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The comprehensive guide to the world's leading tax firms

PwC has tax capability in its offices across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The firm is strong in tax structuring, transactional support, transfer pricing, indirect tax and customs and has improved its ability in tax controversy. Villi Tõntson, who leads ... [more]

PwC has tax capability in its offices across Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. The firm is strong in tax structuring, transactional support, transfer pricing, indirect tax and customs and has improved its ability in tax controversy. Villi Tõntson, who leads the firm's tax team in Estonia, is commended by his peers for his work in M&A and recognised as one of the market leaders in that area. "He is very experienced, very thorough and well respected," said one peer. In Latvia, Zlata Elksnina-Zascirinska is head of the tax practice, which has a good reputation in corporate tax. Vita Sakne is recommended by competitors in Latvia for her ability in that practice area, too. In Lithuania, Kristina Krisciunaite leads the tax practice and is well regarded by her peers in more than one practice area. Several of her competitors recommended her work in both transfer pricing and in corporate tax matters. The firm's transfer pricing practice appears to be particularly strong across the region, as Hannes Lentsius has also been noticed by other Estonian practitioners for his skill in that area.

PwC's tax team in Bulgaria is led by country managing partner Irina Tsvetkova who is viewed by her competitors as one of the strongest practitioners in the Bulgarian tax market. "She is a very active on the market and people have a high opinion of her" ... [more]

PwC's tax team in Bulgaria is led by country managing partner Irina Tsvetkova who is viewed by her competitors as one of the strongest practitioners in the Bulgarian tax market. "She is a very active on the market and people have a high opinion of her" said one partner. She is one of two partners alongside Paul Tobin. Krasimir Merdzhov is mentioned as an up-and-coming practitioner.

The team comprises around 25 people and covers most of the major areas of tax including corporate tax, VAT, transfer pricing, M&A, VAT, excise duty, international structuring and tax compliance, especially in the area of VAT. There is a good balance to the practice with a near-equal split between corporate tax and indirect tax. Specialisation, which existed before the problems in the economy, has ceased and most of the professionals cover a broad range of tax areas.

Compliance work has increased this year along with transfer pricing because of the increasing scrutiny of the authorities during audits. The transfer pricing team comprises about three professionals and this is an area the practice expects to grow over the next few years. This year has seen a pick-up in M&A work but this has still been relatively quiet in terms of pre-2008 levels.

The team has clients in most of the large industries and is particularly strong in the pharmaceutical and real estate sectors though work for the latter has decreased over the last few years.

PwC's tax practice is the largest of the big-four in the Czech Republic. The practice is headed by Paul Stewart and has about 160 feeearners. William Schofield has left this year to rejoin PwC in the UK. Peter Cherenko has been appointed partner this ... [more]

PwC's tax practice is the largest of the big-four in the Czech Republic. The practice is headed by Paul Stewart and has about 160 feeearners. William Schofield has left this year to rejoin PwC in the UK. Peter Cherenko has been appointed partner this year as the firm looks to develop its litigation and public sector expertise.

The practice can be broken down into four main areas. Human resources consulting is a major source of revenue, counting for about 30%. The team used to be led by Schofield but following his departure the practice has been looking for someone to replace him. The VAT team is also a large part of the firm and is led by Peter Skelhorn.

The transfer pricing team this has been growing rapidly over the last few years. The M&A team, also led by Kucerova, is particularly strong too, Despite the market slowdown the practice has worked on two out of the three largest transactions in Central and Eastern Europe over the last year. The group also advised Penta on the sale of the TES Group to Advent International.

PwC's tax practice is led by Russell Lambert. David Williams has joined this year from Ernst & Young in Australia; he heads the practice's compliance centre. Dóra Máthé has also become a partner this year; she focuses mostly on international tax structuring ... [more]

PwC's tax practice is led by Russell Lambert. David Williams has joined this year from Ernst & Young in Australia; he heads the practice's compliance centre. Dóra Máthé has also become a partner this year; she focuses mostly on international tax structuring for multinationals.

