Plateformes numériques : développements récents en matière fiscale

Platforms have become key actors in the e-commerce sector. They have also acted as a catalyst for the development of the sharing economy. Due to this central positioning, their taxation (both in terms of VAT and income tax) raises new issues. With regards to income tax, the assessment of the current legislative framework shows that it is unanimously considered as outdated in relation to the digitalization of the economy, because it leaves the door open to many avoidance strategies. In addition, this assessment is very slow and faces several legal and political hurdles both at the international and EU levels. With regards to VAT, the issues are more nuanced. Platforms now represent key allies for governments in the context of the protection of their VAT revenues. This development raises multiple legal and practical questions. For the sharing economy, there are many questions surrounding how VAT should be applied to the exchanges and other transactions performed between individuals on these platforms, and on the role that these platforms could possibly be expected to play in order to ensure appropriate taxation of this sector. Finally, the question of whether platforms should charge VAT when providing ?free services? to their users is also currently under discussion.