Inhaltsangabe: Abstract: The creation of the World Trade Organization
(hereafter „WTO") in 1995 was a turning point in the history of
international trade. For the first time, an international organization
was given the acutely significant mission of enacting and supervising a
code of conduct for international trade relations. If areas of
misbehavior are identified, interventions can be initiated within the
WTO's legal competence. A well-engineered dispute settlement mechanism
provides the instrument for ensuring compliance with the standards
imposed. Tax-related distortions of international trade result from both
tariff and non-tariff barriers. Taxation has the potential of having
obstructive effects on trade - a phenomenon which the WTO is very well
aware of. The principal objective of this thesis is to describe the
WTO's impact on a country's latitude to design its fiscal measures in
light of the effect on foreign trade. In this respect, the WTO's
provisions that relate to taxation are of particular significance.
First, after the relevant provisions have been identified, a test will
be applied to show the resultant repercussions on taxation. The General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994 (hereafter „GATT") and the
subsequent General Agreement on Trade in Services (hereafter „GATS") -
representing two core agreements of the WTO - will be scrutinized in
separate chapters. However, to avoid going beyond the scope of this
paper, the agreements will only be dealt with in a limited way. Thus,
any references to subsidizing will be disregarded. Although the author
is very aware of the practical importance of subsidies within the WTO
framework, limits had to be drawn. Primarily, the thesis will give an
introduction to the agreements' legal status within the European Union
and the single European Member States. Focus will be on the impact of
the WTO in the respective legal orders. Moreover, the repercussions on
individual parties will be addressed as well. Finally, the
