Tax Law
Jean-Philippe CHATELAIN
I hold the DJCE (Diplôme de Juriste Conseil d’Entreprise, a French postgraduate degree in business law, Montpellier centre) and a specialised postgraduate certificate in tax law (Certificat d’Études Spécialisées, mention droit fiscal).
My training and more than 15 years of professional experience in a Paris firm dedicated to business law and tax law have convinced me that, beyond the essential mastery of the technical rules, each matter calls for a resolutely pragmatic approach.
Unless instructed otherwise, I always favour a measured approach, seeking to negotiate with the tax authorities rather than to bring litigation, which is often long and costly.
Areas of practice
Advice and Audit
- Structuring of business activities, setting up of holding companies, identification of tax optimisation opportunities,
- Sale of a business, retirement: tax simulations, review of the applicable schemes,
- Personal wealth projects,
- Audit of your company’s activity and/or of your personal situation.
Tax audits
- Assistance during tax audits of businesses (vérification de comptabilité) and during in-depth reviews of an individual’s overall tax position (examen de la situation fiscale personnelle, ESFP),
- Assistance at every stage of the procedure.
International tax law
- Formalities when leaving or returning to France,
- Tax residence of individuals and legal entities,
- Application of international tax treaties.
Tax litigation
- Pre-litigation procedures,
- Handling of disputes before the administrative and judicial courts, and assistance at the pre-complaint stage before the French Tax Offences Commission (Commission des infractions fiscales, CIF).
Tax collection and applications for discretionary relief
- Challenging and/or setting up payment plans,
- Applications for discretionary relief (recours gracieux) at every stage of tax proceedings.
Tax returns and regularisation
- Preparation and review of tax returns (personal income tax (IRPP), real estate wealth tax (IFI), and French property-holding companies (SCI)),
- Review of business tax returns,
- Regularisation of foreign bank accounts, trusts and life insurance policies.