Baker McKenzie’s Sanctions Blog published the alert titled EU adopts 10th package of sanctions against Russia on 25 February 2023. Read the article via the link here. Please also visit our Sanctions Blog for the most recent updates.
On 6 February 2023, the European Council published Council Regulation (EU) 2023/246 on the exchange of information in electronic registers in the Official Journal of the European Union. The (recast) regulation extends the obligation to maintain electronic registers relating to economic operators who move excise goods between Member States for commercial purposes from 13 February 2023.
A series of new rules were rolled out on 13 February 2023 which will make the taxation of alcohol, tobacco and energy products fully paperless across the EU. They are part of a wider expansion of the common excise duty provisions in the EU. The aim of this new standardized electronic system is to alleviate some of the rigorous procedures faced by energy suppliers and small producers of alcohol.
In its efforts to continue to promote fair tax competition and address harmful tax practices, the European Council decided on 14 February 2023 to add the British Virgin Islands, Russia, Costa Rica and the Marshall Islands to the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes or “blacklist”. Now is the time for multinational enterprises and investment funds with subsidiaries or investors in these jurisdictions to consider the potential tax implications of this development on their structures.
The European Whistleblowing Directive (WBD) was supposed to be implemented by the European Union’s 27 member states by no later than 17th December 2021, impacting employers with operations in those jurisdictions.
This article looks at what those key challenges are and the unique support we can offer in helping global employers harmonize their global approach to managing whistleblowing reports within the prescriptive requirements of the WBD.
In December 2022, the United Nations Security Council adopted a resolution which introduced a standardized humanitarian exemption across UN regimes according to which activities necessary for humanitarian assistance and other activities that support basic human needs are exempt from sanctions in the form of asset freezes imposed by the Security Council or by its Sanctions Committees. All UN sanctions regimes except the Afghanistan regulations will now include a standardized humanitarian exception to the asset freeze provisions.
On 12 January 2023, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that individuals have the right to know to whom their personal data has been disclosed, unless the controller can demonstrate that it is impossible to identify the recipients or that the request is manifestly unfounded or excessive. Controllers must be able to provide information on the actual identity of all individuals and organizations to whom personal data is disclosed. This can be done for example, by maintaining up-to-date records on the sharing of personal data or by any other (technical) means.
Baker McKenzie is delighted to invite you to interactive seminars on 1 March 2023 in Abu Dhabi and 2 March 2023 in Dubai as part of our EMEA Russia Sanctions Briefings. The seminars will focus on the multijurisdictional sanctions challenges facing financial institutions and their clients and other corporates in the Gulf, in relation to the US, UK, EU and UAE sanctions regimes, particularly against Russia. We will also focus on the current enforcement environment and best practices for mitigating sanctions risk arising from potential compliance failures.
In recent years, the investment policy landscape has become more complex as nations respond to national security threats, state development strategies and geopolitical risks. COVID-19 created a major economic shock worldwide, prompting some countries to take an even more stringent approach, with a focus on protecting the security of supply of inputs.
The European Parliament adopted a proposal on 2 February seeking potentially far-reaching changes to the current European Works Council (EWC) Directive. These include strengthening the information and consultation rights of EWCs and improving enforcement by introducing GDPR-level fines for non-compliance and a risk of injunctions for failure to inform and consult.