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LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Is sharing caring? An analysis of the VAT treatment of certain sharing platforms

Lundgren, Sofie LU (2018) JURM02 20182
Department of Law
Faculty of Law
Abstract (Swedish)
Delningsekonomins framfart har inneburit stora positiva effekter på marknaden, genom att bl.a. skapa nya arbetstillfällen och öka konkurrenskraften på marknaden. Det har samtidigt blivit tydligt att traditionell lagstiftning inte helt täcker denna nya affärsmodell och dess aktörer. Intäkterna från delningsekonomin förväntas uppgå till flera miljarder euro årligen, varför det är av stort intresse för unionen att problemet hanteras. När det inte längre är företag, utan dess konsumenter som utför tjänster förändras spelplanen.

Uppsatsen behandlar frågan om hur privatpersoner som utför tjänster genom delningsplattformar såsom Uber och Airbnb bör behandlas enligt mervärdesskattedirektivet. Särskilt fokus ligger på huruvida dessa... (More)
Delningsekonomins framfart har inneburit stora positiva effekter på marknaden, genom att bl.a. skapa nya arbetstillfällen och öka konkurrenskraften på marknaden. Det har samtidigt blivit tydligt att traditionell lagstiftning inte helt täcker denna nya affärsmodell och dess aktörer. Intäkterna från delningsekonomin förväntas uppgå till flera miljarder euro årligen, varför det är av stort intresse för unionen att problemet hanteras. När det inte längre är företag, utan dess konsumenter som utför tjänster förändras spelplanen.

Uppsatsen behandlar frågan om hur privatpersoner som utför tjänster genom delningsplattformar såsom Uber och Airbnb bör behandlas enligt mervärdesskattedirektivet. Särskilt fokus ligger på huruvida dessa privatpersoner uppfyller kriterierna för konceptet beskattningsbar person, beskattningsbar transaktion samt nuvarande och föreslagna s.k. “deeming provisions”. Då de är tillämpliga möjliggör dessa artiklar att plattformarna istället för privatpersonerna åläggs mervärdesskatt. Vidare diskuteras även hur väl denna behandling kan anses vara i linje med neutralitetsprincipen och det faktum att mervärdesskatten ska vara en skatt på konsumtion. Neutralitetsprincipen föreskriver att lika fall ska behandlas lika, och den legala karaktären av mervärdesskatten föreskriver att mervärdesskatt ska påläggas vid privat konsumtion.

Uppsatsens resultat visar att det är möjligt att tillämpa traditionell lagstiftning även på den icke-traditionella affärsmodell som delningsekonomin utgör. Vidare visar resultatet att vissa av de privatpersoner som utför tjänster genom delningsplattformarna bör anses utgöra beskattningsbara personer medan andra istället bör ses som anställda av plattformen. Framställningen visar att även om delningsekonomin utgör ett visst hot mot tillämpningen av direktivet, bör ändå merparten av behandlingen anses vara i linje med neutralitetsprincipen och mervärdesskatten som en skatt på konsumtion. (Less)
Abstract
The breakthrough of the sharing economy has resulted in great positive effects on the market, by creating new employment opportunities and increasing the competitiveness on the market. Meanwhile, it has been clear that traditional legislation does not completely cover this new business model and its actors. Revenues from the sharing economy is expected to annually amount to several billion euros, why it is of great interest for the Union that the issue is resolved. When consumers begin to provide services that were previously provided by business, the playing field is altered.

This thesis treats the question of how individuals, peers, that are providing services through sharing platforms, such as Uber and Airbnb, should be treated under... (More)
The breakthrough of the sharing economy has resulted in great positive effects on the market, by creating new employment opportunities and increasing the competitiveness on the market. Meanwhile, it has been clear that traditional legislation does not completely cover this new business model and its actors. Revenues from the sharing economy is expected to annually amount to several billion euros, why it is of great interest for the Union that the issue is resolved. When consumers begin to provide services that were previously provided by business, the playing field is altered.

This thesis treats the question of how individuals, peers, that are providing services through sharing platforms, such as Uber and Airbnb, should be treated under the VAT Directive. The issue of whether these individuals fulfill the criteria for the concept of taxable person, taxable transaction as well as current and proposed deeming provision is the main focus. When applicable, these provisions result in the platforms being levied VAT, instead of the peers. Furthermore, the thesis also presents a discussion of whether the treatment could be considered in line with the principle of neutrality and VAT being a tax on consumption. According to the principle of neutrality, equal situations should be treated equally and the legal character of VAT stipulates that VAT should be levied on private consumption.

The result of the thesis show that it is possible to apply the traditional legislation also to the untraditional business model that the sharing economy present. The result further show that some of the peers that are providing services through the sharing platforms should be considered taxable persons while others should be viewed as employed by the platform. It further shows that while the sharing economy poses some threats to the application of the Directive, most of the treatment should be considered in line with both the principle of neutrality and VAT as a general tax on consumption. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Lundgren, Sofie LU
supervisor
organization
course
JURM02 20182
year
type
H3 - Professional qualifications (4 Years - )
subject
keywords
mervärdesskatt, delningsekonomi, sharing economy, VAT, skatterätt
language
English
id
8965413
date added to LUP
2019-01-28 11:26:58
date last changed
2019-01-28 11:26:58
@misc{8965413,
  abstract     = {{The breakthrough of the sharing economy has resulted in great positive effects on the market, by creating new employment opportunities and increasing the competitiveness on the market. Meanwhile, it has been clear that traditional legislation does not completely cover this new business model and its actors. Revenues from the sharing economy is expected to annually amount to several billion euros, why it is of great interest for the Union that the issue is resolved. When consumers begin to provide services that were previously provided by business, the playing field is altered.

This thesis treats the question of how individuals, peers, that are providing services through sharing platforms, such as Uber and Airbnb, should be treated under the VAT Directive. The issue of whether these individuals fulfill the criteria for the concept of taxable person, taxable transaction as well as current and proposed deeming provision is the main focus. When applicable, these provisions result in the platforms being levied VAT, instead of the peers. Furthermore, the thesis also presents a discussion of whether the treatment could be considered in line with the principle of neutrality and VAT being a tax on consumption. According to the principle of neutrality, equal situations should be treated equally and the legal character of VAT stipulates that VAT should be levied on private consumption.

The result of the thesis show that it is possible to apply the traditional legislation also to the untraditional business model that the sharing economy present. The result further show that some of the peers that are providing services through the sharing platforms should be considered taxable persons while others should be viewed as employed by the platform. It further shows that while the sharing economy poses some threats to the application of the Directive, most of the treatment should be considered in line with both the principle of neutrality and VAT as a general tax on consumption.}},
  author       = {{Lundgren, Sofie}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Is sharing caring? An analysis of the VAT treatment of certain sharing platforms}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}