Cross-border pensions a step closer

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has recently ruled that a Finnish tax-payer who contributed to voluntary schemes in Germany should not be denied tax relief on his contributions to those schemes. In Proceedings brought by Danner (case C-351/00), the ECJ held Mr Danner was entitled to the same tax relief as if he had been paying into a comparable Finnish scheme. Otherwise, the ECJ said, it would be a significant deterrent against nationals who were living and paying tax in one member state from taking out a supplementary pension scheme in another member state. Such a deterrent would adversely affect freedom to provide services, a founding principle of EU law.