The Tax Aspects of Real Estate Investment Trusts

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The Tax Aspects

of Real Estate

Investment Trusts

Chairs

Prof. Willard Taylor | Prof. Hein Vermeulen

Speakers and Moderators

Prof. José Almudi Cid | Frederik Boulogne

• OECD REIT Report

• International Tax

Law Aspects

Conference Amsterdam

14 November 2014

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Specialists from practice, government and academia will discuss the operation of REITs in a global environment from three perspectives. First, from the perspective of the REIT that invests cross-border in real estate or real estate companies. How is the REIT taxed by the country in which it invests? How are foreign income and foreign taxes treated by the country in which the REIT is organized? Second, from the perspective of an investor in the REIT, whether foreign or domestic. Third, from the viewpoint of the tax authorities.

Questions that will be addressed include whether a REIT is entitled to tax treaty benefits, whether there are treaty provisions in place to ensure the appropriate level of taxation, whether REITs are within the scope of the EU Tax Directives, and how can a government make sure that it can levy tax on income from its domestic real estate? Future developments will also be discussed, including an outline for an EU REIT and legisla-tive proposals in a number of EU countries and the U.S.

REITs in three perspectives

Chairs

Prof. Willard Taylor (NYU) and Prof. Hein Vermeulen (ACTL/PwC)

Venue

Tinbergen Institute Amsterdam Gustav Mahlerplein 117

1082 MS Amsterdam, The Netherlands

tinbergen.nl

Participation

Door het deelnemen aan deze Conference kunnen 7 opleidingspunten worden verzameld voor de Permanente Educatie-verplichting van de Nederlandse Orde van Belastingadviseurs (NOB).

Application

For applications visit actl.uva.nl >

news & events

Please note that there are

limited seats available

Speakers and Moderators

- Prof. José Almudi Cid (Complutense University Madrid)

- Frederik Boulogne (VU University Amsterdam) - Jeroen H. Elink Schuurman MRE (PwC) - Prof. Arnaud de Graaf (Rotterdam University/

Dutch Ministry of Finance)

- Prof. Werner Haslehner (University of Luxembourg)

- Paul Hondius (OECD/ACTL)

- Fraser Hughes (EPRA: European Public Real Estate Association)

- Richard van der Linden (Prologis/INREV) - Prof. Raymond Luja (Maastricht University/

Loyens & Loeff) - Luis Nouel (IBFD) - Prof. Willard Taylor (NYU)

- Prof. Hein Vermeulen (ACTL/PwC)

- Prof. Peter Wattel (ACTL/Dutch Supreme Court) - Prof. Dennis Weber (ACTL/Loyens & Loeff) - Prof. Stef van Weeghel (ACTL)

- Ronald Wijs (Loyens & Loeff/INREV)

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The Amsterdam Centre for Tax Law (ACTL) is the tax law research centre of

the University of Amsterdam. ACTL members conduct research into various

subjects of tax law, with strong emphasis on Corporate Taxation,

International Tax Law and European Tax Law.

Within the University of Amsterdam, the ACTL is considered to be a Centre of Excellence. The research of the ACTL belongs to the ‘Private and Public European law priority area’, which is one of the Amsterdam Law School research priority areas.

The ACTL comprises 22 researchers, 7 professors, 8 assistent-professors, 8 Phd-researchers. In addition, several external researchers are associated with the ACTL.

The ACTL regularly organizes conferences, seminars and courses

The Director of the ACTL is professor dr. Dennis Weber, professor of European Corporate Tax Law. ACTL professors are: prof. dr. R. (Rob) P.C. Cornelisse, prof. dr. O. (Otto) C.R. Marres,

prof. dr. B. (Ben) J.M. Terra, prof. dr. H. (Hein) Vermeulen, prof. dr. P. (Peter) J. Wattel and prof. dr. S. (Stef) van Weeghel

Visit our website

actl.uva.nl

Join us on

Become a member of the ACTL-group on Linkedin and get updated about events/prepublications and more of the ACTL.

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Programme conference

Venue: Tinbergen Institute Amsterdam

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

08.30 - 09.00 Registration/Coffee 09.00 - 09.15 Opening

09.15 - 11.00 Panel 1: REITs and its investments

Chair: Prof. Willard Taylor (NYU) 1. Eligible assets of a REIT; Luis Nouel (IBFD)

2. Taxable REIT subsidiaries in the Netherlands, US and other countries; Prof. Hein Vermeulen (University of Amsterdam/ACTL/PwC)

3. Exit taxes; an easy way into the REIT?; Prof. José Almudi Cid (Complutense University Madrid)

11.00 - 11.15 Break

11.15 - 13.00 Panel 2: Double Tax Treaties and non-resident taxation

Chair: Prof. Stef van Weeghel (University of Amsterdam/ACTL/PwC)

1. Recent provisions in Double Tax Treaties: Prof. Arnaud de Graaf (Rotterdam Erasmus University/Dutch Ministry of Finance)

2. Non-resident taxation of REIT shareholders; Prof. Willard Taylor (NYU) 3. U.S. REITs operating globally; Richard van der Linden (Prologis/INREV)

13.00 - 14.00 Lunch break

14.00 - 15.45 Panel 3: European Tax Law Issues

Chair: Prof. Peter Wattel (University of Amsterdam/ACTL/Netherlands Supreme Court) 1. REITs and EU Directives; Frederik Boulogne (VU University Amsterdam)

2. Non-discrimination under TFEU and OECD MTC; Prof. Werner Haslehner (University of Luxembourg)

3. Regimes for REITs and State Aid; Prof. Raymond Luja (Maastricht University/Loyens & Loeff)

15.45 - 16.15 Break

16.15 - 18.00 Panel 4: Alternatives to and Suggestions for REITs

Chair: Prof. Dennis Weber (University of Amsterdam/ACTL/Loyens & Loeff)

