Le Conseil national du notariat, en vue de garantir la pleine application de la nouvelle législation et accueillant les instances des associations des consommateurs a décidé que la réduction ne s’appliquer

The Decree does not apply in general to all real estate transactions but only to those negotiations of buildings where the seller (called “builder”) sells a building that he or others have built (Article 1, paragraph 1, letter b). Hence the law applies not only to purchases from a builder (an individual or a firm), but also to the person or firm that sells a building built by a third party. According to the Decree a “purchaser” is an individual who purchases a building or who, even though

Le décret ne porte pas d’une façon générale sur toutes les opérations immobilières, mais seulement les transactions concernant des biens immobiliers dont le vendeur (désigné par la loi comme "constructeur") est un sujet qui vend un immeuble construit par lui-même ou d’autres (article1, premier alinéa, lettre b). La loi s’applique donc non seulement aux acquisitions effectuées par qui, personne physique ou société, exerce en première personne une activité de construction, mais également

In general the rules for limited partnerships (s.a.s.) are the same as those laid down for informal partnerships (please refer to the related paragraph). However, the death of a limited partner does not end the partnership because, as said above, in case of death, the partner’s shares are transferred to the heirs, unless otherwise provided for in the Memorandum of Association.

A joint-stock company must be set up through a public deed which must clearly indicate who the parties to the contract are. Such parties may be individuals but also legal entities (as for instance other joint-stock companies, partnerships, cooperatives or other bodies).The Memorandum of Association must indicate the Municipality in which the company has its registered office, which is where it operates, and the name of the company which must contain the wording “"società per azioni" or "s.p.

La société par actions doit se constituer par un acte authentique dans lequel les parties au contrat de société seront identifiées; il ne doit pas nécessairement s’agir de personnes physiques, mais aussi de personnes morales (comme par exemple d’autres sociétés par actions ou des sociétés de personnes, voire des coopératives ou autres organismes).L’acte constitutif devra aussi identifier la commune où se trouve le siège de la société, qui est le lieu où est exercée l’activité sociale, et la rais

Any change, even only a purely formal change, in the clauses of the by-laws of a company is considered to be an amendment to the by-laws.  As a rule this competence belongs to the extraordinary shareholders’ meeting and the relevant decision must be written in the minutes by a notary public and then registered with the Register of Companies.The decision must be taken by a majority vote, any clause in the bylaws setting forth that unanimity is required to change the Memorandum of Association

The limited liability company is intended for smaller companies than joint-stock companies, and the equity participation in the company has a personal connotation which is absent in the s.p.a.  In fact, it has a limited number of shareholders who are not personally responsible for the social security liabilities, even if they have acted in the name and on behalf of the company.The legislation in place as of 1 January 2004 has had a major impact on the limited liability company, which is an e

The board of statutory auditors is the audit body of the joint-stock companies that adopt the traditional system:  it has the task of monitoring the company’s compliance with the law and the Memorandum of Association and has a supervisory function with regard to the actions of management. The Board of Auditors only exceptionally exercise accountancy control  and they do so only in closed companies, that is, companies which do not have recourse to the venture capital market, and only if envis

With the provisions that entered into force as of 1 January 2004, the dissolution of companies with share capital is governed by new rules.A company may be dissolved because: its term of duration has expired,  the corporate aims have been achieved or circumstances have set in that make it impossible to achieve them, the shareholders’ meeting cannot or will not function, the share capital has dropped to values below the minimum legal requirements (but the company may decide to reconstitute th

In early 2003 the Italian legislator issued a law decree (n° 6 of 17 January 2003) which thoroughly reformed companies limited by shares.  The declared aim was to simplify, where appropriate, and enrich, wherever possible, the rules governing such companies, with a view to increasing their competitiveness on both domestic and international markets.Many changes were made and the following results have been achieved:  a better, though still not complete, co-ordination between the rules governi

The Memorandum of Association must indicate the names of the unlimited partners. For all other aspects refer to the joint-stock company (please refer to the related paragraph).

The rules applying to limited partnerships are similar from many points of view to those laid down for informal partnerships. However it is underlined that death of a limited partner does not imply conclusion of the business relationship, since upon the death of the partner his/her share is transmitted, unless otherwise agreed in the Memorandum of Association.

By law all unlimited partners are directors of the s.a.s..However, the Memorandum of Association may entrust the management to one or some of the unlimited partners, excluding the other unlimited partners from the management.Unlimited partners who are directors are governed by the same rules as those laid down for s.n.c. directors.Their liability is identical to that of the partners in an s.n.c., and is accordingly unlimited and joint, with the benefit that the corporate assets are used to p

The consortium company is a particular form of consortium which operates under the same rules as those that govern the consortium that carries out external activities, set up for carrying out activities jointly with third parties. So this type of entity is organised like a company but it also has the function of a consortium.There are also mixed consortium companies, where some members are not  entrepreneurs but their presence in the enterprise is deemed instrumental for achieving the purpos

La société consortiale est une forme particulière de consortium qui en matière de réglementation ne diffère pas du consortium actif vers l’extérieur, constituée pour entreprendre en commun des activités avec des tiers. Cette forme de société se présente donc dans la structure d’organisation comme une société à laquelle s’ajoute la fonction du consortium.Il est également possible de constituer des sociétés consortiales dites mixtes, auxquelles participent aussi des associés "non" entrepreneurs ma

The functioning of the company with share capital, in its traditional model, is based on the necessary simultaneous presence of three bodies:  the shareholders’ meeting, the board of directors and the board of statutory auditors, each of which has its own distinct sphere of competence. Accounts are audited by an auditor or by an audit firm, except for closed companies where this is decided in the By-laws.The shareholders’ meeting, which is a sovereign body since it is empowered to decide on

