On April 25, 2020, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Germany would attempt to seek agreement on a financial transaction tax and a minimum corporate tax when it assumes the presidency of the European Union in July 2020.

On April 23, 2020, the German Ministry of Finance confirmed that taxpayers suffering from liquidity problems due to COVID-19 can apply for a refund of advance tax payments made in 2019.

The United Arab Emirates' Federal Tax Authority has announced changes to value-added tax filing and payment deadlines, for tax periods that ended on March 31.

The OECD has scheduled a new Tax Talks webcast to update stakeholders on its work on the reform of international tax rules for the digitalized economy.

On April 29, 2020, the Belgian tax authority announced changes to the deadline for the submission of annual corporate tax declarations due to the COVID-19 crisis.

On July 11, 2019, France's proposed digital services tax received parliamentary approval, following approval also from the Senate.

G7 finance ministers have said that there is an urgent need to address the tax challenges posed by the digitalization of the economy.

On July 19, 2019, the United States Internal Revenue Service updated its webpage on foreign tax credits to clarify that it will not challenge foreign tax credit claims involving certain French taxes.

On August 19, 2019, the Office of the United States Trade Representative held an off-camera public hearing on France's recently introduced digital services tax, attended by three major technology firms.

The Governments of France and the United States are reportedly close to settling a dispute surrounding France's digital services tax.

According to a recent comment by United States Vice President Mike Pence, the Polish Government has decided not to proceed with a national digital services tax.

On September 23, 2019, the French Government outlined a number of measures that will be included in the 2020 Finance Law to ensure the payment of value-added tax on items bought by French residents from online marketplaces.

The overall tax burden in the European Union relative to GDP rose slightly in 2018, to 40.3 percent, the Eurostat has announced.

Nine EU member states have called on the European Commission to draw up proposals for an EU-wide aviation tax.

On November 15, 2019, Luxembourg's Council of Ministers approved a protocol to the 2018 double tax treaty with France, making changes to the way cross-border workers are taxed.

The United States may impose additional duties of up to 100 percent on certain French products in retaliation for France's digital services tax, which a newly published report by the US Trade Representative has concluded discriminates against certain US companies.

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz has presented a final proposal for a European Union financial transactions tax to the 10 member states participating in the initiative.

On January 6, 2020, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced that an on-the-record but off-camera public hearing would be held on January 7 on proposed action against France's digital services tax (DST).

According to French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire, France and the United States will in the next two weeks attempt to reach a compromise over their ongoing dispute regarding France's new digital services tax.

On January 6, 2019, a decree was published in the French Official Journal to modify the list of non-cooperative states and territories in tax matters.

Norway's Minister of Finance, Siv Jensen, has said that Norway will adopt a national digital services tax if negotiations towards an international digital tax framework fail to materialize this year.

The UK Chancellor, Sajid Javid, has said the UK intends to push ahead with the introduction of a digital services tax from April 2020, despite warnings from the US that it would consider tariffs on UK-made goods.

On January 22, 2020, French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire confirmed that France will suspend collection of its digital services tax this year to prevent the United States from applying retaliatory tariffs on a range of French goods.

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz has said he is confident that an agreement can be reached on a European Union financial transactions tax.

On January 24, 2020, the European Commission issued formal notices to numerous European Union member states with regards to lapses in the implementation of various EU anti-tax avoidance directives.

The European Commission has launched infringement proceedings against 14 member states for failing to implement the so-called value-added tax quick fixes.

Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has said that Austria does not agree with new German proposals for a European financial transactions tax.

France's Directorate General of Public Finance confirmed in a statement issued on February 10, 2020, that companies liable for the country's digital services tax can delay payment of upcoming installments of the tax until December 2020.

On February 19, 2020, German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz issued a statement to say that he remains "committed" to the introduction of a financial transactions tax at European Union level along the same lines as that proposed by the German Government last month, despite opposition from within the EU, notably from Austria.

The finance ministers of France, Germany, Italy, and Spain have put their names to a statement calling for countries to reach an agreement on solving the tax challenges of the digital economy by the end of 2020.

The French General Directorate of Public Finance has announced that companies and self-employed taxpayers will be able to postpone without penalty upcoming tax payments due to the public health emergency.

The OECD has said that it is continuing to forge ahead with the development of new international tax rules for the digitalized economy.

In a set of frequently asked questions and answers clarifying recent changes to tax obligations as a result of the COVID-19 virus, the French tax authority stressed that tax payment relief does not extend to value-added tax.

The OECD has released new stage two peer reviews on seven countries' implementation of the BEPS Action 14 minimum standard, on improving tax dispute resolution, covering Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Sweden.

On April 24, 2020, the French Government announced that it has decided to extend tax and other financial support to companies in sectors most affected by the COVID-19 lockdown measures, including catering, tourism, events, sports, and cultural activities.

An active ingredient found in fruit peels and some herbs can halt and reduce further damage to neurons in multiple sclerosis (MS), reports a new study.

Popular methods for judging the doneness of chicken may not ensure safety from pathogens, revealed findings presented by Solveig Langsrud of the Norwegian

WHO has officially recognized 'compulsive sexual behavior' a mental disorder. An excessive engrossment with sexual fantasies urges, and behaviors that

Gonorrhoea is the second most common sexually transmitted infection across the European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries with almost 5,00,000 reported cases between 2007 and 2016.

Combination of a vaccine and a medicated cream was found to be a promising strategy to dramatically reduce the recurrence of genital herpes, said Yale investigators.

Oral health has been separated from routine healthcare and health policy for too long, despite the fact that oral diseases constitutes a major global

Common ingredient in mouthwash could be damaging your teeth by turning your saliva more acidic, reports a new study. The findings of the study are published in the journal iScientific Reports/i.

IWMI commits to a water-secure world as it has announced a new five-year strategy aimed at boosting the center’s research and its influence in tackling global water challenges.

(NEW DELHI. 17 December 2015) The severe drought in Bundelkhand is likely to become a more regular occurrence according to scientists at the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). Records show that the area, straddling the states of Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh near Jhansi, experienced seven droughts in the last decade. This compares with a […]

Recycling waste and delivering a safe nutrient-rich fertilizer for food production

If you’re of a certain age, Ethiopia may still invoke images of its devastating mid-1980s famine that gripped people around the world – including celebrities. But the once impoverished country has redefined itself in just over a generation.

Bringing innovative solutions to the growers and helping them achieve sustainable farming is the only option for coping with the challenges of today’s agriculture sector

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) South Asia Office in India, convened a multi-sectoral panel discussion on - “Creating Sustainable Value Chains for Transforming Food Systems” on 4 Feb 2020, at the National Agricultural Science Complex in Delhi.

The energy embedded in wastewater, meanwhile, could provide electricity to 158 million households – roughly the number of households in the USA and Mexico combined.

Current wastewater nutrient recovery technologies have made significant progress. In the case of phosphorous, recovery rates range from 25% to 90%.