European Commission’s public consultation on DAC recast: now open
The European Commission opened, on 6 October, its public consultation on the recast of the Directive on Administrative Cooperation in tax matters (DAC), proposed at the end of June, running until 1 December 2026. In the Council, where an agreement is expected at the Ecofin of 11 December, the Working Party on Tax Questions met three times in September. At the 4 September meeting, the Presidency presented a compromise text on DAC4, DAC6 and DAC9. On DAC6, the compromise retains the carve-out for groups in scope of the Pillar Two Directive, removes the additional conditions for groups with an Ultimate Parent Entity in a Side-by-Side jurisdiction, and defers application of the carve-out to 1 January 2031. Delegations remain divided on the carve-out and some warned that Pillar Two information is not equivalent to DAC6 reporting and that information relevant for risk assessment could be lost. On 30 September, Member States reportedly appeared open to Spain’s proposal clarifying the conditions for international tax data exchanges and the interaction with the GDPR, but several reportedly questioned whether the recast is the right vehicle. Several delegations and the Council Legal Service considered that the issue belongs in the digital omnibus negotiations and that the amendment would exceed the scope of the recast. In the European Parliament, MEP Francisco Assis (S&D, Portugal) has been appointed to draft a non-binding opinion.
AMLA consults on simplified customer due diligence and EU-wide AML database
On 2 October, AMLA invited obliged entity representatives, trade associations and other representative bodies from the financial and non-financial sectors to participate in sectoral roundtables on simplified customer due diligence (SDD). The discussions will help shape new AMLA own-initiative Guidelines on the proportionate application of SDD in lower-risk situations. These Guidelines have not yet been issued and are intended to complement the broader customer due diligence framework, including AMLA’s recently finalised CDD regulatory technical standards under Article 28(1) AMLR. The roundtables will take place in Frankfurt between 9 November and 2 December 2026. They are not a formal public consultation, which will follow later. Interested stakeholders must submit expressions of interest by 18 October 2026. In parallel, on 7 October, AMLA launched a consultation on draft regulatory technical standards (RTS) governing the EU’s central anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) database. The draft RTS set out the scope, format, timing and conditions for transmitting information to the central database. As part of this consultation, AMLA will also hold a public hearing on 3 November 2026.
Budget talks at full speed ahead of 15-16 October EU leaders’ summit
EU Heads of States will meet on 15 and 16 October for a summit topped by the next multiannual financial framework (MFF), alongside competitiveness and simplification, Ukraine, the Middle East, defence and security, migration, enlargement and reforms. Discussions will be shaped by the revised negotiating box that the Irish Council Presidency unveiled on Saturday 10 October, which according to media report proposes to trim the EU’s 2028–2034 budget by roughly 8%. The proposal foresees €122 billion in cuts in current prices compared with the previous version tabled by the Cyprus presidency in June. With Member States diverging strongly on core elements, not least the budget’s size, EU Leaders must make progress, notably on new own resources, to meet their goal of an agreement by end-2026. In Plenary on 6 October, MEPs reiterated their April 2026 position calling for an increase of around 10% on the Commission’s July 2025 proposal to support defence, competitiveness, cohesion and agriculture, as well as new revenue sources such as a digital services levy, an online gambling levy, an extended CBAM and a levy on crypto-asset capital gains. Co-rapporteur Siegfried Mureşan (EPP, Romania) warned that any cuts weakening Europe would not be a basis for Parliament’s consent, while MEPs also called for greater transparency and accountability in how the budget is spent.
Tax outcomes of Ecofin Council meeting on 9 October
On 9 October, Finance Ministers met in Luxembourg for an Ecofin Council meeting whose only formal tax item was the approval of conclusions on the biannual revision of the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes. Ministers removed Panama and Vietnam after both jurisdictions requested an international review of their exchange of tax information on request. Both were moved to the EU “grey list” of jurisdictions that have committed to cooperating with the EU on tax matters. Ministers also discussed the request by six Member States (Austria, Germany, Italy, Poland, Portugal, and Spain) for an EU-wide windfall tax on energy companies benefiting from higher prices caused by the Iran war, with the Irish Presidency seeking only their views on closer coordination and on sharing best practices and experiences of national measures, rather than advocating an EU-wide instrument. European Commissioner for Economy Valdis Dombrovskis reportedly told reporters in Luxembourg after the meeting that a “working group” would be created on the matter to “share best practice and assist Member States”.
