The Tax Appeals Committee in Iceland has confirmed a decision by the Director of Tax to deny a personal tax credit to a man from Lithuania who lives and works in Iceland. His wife, whose residency is in Lithuania, was the basis for his claim to the tax credit. The committee upheld that he could not transfer his wife’s personal tax credit to himself, according to DV.
This ruling follows a new case related to the implementation of Protocol 35 to the EEA agreement that recently came before the Tax Appeals Committee. Protocol 35 concerns the application of EEA law in Iceland.
The issue has drawn attention amid heated debate in Alþingi, Iceland’s parliament, about a related bill in recent weeks, as reported by Vísir. The first parliamentary reading of the bill concluded on 6 October, but details on the title and content of the bill have not yet been made public.
Commenting on the potential legal impact of the bill, Hafsteinn said, “The Constitution will always trump it.” No further details on Hafsteinn’s full name or official position were provided in the available reporting by Vísir.
Background
Alþingi, Iceland’s parliament, was founded in 930 and is often described as one of the oldest parliaments in the world. It is the country’s national legislature, operating as a unicameral assembly of 63 members elected every four years by party-list proportional representation. The Alþingi convenes in Alþingishús, its building in Reykjavík, which was completed in 1881.
Sources
- Vísir (first reported) in Icelandic
- DV in Icelandic
Image: Ziko van Dijk / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0) · licence, original (resized) Illustrative image.
