Company Tax Competition and International Foreign Direct Investment

One important element of the Austrian tax reform 2004-05 is the reduction of the corporate tax rate from 34 percent to 25 percent as of 2005. In cutting the corporate tax rate the government has reacted to the tax cuts implemented in a number of the accession countries in the run-up to the enlargement of the EU or envisaged for the near future. Several "old" EU member countries have also announced further corporate tax rate cuts for the years to come which aim at lowering the (increasing) tax rate differential vis-à-vis the "new" member states. Therefore, many observers expect a further intensification of enterprise tax competition in the EU. Against this background, the influence of enterprise taxation on investment is of interest, as well as the question whether a harmonisation of corporate tax rates is necessary and advisable in the enlarged EU.