Sustainability & ESG in Taxation

Sustainability has placed momentous responsibility on multinationals. Every organisation and function within must now adapt to the dynamic trends and challenges, including climate change, digitalisation, and more. This in-depth keynote session delves into the future of tax departments, emphasising the imperative for change. It explores the evolving taxation landscape and disruptive trends influencing tax departments. Not to be missed.

Public CBCR is rapidly upon us in both the EU and Australia. But is it the main game and what do companies, and investors need to do to deeply understand tax transparency? This session will also include an in-depth assessment of the work done to date in evaluating progress for Nordic and Benelux-based MNEs and looks at the path ahead for the whole of Europe and the UK. It will also deal with what provides integrity to tax transparency measures.

With GRI 207 being widely used as a reporting standard and the EU's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) having come into force in January 2023, tax governance and transparency obligations are increasingly at the forefront of tax directors' concerns. This panel session will consider how widely tax disclosures and sustainable reporting standards are being adopted by multinationals globally and what the obstacles are that need to be overcome by tax departments.

Climate change profoundly affects global economies and government policies worldwide. Many countries employ taxes as instruments to influence investments in sustainable solutions and promote environmentally responsible behaviour. While some countries, like the United States, rely heavily on tax credits and incentives, European nations tend to implement environmental taxes that assign costs to polluting behaviours. In this panel, we will delve into diverse tax incentives across jurisdictions. Engaging with various stakeholders, we will explore recent developments and gather insights on the future of the tax function.

Carbon pricing stands as one of policymakers' most potent tools to combat the ongoing rise in greenhouse gas emissions. With the EU's official adoption of CBAM, an increasing number of jurisdictions contemplate their own carbon pricing mechanisms. These novel approaches will significantly influence the value chains of numerous companies, potentially altering tax structures. This panel offers expert insights into carbon pricing's future impact and its relevance for the tax function. It will provide in-depth analysis and understanding of the effects of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) on businesses.

In recent years, the rapid increase in new environmental taxes and levies has inundated in-house tax experts with numerous tasks and responsibilities. Although some of these measures may not be explicitly labelled as taxes, they still fall under the purview of tax departments. This session aims to deliver a comprehensive overview and analysis of environmental taxes, excise duties, and levies in Europe, including plastic taxes and other green taxes. Additionally, experts will offer critical insights into the present state of taxation initiatives in renewable energy sectors, such as green hydrogen.