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Deloitte's service line leader for tax is Erwin Holzer. The tax group is one of the largest in Austria, counting around 300 fee-earners among its ranks.The team provides services across all areas of tax including international tax, local tax, M&A, tax ... [more]

Deloitte's service line leader for tax is Erwin Holzer. The tax group is one of the largest in Austria, counting around 300 fee-earners among its ranks.

The team provides services across all areas of tax including international tax, local tax, M&A, tax accounting, payroll tax, litigation, VAT, customs and transfer pricing. George Knopf has joined this year to set up a separate customs department, which the firm believes is the only one in the big-four.

Holzer worked on the restructuring of the European group of a large US multinational. By using an Austrian partnership held by a Dutch Coop he was able to reduce the overall tax burden of the group.

Holzer and Gabriele Holzinger are advising an Austrian leasing group on a structure to optimise their withholding tax credits. Holzer is also working alongside Georg Erdélyi on the reorganisation of a major project to circumvent any possible capital gains tax exposure.

The group has seen an expansion in transfer pricing work this year in the face of a clampdown by the authorities. This year it worked on transfer pricing for a pharmaceutical group located in Italy that was expanding into Eastern Europe. The group also provided analysis for an Austrian-based telecommunications company with subsidiaries in multiple jurisdictions.

Deloitte's tax practice in the Baltic States is headed by Piotr Zarski. The Tallinn office is the smallest of their Baltic operations, with three full-time tax professionals active there. Tatjana Vaiciuliene is recommended for her cross-border structuring ... [more]

Deloitte's tax practice in the Baltic States is headed by Piotr Zarski. The Tallinn office is the smallest of their Baltic operations, with three full-time tax professionals active there. Tatjana Vaiciuliene is recommended for her cross-border structuring work and is a well known figure in the Lithuanian tax market. This year, for example, she has obtained approval from the Lithuanian Ministry of Finance for a new method of calculating corporate income tax for a client. The client has since been able to recover overpayments from the previous two years and make significant reductions in their corporate tax liability. Structuring was at the fore of the firm's service for a multinational company operating in Latvia. The team led by Arturs Breicis implemented a structure to allow group companies to supply goods through the Latvian company to use its tax losses. This involved the transfer of a number of assets between companies, requiring close attention to transfer pricing issues throughout. The firm's clients include several multinational entities, companies from the Baltic States and a number of financial institutions. The firm highlights its international capacity and consistent quality as features it of its Baltic States practice.

The tax practice at Deloitte is held in high regard by its peers. The practice is led by Georgi Sarakostov who is mentioned frequently by other professionals as one of Bulgaria's leading tax advisers. He leads a team of about 35 professionals.The tax ... [more]

The tax practice at Deloitte is held in high regard by its peers. The practice is led by Georgi Sarakostov who is mentioned frequently by other professionals as one of Bulgaria's leading tax advisers. He leads a team of about 35 professionals.

The tax team has about the same number of practitioners doing advisory work and compliance. There is also a team of about fivewho offer legal services, which supports the rest of the tax team especially during corporate transactions. The litigation practice has been growing this year because of increasing scrutiny from the tax authorities. The group acted in infringement procedures to the EU regarding the authorities' approach to withholding tax.

The corporate tax and indirect tax advisory teamhas seen an increase in cross-border transactional work this year. The group has been advising on the implementation of the trans-Balkan pipeline which has involved a lot of interaction with the team in the Netherlands. The group also worked on the acquisition of a Bulgarian company by an Italian investor, which involved integration with the legal team.

The practice has also carried out a lot of due diligence for transactions in the renewable energy sector where the firm is able to benefit from its experience in the wider energy market. Work for pharmaceutical companies is also growing and the group has also carried out a lot of debt restructuring for financial services companies. The group advises two out of the three largest telecommunications companies in Bulgaria.

Deloitte is one of the largest of the big-four firms in the Czech Republic. The tax team comprises 123 fee earners and is headed by Tomas Seidl. The practice inaugurated its exclusive cooperation with the law firm Ambruz & Dark. The firm which has about ... [more]

Deloitte is one of the largest of the big-four firms in the Czech Republic. The tax team comprises 123 fee earners and is headed by Tomas Seidl. The practice inaugurated its exclusive cooperation with the law firm Ambruz & Dark. The firm which has about 28 fee earners has boosted Deloitte's capabilities in a number of areas including M&A and corporate restructuring.

The practice provides a range of tax services to its clients including R&D, private company services, cross-border structuring, indirect tax, global employment services and transfer pricing, which has a. dedicated team of seven full-time professionals led by Marek Romancov. The indirect tax team, led by Adham Hafoudh, is also very strong and counts for more than 20% of the revenue of the department.