The rules applying to limited partnerships are similar in many respects to those that apply to informal partnerships (please refer to the related paragraph).In addition, as regards subjective changes arising from the transfer of a partner’s capital share, a distinction needs to be made between the unlimited partner’s share and that of the limited partner.If one of the unlimited partners decides to transfer his/her capital share he may undoubtedly do so through a conveyance deed; however, unl

On the basis of the provisions in force as of 1 January 2004, the administration of joint-stock companies may be organised according to three separate models:  the traditional model, the monistic model (of Anglo-Saxon origin) and the two-tier model (of German origin).In the traditional model, the directors have the task of running the company, and are accordingly provided with the power of being pro-active i.e. promoting the decision-making activity of the meeting (power of initiative), of i

The rules described for the s.n.c. also apply to the establishment of an s.a.s.The Memorandum of Association must comply with the same requirements, in form and content, as those laid down for the s.n.c.An additional requirement is that the unlimited partners and the limited partners be distinctly indicated.The Memorandum of Association of the s.a.s. are to be entered in the Register of Companies. If this is not done the partnership is irregular and the provisions that shall apply are less favou

In particular, it is pointed out that there are different rules as compared with the s.p.a. for the adoption of certain decisions (amendments to the Memorandum of Association, revocation and replacement of directors, appointment and revocation of the members of the supervision board). Hence the need to seek the advice of a notary public.For all other aspects, please refer to the joint-stock companies (please refer to the related paragraph).

Amendments to the Memorandum of Association must be approved not only by the extraordinary meeting but also by all the unlimited partners. The advice of the notary public may be useful in deciding on issues related to this mode of approval. For all other aspects, please refer to the joint-stock companies (please refer to the related paragraph).

Co-operatives are associations of persons which are protected in the Italian Constitution:  in fact Article 45 of the Italian Constitution states: “the Constitution recognises the social function of co-operative societies that are based on the values of solidarity and that do not pursue goals of private profit”.In co-operatives predominant importance is ascribed to the social function, which consists in implementing a democratic decentralisation of the power of organisation and management of

Take the case in which the company has lost capital. What is the company allowed to do?In this connection the law envisages that, in case of losses, the company cannot distribute profits among the partners until the capital has been reduced or replenished by the corresponding amount.However, unlike what happens for companies with share capital, there is no obligation to reduce the capital whatever the amount of the losses incurred, even if the latter are such as to wipe out the  entire capit

In this case too a partnership contract must be concluded (explicitly called by the law as “Memorandum of Association”). The contract must be drawn up in the form of a public deed or of an authenticated private contract.

The management of a company is the activity of running the corporate enterprise. The power of management is the power of carrying out any activity that falls within the scope of the corporate purpose.When the management of the company falls on more than one partner (all or some), and the partnership contract makes no provision on how the power of management is to be exercised, then the notion of  separate management shall apply:  each partner is a director, that is, he has the power of manag

In setting up a company, it is desirable to be assisted by a notary who will help you choose the form of company that, from the organizational standpoint, is best suited to achieving the corporate purpose.From the organizational point of view, companies can be distinguished into the following types:a. PartnershipsThese include:- informal partnerships;- general partnerships;- limited partnerships. b. Companies limited by shares These comprise:- joint-stoc

In its Memorandum of Association each company must indicate an office address where it will presumably carry out its administrative and management activities.The company may set up one or more branch offices where it carries out its business, with an organizational and administrative autonomy, and normally with a stable representative.

The share capital is a numerical entity that expresses the value of the contributions in monetary terms, as indicated by the valuation expressed in the Memorandum of Association.A share capital of 100 means that the partners have committed to contributing (underwritten capital) and/or have contributed (fully paid-up capital) money or other entities which at the time of the signing of the partnership deed, were attributed that given monetary value.The share capital remains unchanged throughou

Throughout the life of the company the partners may modify the partnership contract but this requires a unanimous vote, unless otherwise agreed and except for the case in which the company were to be turned into a  stock company, for mergers and spin offs, in which cases (unless otherwise decided in the shareholders’ agreement on which you should be advised by your notary) a simple majority is required by law.  The majority is established on the basis of the share of profits attributed to ea

Individuals interested in becoming partners, whether they be natural persons, companies, associations or in general, entities, must have the legal capacity to act, i.e. carry out transactions that are valid from a legal standpoint.Can joint-stock companies  be members of a partnership? The issue was a matter for debate up to recently, but an affirmative solution was provided by the law that entered into force as of January 1 2004.Participation by other entities in companies can give rise to

Les sujets souhaitant s’associer, qu’il s’agisse de personnes physiques, de sociétés, d’associations ou d’organismes en général, doivent avoir la capacité d’agir, la capacité d’accomplir valablement des actes juridiques.Les sociétés de capitaux peuvent-elles être associées à une société de personnes? La question a été controversée jusqu’à il n’y a pas longtemps, mais la législation en vigueur depuis le premier janvier 2004 y a donné une réponse affirmative.La participation aux sociétés d’autres

Parties wishing to set up a company must enter into a contract: company agreement (Memorandum of Association) under which two or more persons transfer assets or services for doing business jointly with the aim of sharing the ensuing profits.The legal system also envisages the establishment of a business entity by a single person through a unilateral deed: for instance a stock company with a single shareholder, a one-man limited responsibility company, or a spin-off decided by the shareholder

Individuals who set up a company do so because they want to carry out a given economic activity together with other individuals.  This activity is the corporate purpose and must be indicated in the Memorandum of Association.  It may be changed during the life-time of the company only in accordance with the amendment rules envisaged in the Memorandum of Association.The activity must be a productive activity, i.e. a business aimed at producing or trading goods or providing services, while it c