28th regime: EP committee vote delayed
The EP JURI committee’s vote on the proposed 28th regime (EU Inc.) has been delayed after political groups failed to agree on codetermination, the rules guaranteeing employee participation in company management that exist in a majority of Member States. Negotiators had hoped to put their position on the EU Inc. proposal to a vote in the JURI committee on 8 October and now aim to strike a deal ahead of the next committee meeting on 19 October, before a plenary vote in November. At a press conference on 7 October, rapporteur MEP René Repasi (S&D, Germany) reportedly reported broad support in Parliament for Article 79, under which employee stock options are taxed only on disposal of the underlying shares and may not be treated less favourably than comparable national instruments. The EP intends to defend the rule with some changes, although nearly 20 Member States have requested its deletion, mainly because it is a tax provision in a non-tax legal text. MEP Repasi argued that scrapping it would remove one of the two pillars of EU Inc. and call its added value into question, since freedom of establishment already requires mutual recognition of companies, and warned that trilogues would be all the more charged if the Council deleted it.
MEPs adopt recommendations on corporate tax strategy, reject call for EU windfall profits tax
On 6 October, the European Parliament Plenary adopted the ECON report on the EU’s approach to corporate tax policy in a changing international environment with 364 votes in favour, 69 against and 162 abstentions, with broad support from the EPP, S&D, Renew and the Greens. The report, drafted by MEP Kinga Kollár (EPP, Hungary), asks the Commission to explore further simplification opportunities within the OECD, calls on Member States to advance swiftly on the EU’s tax simplification agenda, and invites the Commission to re-examine its BEFIT proposal to address potential inconsistencies with the Pillar Two rules and to consider a new, narrower proposal following a step-by-step approach. Prior to the vote, 111 MEPs from the S&D, Greens/EFA and the Left tabled an amendment urging the Commission to propose without delay a tax on the consolidated excess profits of large oil and gas companies, which was rejected by 347 votes to 247.
FISC to host interparliamentary committee meeting on wealth taxation and 28th regime
On 12 October, from 15:00 to 18:30, the Subcommittee on Tax Matters (FISC) will hold an interparliamentary committee meeting at the European Parliament premises in Brussels on “A tax framework for ultra-high-net-worth individuals and a potential 28th tax regime for EU companies”, bringing together MEPs, national parliamentarians, academics and experts from tax authorities. The first session will address the taxation of ultra-high-net-worth individuals and will feed into FISC work on its own-initiative report on the topic. The second session will examine the tax dimension of the 28th regime, building on the proposals set out in the European Parliament’s own-initiative report on the feasibility of a 28th tax regime and its potential to support EU competitiveness.
Tax Administration EU Summit supports tax simplification
On 6 and 7 October 2026, the Tax Administration EU Summit (TADEUS) took place in Dublin, bringing together the Heads of Tax Administrations and the European Commission to strengthen administrative cooperation and support the implementation of EU tax policy priorities, notably upcoming Union legislation, the fight against VAT fraud and the closing of tax gaps through data-driven, collaborative action. In their outcome statement, the Heads of Tax Administrations acknowledged the need for a robust, secure, sustainable and efficient framework for administrative cooperation and backed efforts to simplify and streamline it to reduce administrative burden and foster competitiveness in the internal market. Discussing how digital tools and smarter administration can support competitiveness while ensuring revenue stability and compliance, they cited e-invoicing and pre-filled returns as the most notable successes, and set a shared direction away from after-the-fact control towards preventive, data-driven compliance enabled by AI and structured reporting.
