EU proposes rules against shell companies to fight tax abuse

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Commission has proposed rules to better detect shell companies and prevent them from receiving tax benefits. The EU’s executive arm said Wednesday that the measures would help national authorities identify shell companies through a filtering system based on criteria such as income, transactions and management. EU estimates show tax dodging causes the bloc to lose up to 1 trillion euros in income each year. The commission also proposed another directive ensuring a minimum effective tax rate for large multinational companies, helping implement a deal reached in October by more than 130 countries.