Katja Rajala

Senior Associate

Katja Rajala

Senior Associate

Mobile	+358 50 361 5136
Phone	+358 9 6817 0169
Email	[email protected]
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Assistant

	Anne Sallinen
Email	[email protected]
Phone	+358 9 6817 0153

Focus on international taxation and tax litigation.

Katja Rajala is known for her expertise of EU tax law and tax process.

She advises clients in a wide range of taxation matters mainly focusing on tax disputes.

Prior to joining Dittmar & Indrenius she has gained experience by working in Uusimaa Regional Tax Office and another Finnish law firm.

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Education

University of Helsinki (LL.M. 2012)

Vienna University of Economics and Business (LL.M. in International Tax Law, 2015-2016)

Admitted to the Finnish Bar Association.

Languages

Finnish, Swedish and English

References

advisory

Dispute related to excise duties

We represented a Finnish consumer goods manufacturer before the Supreme Administrative Court in...

advisory

Structuring of real estate and infrastructure investments

We advised an international real estate and infrastructure investor in structuring and restruct...

advisory

Dispute related to reclaimed withholding taxes

We assisted a global investment firm in tax litigation relating to interest receivable on recla...

Transactions

Sale of Nebula to Telia

22 May 2017

We advised Ratos on the sale of Nebula to Telia in a transaction valued at EUR 165 million. ...

Transactions

Sale of a majority stake in Nordic Cinema Group

27 Apr 2015

We advised Bonnier and Ratos in the sale of a majority stake in Nordic Cinema Group, the leadin...

Latest Insights

The Government Proposal on Changes in Taxation of Electricity Storage

8 Nov 2018 The Government Proposal regarding amendments to energy taxation has been submitted to the Parliament on 18 October. The most significant changes relate to electricity storages. Pursuant to the Proposal, electricity would be transferred to electricity storages without any excise duty on electricity. The excise duty would be paid when electricity is transferred to be consumed. The need for electricity storages has arisen since more and more electricity has been produced by using renewable energy sources such as wind and solar which are not flexible. The electricity storages can be used to even out the variation in supply and demand of electricity and prices. However, current legislation does not recognize electricity storages at all. Therefore, the excise duty on electricity has been paid twice, for example, in circumstances where the storage has been first charged from the grid and later supplied back to the grid to be consumed. The purpose of the Proposal is that transmission of electricity to the electricity storage would be duty free. The excise duty would be paid when electricity is transferred to be consumed from the duty free electricity storage. The condition would be the electricity storage is deemed to be a part of the grid or a power plant; or an owner of the electricity storage has a permission from the Tax Administration to uphold the duty free energy storage. In order to meet the purpose of the Proposal the definition of the grid would be broadened. The electricity storage would be deemed to be a part of the grid if the electricity storage is connected to the grid and no electricity can be transferred to be consumed from the electricity storage. In addition, the definition of a power plant would be changed. In the future, the power plant would mean a fixed functional unit which acts in a certain area and its purpose is to produce electricity (and heating) and store electricity in the electricity storage. Owners of electricity storages which are not a part of a grid or a power plant in accordance with the law should apply permission of the Tax Administration in order to be owners of a duty free electricity storage. Consequently, the Proposal allows duty free electricity storage for different operators as power plants, grid companies or end consumers or storage service providers. The recast electricity market directive, currently under legislative process in the EU, seeks to promote market based energy storage. It would limit the distribution and transmission systems operators (DSO and TSO) involvement with energy storage facilities. Among others, DSOs and TSOs would be prohibited from owning and operating storage facilities, except in cases where no other parties have expressed interest, or where the storage facility is necessary for fulfilling the DSO's or TSO's obligations. Exceptions are subject to approval of the regulator. Member States would have to re-assess whether third parties would be able to own, develop and manage or operate the storage facilities, in which case the operations of DSOs and TSOs would be phased out. We welcome the removal of double taxation. However, according to the Proposal, the electricity storage means only a unit of equipment, machines and buildings which are required in order to temporary store electricity electrochemically. Our view is that the definition of an electricity storage should not be limited only to storages based on electrochemical technology. The limitation might delay development of new technology and its adoption to use. Taxation should be neutral for all technology solutions. With the current wording, storage solutions based on for example power-to-gas or kinetic technology would not be duty free. The purpose of other, more technical, changes to energy taxation is to promote the use of natural gas instead of coal, which is part of the Government's plan to encourage the early phase-out of combined heat and power plants using coal by 2029. The proposed changes would enter into force in the beginning of 2019. Due to developments in technology and promotion of the transfer towards more sustainable energy system, changes in energy taxation as well as energy storages in general can be expected also on the EU level. We are happy to discuss in more detail the proposed legislation in concrete situations.

Draft Government Proposal on International Tax Dispute Resolution Mechanisms

29 Aug 2018 The Ministry of Finance of Finland has issued a draft government proposal on international tax dispute resolution mechanisms on 27 August 2018. The draft proposal implements the Directive on Tax Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in the European Union (2017/1852, the "Directive"). In addition, the proposed new legislation addresses certain other tax dispute resolution mechanisms related to the interpretation of tax treaties. The aim of the new legislation is to enhance the resolving of international tax disputes and to avoid double taxation in cross-border context. Summary of the Proposed Tax Dispute Resolution Mechanisms The following table illustrates the main changes to the current processes and contents of the draft proposal on a high level. Timing of the Legislative Process The draft proposal is currently under public consultation. The contents of the proposal are therefore subject to change. The new legislation is proposed to apply to applications filed on 1 July 2019 or thereafter which concern tax years started on 1 January 2018 or later. However, part of the new legislation, such as the obligation to choose between the tax dispute resolution mechanisms and the domestic appeal process, is applicable to all applications filed on 1 July 2019 or thereafter. Reflections on the Draft Government Proposal Many of the proposed changes provide long-awaited procedural rules for tax disputes relating to the interpretation of tax treaties. Currently, most of the relevant procedural provisions are outdated and not explicitly applicable to international tax dispute resolution processes. Implementation of the Directive provides more effective means for taxpayers to eliminate double taxation between EU countries since the threat of binding arbitration can be expected to encourage the competent authorities to negotiate, and ultimately double taxation should be eliminated through arbitration. This type of process is currently only applied in transfer pricing disputes involving EU countries. The draft proposal also includes certain changes to the current processes which can in many cases limit the taxpayers' legal remedies. The taxpayers would in practice need to choose whether to refer the case to a tax dispute resolution process under the proposed legislation or the domestic appeal process. This would increase the importance of the strategic decisions taken during a tax audit phase regarding potentially threatening cross-border tax disputes. Since this provision is proposed to apply to all applications filed on 1 July 2019 or thereafter, regardless of the tax year the application covers, the draft proposal may have great relevance in many of the cross-border tax disputes pending today. One aspect which the draft proposal seems to ignore is the extension of the suspension of tax enforcement to the tax dispute resolution processes under the proposed legislation. Currently, it is possible to request the temporary postponement of the payment of taxes only during domestic appeal processes. If this discrepancy is not fixed, it may render the use of tax dispute resolution mechanisms a less attractive alternative in many cases. We are happy to discuss the implications of the proposed legislation in concrete situations as well as keep you updated on the legislative process.

Mikko Eerola

Combination of deep knowledge in his own field and good negotiation skills.

Chambers Europe 2018, Energy & Natural Resources

Dittmar & Indrenius
Attorneys Ltd.
Pohjoisesplanadi 25 A
FI-00100 Helsinki, Finland
+358 9 681 700
[email protected]
Business ID: FI0217099-4

Dittmar & Indrenius