Discriminação Fiscal nos Juros e Royalties Intragrupo com Entidades Localizadas no Espaço Económico Europeu

Abstract

This article examines the misalignment of current Portuguese tax legislation with the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) and the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA), contradicting their principles and frustrating the core objective of Council Directive 2003/49/EC of 3 June (Interest and Royalties Directive). There is a tax treatment asymmetry resulting in unjustified discrimination in the payment of interest and royalties between entities resident in Portugal and those resident in Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein, compared with entities resident in EU Member States and the Swiss Confederation, which may benefit from full corporate income tax exemption. In practice, this situation imposes an additional tax burden on multinational groups with genuine operations between Portugal and these EEA States, affecting financial efficiency and creating competitive inequalities. This limitation by the Portuguese legislature infringes the principles of freedom of establishment and the free movement of capital.