This year Romancov worked alongside Miroslav Svoboda, Jan Petras and Lenka Pol Brozkova on a large project for a client which involved the creation of a new holding structure as part of a larger tax optimisation plan for the group. The $530 million project, also had significant transfer pricing implications and involved setting up the documentation for the group, including 17 overseas subsidiaries.

Other work this year includes a $915 million post-acquisition restructuring for a large brewery company and setting up an R&D tax credit system for a financial services company. The group mainly advises multinationals but also has a number of important Czech clients, especially in the railway industry.

The Hungarian branch of Deloitte has expertise in all areas of tax. The group comprises about 70 fee earners and is headed by Attila Kövesdy. He is singled out by the market for his expertise in international tax. István Veszprémi and László Winkler ... [more]

The Hungarian branch of Deloitte has expertise in all areas of tax. The group comprises about 70 fee earners and is headed by Attila Kövesdy. He is singled out by the market for his expertise in international tax. István Veszprémi and László Winkler are also mentioned for their M&A work.

This year Veszprémi advised a client on the planning and structuring of work-out procedures regarding non-performing real estate loans. This was structured in such a way to avoid any significant VAT that was non-recoverable. Kövesdy advised on the first renegotiation of an advanced pricing agreement in Hungary. It was unique because the pricing methodology meant that the new agreement required less profit to be attributed to the Hungarian company.

The group advises multinationals and financial institutions, but also has a significant number of domestic clients, for example, eight of the top 10 Hungarian banks and the largest Hungarian insurance companies.

Piotr Zarski leads Deloitte's Polish tax practice of 14 partners and 256 other fee earners, a figure which has been boosted this year with the addition of six managers. The firm has capability across the full breadth of tax issues, though their structuring ... [more]

Piotr Zarski leads Deloitte's Polish tax practice of 14 partners and 256 other fee earners, a figure which has been boosted this year with the addition of six managers. The firm has capability across the full breadth of tax issues, though their structuring work has been particularly notable this year. The work completed for a Polish fast-moving consumer goods manufacturer was especially innovative. It involved obtaining a binding ruling from the finance ministry for a new interpretation of tax regulations applying to intellectual property. Deloitte was able to obtain a tax free increase in value of the company's trade marks, providing more scope for future depreciation of value to reduce the company's tax base. This entailed transfer of the trade marks to a tax transparent partnership and required close attention to both structure and timing. Since VAT payable on the transaction was refundable, the process had to be coordinated to ensure the refund coincided with the company's cash flow requirements. Adam Mariuk led the team on a matter completed for a Polish insurance company relating to tax applied to employee share schemes. The team secured a binding ruling from the Supreme Administrative Court that participation in a scheme operated by a company not resident in Poland would only trigger capital gains tax on disposal of shares rather than income tax at the time of acquisition. Deloitte expect this to set an important precedent for employee incentive schemes in Poland. Transfer pricing is still a prominent issue in Poland this year and Iwona Gieorgijew has been identified by competitors for her ability in that area.

Deloitte has possibly the fastest growing tax practice in Romania. Partner Dan Badin, who has joined this year from PwC, is mentioned by his peers as a leader in the field of corporate tax. He is one of a number of hires this year and the practice now ... [more]

Deloitte has possibly the fastest growing tax practice in Romania. Partner Dan Badin, who has joined this year from PwC, is mentioned by his peers as a leader in the field of corporate tax. He is one of a number of hires this year and the practice now consists of about 85 practitioners. Peter Wessel is also mentioned as a leading indirect tax specialist. The tax team is headed by Alexandru Reff.

The practice, which is split between the firm's three offices in Bucharest, Timisoara and Cluj-Napoca, serves clients across four main specialised service lines: global employer services, transfer pricing, indirect tax and corporate tax. Out of those areas indirect tax has been the real growth area over the last year with revenue increasing by 32%.

This year Wessel advised a client about obtaining a binding ruling from the Ministry of Finance on VAT treatment to do with the VAT treatment of outsourced operations back to January 2007. The opinion led to significant savings for the client.

Other work this year includes advising a client on the legality of the mandatory contribution to the Special Fund for Oil products under EU law, and assisting a Romanian bank on the wind-up of non-Romanian business operations. This decision triggered a significant tax leakage but through careful structuring the practice was able to save the client around $10 million.

The practice advises domestic and multinational clients, including many of the top 500 Romanian companies. The practice's specialist team for the energy sector has seen noticeable growth this year, especially regarding the tax implications of economic exclusive zones.