1. Taxable and Tax Transparent Investment Structures; Jeroen H. Elink Schuurman MRE (PwC) 2. The view of the European REIT Industry; Fraser Hughes (EPRA)

3. A possible outline for an EU REIT; Ronald Wijs (Loyens & Loeff/INREV)

18.00 - 18.15 Closing Statements

18.15 - Drinks

Poster Programme

REITs and tax neutrality; Paul Hondius (OECD/University of Amsterdam/ACTL)

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Amsterdam Zuid Station

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Amsterdam Zuid Station

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Main Academic locations

1 Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) Het Trippenhuis

Kloveniersburgwal 29 2 Amsterdam Centre for Tax Law Nieuwe Doelenstraat 15 3 Radisson Blu Hotel Rusland 17

4 Faculty of Law (UvA)* Oudemanhuispoort 4-6

5 Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences (UvA)**

Kloveniersburgwal 48 Room VOC-room 6 University Library (UvA)*** Singel 425 | Room The Doelenzaal 7 Tinbergen Institute Amsterdam Gustav Mahlerplein 117

Outside the walls of academia

A Café de Jaren Nieuwe Doelenstraat 20-22 B Restaurant de Waag Nieuwmarkt 4 C Restaurant ’t Loosje Nieuwmarkt 32-34 D Restaurant Namkee Zeedijk 111-113 E Café ‘In ’t Aepjen’ Zeedijk 1 F Restaurant Harkema Nes 67 G Bar Italia Nes 96 H Restaurant Greetje Peperstraat 23-25

I Restaurant Blauw aan de Wal Oudezijds Achterburgwal 99 J Dante Kitchen & Bar Spuistraat 320

K Restaurant Vinkeles (Dylan hotel) Keizersgracht 384

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Outside the walls of academia

Neighbourhood of the Faculty of Law

The ACTL is situated in one of the oldest parts of the city of Amsterdam. The Nieuwmarkt square is only a short distance from the Faculty of Law. The square was created in 1614, during the redevelopment of Amsterdam. In the centre of the Nieuwmarkt stands the ‘Waag’ (the Weighing-house). Now a restaurant (www.indewaag.nl/ en/), it was formerly the city gate to Amsterdam, as a defence against intruders.

In the seventies, the tunnel for the metro line was constructed near the square. To accommodate this, many houses were demolished, despite dissention of the residents. This led to the Nieuwmarkt riots in 1975. The square was given its present form at the beginning of the nineties. An abundance of cafes and restaurants encircle the square. Pop into ’t Loosje’ (Nieuwmarkt 32-34). The square still serves as a market area: it houses a daily market, a biological market on Saturdays and in summer, a flea market on Sundays. An unusual detail is that nowadays, the street names in the area of the Nieuwmarkt are signed in Dutch and in Chinese characters. This is because the Nieuwmarkt neighbourhood houses many Chinese residents and businesses. You will also find many Chinese and Thai restaurants there. One of the best known is ‘Namkee’. A book has been written about this restaurant (www.namkee.nl). The Nieuwmarkt has two ATM machines and one supermarket. On the north side of the Nieuwmarkt, there is a famous long street called ‘Zeedijk’, which takes you all the way to NS Central train station. There you will find many typical Amsterdam cafes and pubs. Hot tip - visit one of the oldest bars in Amsterdam, housed in one of the only two remaining 15th century wooden houses, called ‘In ’t Aepjen’ (‘In the Monkey’), at Zeedijk number 1. One explanation to this name is that the owner kept monkeys, which had been brought back from the East. The monkeys had fleas, which in turn, worried the guests of the boarding house with itch. Thus the origin of the

a fix’. Another explanation for the name of this famous building is that many sailors lodged there for the night before boarding the ship that was to take them to the East. Many never returned from these hard voyages. So, if you had ‘in de aap

gelogeerd’ there was a big risk that you would

never see Amsterdam again, and that you were ‘in for it’. The cafe is now a very snug looking pub where you can sample the original ‘van

Wees’ Jenever (Dutch gin) from Amsterdam.

Close to the Oudemanhuispoort is the ‘Nes’, a street with restaurants and theatres. Restaurant Harkema has good food and reservations are usually not necessary (www.brasserieharkema.nl). Bar Italia (Nes 96) is a safe alternative for drinks, espresso and/or Italian food (www.bar-italia.nl). If you fancy sampling Dutch cuisine, try ‘Greetje’ (www.restaurantgreetje.nl). For a unique experience and a first-class dinner, visit Blauw aan de wal (Oudezijds Achterburgwal 99; tel: 020-3302257). You will find it up a tiny alleyway in the hub of the Red Light District. Right next to the office of the ACTL you will also find café De Jaren. This is one of the biggest cafés of Amsterdam, since it is two stories high, and it has a terrace looking over the canals with its own small jetty. Last but not least, there is Dante Kitchen & Bar. The Dante café made a big name for itself during the 1990s as the café were Dutch painter Herman Brood painted and even lived for a while. Nowadays Dante has reinvented itself with two terraces, one overlooking the Spuistraat and the other the Singel.

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Radisson hotel - Discount

Discounted rooms are available at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Amsterdam. The hotel is located at Rusland 17, in one of the oldest parts of Amsterdam.

Please find below instructions for booking a hotel room: n Visit the website: www.radissonblu.com/hotel-amsterdam

n On the right side type in the dates you would like to stay at the Radisson Blu n Click on ‘more search options’

n Type in ‘ACTL’ in the field promotional code n Click ‘view rates’

n The special rates will appear on the screen

n Your booking can be completed and needs to be guaranteed with a credit card n Your reservation can be cancelled until 24 hours in advance

Design: crasbor