The practice is focuses across seven main areas: transfer pricing, corporate tax advisory, compliance, human resources services, indirect tax, international tax and customs. Corporate tax advisory, led by Lambert, is the main area of focus for the practice. This year the team advised on one of the largest M&A transactions, which involved structuring across five different jurisdictions.

Transfer pricing work has grown over the last year or so, though this is more defence work and planning as opposed to documentation work. Indirect tax work has also increased. This is largely due to Hungary joining the EU in 2004, and also its fortuitous geographical position within Europe for supply chain structuring. The team is led by Tamas Locsei.

The number of local clients has increased dramatically over the last few years because of the establishmentof a service focusing on this area just over a year ago. The practice also cooperates with Réti, Antall and Partners, as its correspondent law firm in Hungary, allowing them to provide a complete service to their clients.

PwC's Polish tax team is lead by Iwona Smith, who is well regarded by competitors for her capability in M&A. One of her peers said:"She is very well recognised in the market, very well qualified and experienced and I can honestly say she is very good ... [more]

PwC's Polish tax team is lead by Iwona Smith, who is well regarded by competitors for her capability in M&A. One of her peers said:"She is very well recognised in the market, very well qualified and experienced and I can honestly say she is very good when it comes to M&A issues". In transfer pricing, both Sebastian Lebda and Piotr Wiewiórka are noted for their ability while Marcin Chomiuk is well regarded for indirect tax. The firm's clients include several multinational companiess operating in Poland, such as ArcelorMittal, AstraZeneca, GE Capital and BP International. This year the firm has also worked with the Polish Ministry of Finance for the third consecutive year on reforming the nation's tax administration. The aim is to enhance efficiency, allow taxpayers to file their returns online and facilitate access to the tax administration to enable better consultation with tax payers. Other work for the firm this year included the restructuring of the holdings of Polish partners in UK private equity partnerships. The team streamlined tax payable on partners' remuneration by structuring their holdings via Cyprus, requiring substantial liaison with the firm's offices there to provide advice on the Polish and Cypriot tax implications. PwC advised a confectionery company operating in Poland on the sale of parts of its Polish business required by EU competition law to allow its purchase by a multinational food and drink manufacturer. The firm advised on the most efficient structure to use for the divestment and their advice covered a number of areas including income tax, VAT, excise duty and customs. The firm has the biggest tax department in Poland and the addition of former Deloitte director Slawomir Krempa brings the total number of fee earners to 328 working under 11 partners.

PwC is viewed by some of the market as the strongest tax firm in Romania. However, while the practice attracts comments such as: "PwC is the leader. It has always been the leader since the collapse of Andersen," and "They are definitely number one in ... [more]

PwC is viewed by some of the market as the strongest tax firm in Romania. However, while the practice attracts comments such as: "PwC is the leader. It has always been the leader since the collapse of Andersen," and "They are definitely number one in terms of reputation", there were not enough to put them in their own tier above Deloitte and Ernst & Young.

The practice is led by Peter de Ruiter, who has experience of working in both the Netherlands and Poland. He leads a team of more than 200 practitioners, the largest of all firms in Romania.

The practice is structured across four main areas of tax: corporate tax, which includes everything from tax structuring and planning to M&A; indirect tax, mostly VAT but also customs; individual income tax and human resources services which includes human resources management and payroll processing; and legal services, through their correspondent law firm, D&B David Si Baias, where the team is led by Sorin David.

A number of the professionals are picked out as leading practitioners. Mihaela Mitroi is singled out for corporate tax and cross-border structuring and is described as a "big name in the market". Ionut Simion is also mentioned for corporate tax and cross-border structuring as well as transfer pricing, while Diana Coroaba and Mihaela Craciun are mentioned for M&A and cross-border structuring respectively.

The practice advises clients across all industries but particularly consumer and industrial products, information technology, communications and entertainment, pharmaceutical sector, oil & gas and energy companies, and financial services.