Deloitte has added three partners to its Russian tax practice, which is led by Gennady Kamyshnikov. The new additions included Svetlana Fedorova who is recognised by peers for her corporate tax expertise, particularly in the retail sector. The transfer ... [more]

Deloitte has added three partners to its Russian tax practice, which is led by Gennady Kamyshnikov. The new additions included Svetlana Fedorova who is recognised by peers for her corporate tax expertise, particularly in the retail sector. The transfer of capital markets specialist, James Ferguson, from London is also a notable addition to the firm's capabilities. The practice is among the largest in Russia, with some 22 partners and 340 other fee earners working across a full range of tax services for clients. For general corporate tax matters, partner Artem Vasyutin is well regarded by clients and recommended by competitors. Similarly, Sergey Vorapaev has his competitors' respect for his litigation abilities and sound tax knowledge. Among the firm's clients are a number of large Russian multinationals, particularly within the oil and gas and energy sectors. Deloitte have undertaken a significant amount of restructuring work this year. The standout example of such matters was the cross-border restructuring of the key business units of a Russian gas company. Deloitte had to ensure a tax efficient structure was implemented which was compatible with the client's strategic need for a division based management structure. Deloitte were also advisers to the KazakhGold Group in their reverse takeover of OJSC Polyus Gold to create the largest gold producer in Russia. As well the usual tax due diligence matters, this entailed implementing a structure to obtain tax efficient treatment of the purchase price. The firm has been engaged by the Russian government to advise on legislative changes, providing them with close links to the Russian tax authorities and to policy development.

The tax practice at Deloitte comprises about 40 professionals and is headed by the highly-regarded Steve Gawromski, who specialises in corporate tax and tax planning, especially for financial products. Adham Hafoudh is the only other tax partner at the ... [more]

The tax practice at Deloitte comprises about 40 professionals and is headed by the highly-regarded Steve Gawromski, who specialises in corporate tax and tax planning, especially for financial products. Adham Hafoudh is the only other tax partner at the firm and joined from Deloitte in the Czech Republic last year and is seen as a rising star in the market.

The practice specialises in all areas of tax including corporate tax, tax planning, VAT and M&A. The practice also offers legal advice through Deloitte Legal. Out of all the areas corporate and indirect tax are the largest, though Michal Antala the leads a strong transfer pricing team. Each practitioner specialises in one area rather than being generalists.

This year Pavol Berec advised on a major demerger involving a listed Norwegian energy company in a deal valued at $20m. Miriam Patiova also obtained a VAT refund of about €5 million ($7 million) for a financial services client. Other work this year includes restructuring the European operations of a US company.

Most of the practice's clients are Slovakian subsidiaries of multinationals. The practice is particularly strong in the financial services sector, advising five out of the six biggest banks in the jurisdiction. The group also advised five out of the 10 largest non-financial companies in the Slovak economy last year.

Deloitte vies with the other big-four accounting firms to have the best tax practice in Slovenia. The group is headed by Barbara Guzina and comprises eight professionals. This number will increase to 10 shortly as two more advisers are set to join in ... [more]

Deloitte vies with the other big-four accounting firms to have the best tax practice in Slovenia. The group is headed by Barbara Guzina and comprises eight professionals. This number will increase to 10 shortly as two more advisers are set to join in the autumn. Guzina is highly regarded in Slovenia and is head of the American Chambers of Commerce tax committee.

The practice offers services across all areas of tax including transfer pricing, indirect tax, M&A and global employer services. This year Guzina worked alongside Andreja Skofic and Sanja Savic on the tax structuring of a Slovenian acquisition. This deal was complex involving serious thin capitalisation and transfer pricing issues. Other work this year includes the liquidation of the assets of a large company.

Roughly three-quarters of the practice's work is domestic, though the number of foreign clients is increasing. The practice has a nice spread between mid-sized companies and subsidiaries of foreign corporations. The group counts two of the largest insurance companies and 15 of the largest companies in Slovenia among the clients that it has represented this year.

Deloitte's tax practice in Ukraine provides clients with a full range of tax services under department head Grigory Pavlotsky. The firm this year assisted mining and steel company Metinvest in developing and implementing a new global tax accounting framework ... [more]

Deloitte's tax practice in Ukraine provides clients with a full range of tax services under department head Grigory Pavlotsky. The firm this year assisted mining and steel company Metinvest in developing and implementing a new global tax accounting framework to streamline tax policy and documentation across the group's companies. There were particular challenges in doing so in Ukraine due to the new tax code, requiring the team involved to ensure that the new processes were consistent with the new regulations. The firm has also been active in M&A tax work and this year advised on the tax implications of the merger between mobile operator Vimpelcom and internet provider Kyivstar. The transaction was complicated by the complex structure of the groups of each company. The merger had to be conducted in a downstream manner, which is not catered for in Ukrainian legislation. The team from Deloitte therefore had to consult with the tax authorities throughout to ensure the merger was compliant from a tax standpoint. The firm's ability in structuring and international tax has ensured that clients such as the Bank of Cyprus and household appliances and electronics company Comfy-Trade rely on its team for tax advice.