Value added tax treatment of services provided under franchise systems in the light of the origins, essence and legal basis of franchising

Abstract

Franchising is a legal relationship originating in medieval Europe that has evolved over the years. The above evolution means that the interpretation of franchising requires constant changes. Carrying out a thorough analysis of the origin, essence and legal basis of franchising is therefore the key to understand this institution and its individual elements, in particular when analysing the taxation aspects of this legal relationship. Importantly, this legal relationship has not been defined in the EU or the national law, but there are legal provisions that define individual elements of franchising, such as know-how. This article, through a method of analysis and critical review of the literature as well as the dogmatic method, aims to present the origins and essence of franchise systems and the legal basis of franchising. As a consequence of the above analysis, an analysis of the taxation aspects of franchising was carried out in the field of taxation of goods and services. While achieving the purpose of the article, the author clearly indicates that services provided under a franchise relationship are subject to goods and services tax at a basic rate. The author also indicates the possibility of making an annual adjustment to the amount of input tax and describes the taxation of the services in question when importing services.