The leader of PwC's highly rated tax team in Russia is David John, who peers recommend as a corporate tax adviser. The firm offers a full range of tax services to its clients, but has particular expertise in cross border structuring, M&A, capital markets ... [more]

The leader of PwC's highly rated tax team in Russia is David John, who peers recommend as a corporate tax adviser. The firm offers a full range of tax services to its clients, but has particular expertise in cross border structuring, M&A, capital markets and transfer pricing. There are several practitioners in these areas that competitors mention as notable. Frequently mentioned for transfer pricing is Svetlana Stroykova, Ekaterina Lazorina is a noted tax adviser for capital markets and financial products and her peers comment that "she is really very good and takes a very practical approach to quite complicated tax issues". For both cross-border structuring and M&A, Galina Naumenko is identified by peers as a particularly capable practitioner. The practice also offers a tax compliance service, led by partner Kirill Nikitin, which seeks to tailor compliance requirements to clients' business needs.

Todd Bradshaw runs the tax practice at PwC consisting of 60 advisers, which makes it the biggest tax practice of the big-four firms in the Slovak Republic and so the biggest in the country. The practice provides a complete range of tax services and is ... [more]

Todd Bradshaw runs the tax practice at PwC consisting of 60 advisers, which makes it the biggest tax practice of the big-four firms in the Slovak Republic and so the biggest in the country. The practice provides a complete range of tax services and is structured across four main areas: corporate income tax, human resources, indirect tax and transfer pricing. Out of those areas corporate tax and VAT are the two largest areas but all parts of the practice have grown in the last year. The practice can also provide legal services, where Marc-Tell Madl, another partner, heads the team. He joined this May from PwC in the Ukraine.

Since the introduction of documentation requirements in 2009 transfer pricing has certainly been a source of more work. The team is headed by Christina Serugova.

The practice advises both local and international clients across a wide range of industries. Advisers on the German desk support the many clients from there.

Akos Burjan replaced Clare Moger as PwC's head of tax in Slovenia in August 2011. The practice provides a complete range of tax services including corporate, VAT, which includes representing clients in tax inspections, as well as general consulting.Tax ... [more]

Akos Burjan replaced Clare Moger as PwC's head of tax in Slovenia in August 2011. The practice provides a complete range of tax services including corporate, VAT, which includes representing clients in tax inspections, as well as general consulting.

Tax structuring in M&A and group reorganisations are strengths of the practice. Burjan is acknowledged as a leading transfer pricing specialist, while Marijana Ristevski and Tom Dane are well known for their indirect tax and corporate tax advice respectively.

The practice advises both multinational corporations and also mid-sized companies and is particularly strong in the consumer and industrial products, financial services, technology, information and communication, and energy and utilities sectors.

PwC's Ukrainian tax team is led by Ron Barden and has several well regarded practitioners. Svetlana Bilyk is noted by rivals for her ability in corporate tax matters. One contemporary said: "We have some mutual clients and they have all been impressed ... [more]

PwC's Ukrainian tax team is led by Ron Barden and has several well regarded practitioners. Svetlana Bilyk is noted by rivals for her ability in corporate tax matters. One contemporary said: "We have some mutual clients and they have all been impressed by her corporate tax work. I have worked alongside her many times and I can commend her approach, she is well respected in the market." The firm offers clients a full range of tax services, though cross -border structuring is a strong area for the practice.

This year the team advised a Ukrainian industrial company on its issue of Eurobonds, focusing on the optimal structure for the allocation of funds from the issue. An analysis of the group's Dutch entity was also performed to ascertain the implications of the bond issue on the group's transfer pricing affairs. This kind of work exemplifies the firm's ability in capital markets and financial products, for which Barden has a good reputation among his contemporaries.

The tax team also advised a multinational company on restructuring its Ukrainian operations to minimise tax risks. A key concern was ensuring that it was possible for the company to withdraw profits from the country in a tax efficient manner. Such cross-border structuring matters highlight another area where the firm is well regarded, as Slava Vlasov receives her contemporaries' praise for her creativity and ability in that practice area.