Expert Analysis

A turbulent year for the energy sector has seen oil prices decreasing by more than half from June 2014 to the beginning of 2015 and brent crude oil dipping below $50 a barrel for the first time since May 2009. This volatility has caused longer term, widespread repercussions across the industry. Jimmie van der Zwaan from Taxand Netherlands looks at some of the consequences impacting the sector, including an increase in M&A activity, tax concessions instigated by governments and major oil companies announcing ravaged profits - and this is before considering the gathering momentum of the OECD's initiatives to tackle base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) in international tax planning.

Lyudmila Petkova, director of the Bulgarian Ministry of Finance’s Tax Policy Directorate, outlines the moves being made to counter tax fraud and tax evasion in Bulgaria at national level, as well as how this fits into wider regional and global efforts to tackle abuse.

With the European VAT Directive set for a drastic rewrite, Joe Stanley-Smith gets the inside line from the man who oversaw this year’s implementation of the place of supply rules, and takes in advisers’ views on how stakeholders will be affected.

Jess Williams, Jimmy Man, and Olivier Hody of Deloitte explain how tax can be elevated from a post-close support function to a value-realisation tool in M&A transactions through quick wins and longer-term actions

Deloitte pillar two experts Chad Hungerford and Alison Lobb share their insights on the latest developments and practical issues that are emerging – and what may lie ahead

Dave Yaros, tax principal, Deloitte Tax LLP

Several South Korean transfer pricing cases have established clearer judicial standards emphasising robust comparability analysis and stronger functional and economic evidence. Yulchon tax partners provide practical insights for navigating the heightened requirements

Ichwan Sukardi and T Qivi Hady Daholi of RSM Indonesia examine how geopolitical conflict and economic volatility are reshaping transfer pricing risk and enforcement, with a particular focus on Southeast Asia and Indonesia

Monika Bieri and Daniel Schönenberger of Tax Partner use a Swiss lens to examine how workforce mobility is reshaping transfer pricing models, and why the location of key decision‑makers is becoming a critical tax risk

Federico Vincenti and Carola Valente Della Rovere of Valente Associati GEB Partners/Crowe examine a recent decision concerning the transfer pricing treatment of non-remunerated intra-group guarantees, focusing on economic substance, legal form, and group-level business justifications

The key changes under Budget 2025 and the outlook for 2026 raise several areas of heightened focus for taxpayers, say Matthew Kraemer, Adam N Unick, and Justin Ng of McCarthy Tétrault

The Tiger Global Supreme Court ruling weakens the status of tax residency certificates under tax treaties and increases substance‑based scrutiny, say S Vasudevan, Bharathi Krishnaprasad, and Krishna Laasya V of Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan