Finding a New Corporate Tax Base after the Abolishment of the One-Book System in EU Member States

Abstract

Due to the implementation of international financial reporting standards in the European Union, member states with uniform accounting are expected to replace their current one-book system with a two-book system, which will separate tax accounting and financial accounting. This separation presents the challenge of defining a new tax base. Since a tax base is not required to provide information that helps users in economic decision making, tax accounting can be simplified compared to financial accounting. This paper discusses possible future tax bases of German companies. We develop a business model simulation based on empirical data to quantify the change in the tax burden of different industries induced by alternative tax accounting regulations. We identify a simplified tax base that avoids major shifts in the tax burden. Thus, the paper provides useful information for economists and politicians who make decisions about the new German tax accounting regulations. Moreover, this tax base and the identified drivers of sector-specific tax payments form an important basis for the discussion in other EU member states that face a comparable phase-out of one-book accounting.