Economia digitale e imposizione indiretta: problemi di fondo e prospettive

This paper examines the issues of the indirect taxation of digital economy. After a brief introduction on general issues like the relation between the right to access Internet and taxes on telecommunications, the relevance of digital economy also for sales taxes purposes, the custom duties policy and the relevance of the place of supply also for direct taxation purposes, the article focuses on VAT. It firstly gives a general overview over the very articulated framework regarding VAT and then examines the main legal issues and their solutions, with specific regard to the problem of characterization for VAT purposes of digital goods and services, to territoriality rules and to VAT tax rates. The paper also explains the reasons of the interventions that have followed over time, recently leading to the so-called “MOSS system” and the difficult reconciliation between the principle of neutrality on the one hand and the principles of efficiency, certainty and simplicity on the other. It concludes with some general remarks about further trends of VAT discipline, like the extension of the new system to the supply of non-digital goods and the application of the principle of destination at a global level.