General provisions

Determined on March 15, 2018 by Faculty of Law’s Teaching Committee, Uppsala University, by virtue of Chapter 6 Section 14 and 15 of the Higher Education Ordinance (1993:100). The course plan enters into force on August 15, 2018.

In General

The course is the first course at the Master's Programme in International Tax Law and EU Tax Law. The course is 15 university points (15 ECTS credits). The course is an obligatory course at advanced level in the studies for the degree of Master of Laws (60 credits) LLM, according to the degree requirements adopted 3 September 2012 by the Board of the Faculty of Law of Uppsala University. The course is held in English.

Entry requirements

Be admitted to the Master Programme in International Tax Law and EU Tax Law.

Learning outcomes

After completing the course, the students shall have the ability to independently:

• identify problems and find and analyse relevant legal material in the field of international tax law and EU tax law,
• understand the relationship between the different parts of international taxation (domestic tax law, tax treaties and EU tax law),
• relate general concepts and principles of international tax law to specific situations,
• analyse the domestic international tax law of different legal systems from a principal, systematic and comparative point of view,
• understand and apply national and international norms having an impact on international establishments and restructurings,
• to identify problems and suggest adequate solutions to these by interpreting and applying tax treaties,
• present, orally as well as in writing, complicated problems and arguments for objective-oriented solutions.

Grading criteria

The grades given are Fail (U), Pass (B), Pass with credit (Ba), and Pass with distinction (AB). The grads F-A will also be used.

For the grade “B”, the student is required to achieve all the learning outcomes in a descriptive, summary, thoughtful and analytical fashion.

For the next grade “Ba”, in addition to the requirements for grade “B”, the student is required to demonstrate the capability of taking an analytical approach through structured, independent and critical thinking.

For the highest grade, “AB”, in addition to the requirements for grade “Ba”, the student must demonstrate good analytical skills through well-structured, well-thought thoughts and critical thinking, enabling him/her to take positions based on convincing arguments and a high degree of independence.

Content

The course deals with fundamental aspects of international taxation of individuals and companies. The course comprises two essential parts. The first part of the course is an introduction to international tax law and EU tax law and deals in particular with international business taxation and the directives on direct taxation.

The second part of the course focuses on tax treaty law. This includes the relationship between strictly domestic law and tax treaties, as well as the application and interpretation of tax treaties. Emphasis is put on the interpretation of tax treaties modeled after the OECD Model Tax Convention.

These two parts are preceded by an introduction to the special type of problem based learning model and critical thinking, which is practiced at the Faculty of Law at Uppsala University.

Instruction

All teaching and materials are in English. The teaching is given through seminars where students discuss cases previously prepared in smaller groups of three to five students. There are also lectures and field trips (study visits).

Participation in all seminars and lectures is compulsory (90 % attendance is required). During the course, the students must also complete written and oral achievements. However, the course director may, grant exemptions in extraordinary cases. However, complementary assignments may be given.

Detailed information concerning the teaching is given in the annexed study plan. The instruction is based on the annexed list of literature. Additional reading assignments will be provided during the course.

Assessment

In order to pass the course, students must fulfil all compulsory elements. Four weeks into the course, a written exam will be given (pass/fail). The objective of this exam is to indicate to the students how hard they will need to study. The course is graded on the basis of a written exam at the end of the course (with a maximum time limit of five hours), written memorandums during the course as well as oral presentations during the course (see above Teaching). Detailed information is given in the annexed study plan. In extraordinary cases a student will be able to perform the examination in another way, for example at an oral exam.

Students who fail are provided a re-take examination (see the annexed study plan).

The written exam is so-called open book test which means that legislation, course literature, and other course material may be used. Dictionaries and the student’s own notes are also allowed.

It is prohibited to attempt to use deceptive means to influence the outcome of an exam or other ways of evaluating student performance such as essays. This entails inter alia the following points. A student may not use non-permitted aids or materials during a written examination. It is also prohibited to pass off another person’s work as one’s own work, in other words, to engage in plagiarism. See the specific instructions given during the course in this respect. In addition to the result of the exam or other way of evaluating student performance being reduced or declared null, a student who, in the above or other ways engages in cheating will be reported to the University Disciplinary Board. The Board can issue formal warnings or disbar the student from studying at the university for a period of up to six months.