At its dawn, the ATAD 3 Proposal and its adverse tax consequences were considered by some as the demise of international investment and holding structures. Others pointed out the uncertainties surrounding key terms related to this proposal. A few optimists saw it merely as a measured extension of ATAD 1 and ATAD 2 targeting merely the so-called “letterbox” vehicles.

Needless to say that caution should be taken nowadays on any scheme planned by the EU Commission to tackle aggressive tax planning. However, given the resistance of some Member States to the content and even the legality of this proposal, not only its current challenging timing but also its final content, and as such its real impacts, remain uncertain at this date. Indeed, seven months after its publication, nothing has moved since then. An overreaction does thus not seem to be appropriate, although its possible impacts may be analysed as of now to assess the presence of any risks even in its current wording.