To enable taxpayers to accurately verify whether ITAXA Firm meets their needs in tax consultancy, tax assistance, and tax litigation, the following characteristics of taxpayers who can derive maximum benefit from the Firm’s services are outlined, as well as those for whom ITAXA Firm is not intended.
The following criteria are based on good faith, loyalty, cooperation, and legality in the relationship between the professional and the taxpayer.
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1. The taxpayer’s intention to seek specialists in international taxation (not just general tax advice).
ITAXA Firm effectively supports taxpayers (individuals and businesses) seeking assistance (consulting, tax assistance, and tax litigation) from specialists in international taxation.
ITAXA Firm is NOT intended for taxpayers with simple and ordinary domestic tax cases who seek non-specialized tax consultants (e.g., compliance services that can be handled by Tax Assistance Centers or similar).
2. The taxpayer’s willingness to evaluate both tax benefits and tax risks of every decision made.
ITAXA Firm provides its consultancy services to taxpayers (individuals and businesses) who understand that evaluating the tax risks associated with certain decisions is essential before considering the tax benefits of such decisions.
ITAXA Firm is NOT intended for taxpayers who focus solely on achieving tax benefits without considering the risks of potential tax violations.
3. The taxpayer’s willingness to comply with the type of consultancy identified and proposed by the professional.
ITAXA Firm provides its services to taxpayers (individuals and businesses) willing to rely on the types of assistance options (consulting, tax assistance, and tax litigation) proposed by its professionals as the most suitable for their specific case.
ITAXA Firm does NOT provide its services to taxpayers who request assistance incompatible with those deemed appropriate by the professionals for the specific case.
4. Delegating problem identification to the professional.
ITAXA Firm provides its services to taxpayers who do NOT preemptively suggest analysis methods or solutions but allow the professional to identify the critical aspects of the case and propose appropriate strategies.
5. Avoid independent interpretation or application of tax rules and leave solution identification to the professional.
ITAXA Firm assists taxpayers who refrain from making decisions based on personal interpretations of the applicable tax laws and rely on the professional’s expertise and experience to avoid mistakes.
The collaboration with the client focuses on gathering relevant information and data, while resolving contentious issues, which is the professional’s responsibility.
ITAXA Firm does NOT provide services to taxpayers who (without proven expertise and appropriate qualifications in international taxation) impose solutions to their cases or contentious issues without adhering to the professionals’ guidance.
Additionally, the Firm does not cater to taxpayers seeking a definitive and guaranteed solution to a case, especially when tax regulations do not authorize such a solution.
6. The taxpayer’s intention to understand the scope of expertise of specialists in international taxation.
ITAXA Firm assists taxpayers (individuals and businesses) who are aware that a professional’s expertise in international taxation encompasses both Italian domestic tax matters and international and supranational regulations.
This expertise does NOT extend specifically to the domestic tax rules of foreign countries (which fall under the jurisdiction of local tax consultants).
This means that neither ITAXA Firm nor any other firm can provide a professional specializing in domestic taxation in all foreign countries.
7. Avoid influencing the professional’s work based on a previous consultant’s approach.
Taxpayers accept the possibility that the work of a previous consultant may NOT align with the Firm’s approach and that new analyses or compliance actions may be necessary.
8. Providing complete and accurate information to the professional.
To enable effective assistance, taxpayers must transparently share all relevant details of their case, including potentially unfavorable ones.
ITAXA Firm does NOT provide services to taxpayers who fail to transparently share all necessary information at the outset to ensure appropriate assistance.
9. Requesting preventive assistance for significant tax decisions and addressing tax matters promptly.
ITAXA Firm works with taxpayers who believe tax decisions should be analyzed and validated by a consultant before implementation to avoid errors that may be challenging to correct later.
For this reason, taxpayers should contact the Firm as early as possible, even for preliminary doubts, to prevent aggravated sanctions or disputes.
10. Adopting a technical approach to tax litigation.
In legal defense activities, taxpayers rely on ITAXA Firm’s technical defense, which is based on legal norms, documented evidence, well-defined strategies, and meticulous drafting of defense briefs, avoiding reliance on personal perceptions or intuitions.
ITAXA Firm does NOT provide legal assistance to taxpayers who believe that “guaranteed victories” exist in tax litigation (they do not) or disregard the importance of thorough examination of factual and legal elements and accurate and effective drafting of defense briefs.
11. Attributing appropriate value to the services requested from the professional.
ITAXA Firm serves taxpayers who recognize that the value of tax assistance services (international tax consultancy, tax assistance, and tax litigation) provided by professionals depends on:
- Academic expertise in international taxation;
- Over a decade of experience in international tax consultancy;
- Over a decade of experience dealing with tax authorities and in tax litigation involving international tax matters;
- The time dedicated to analyzing issues and carrying out assistance procedures (consulting, tax assistance, and tax litigation).
ITAXA Firm does NOT cater to taxpayers who fail to consider the professionals’ academic background and years of experience as critical factors in providing appropriate assistance for their case.
12. Do not delegate the resolution of tax matters to Artificial Intelligence
The Firm’s acceptance of the mandate is conditional upon the agreement to a mandatory methodological principle: Artificial Intelligence is not a suitable tool for providing answers or strategies regarding international taxation.
The Firm does NOT establish or maintain professional relationships with Clients who believe that tax decisions can be validated based on algorithmic outputs.
This restriction stems from a precise technical assessment: AI operates on probabilistic logic. While this may guarantee high statistical accuracy (99%) in some cases, it proves fatal in a deterministic sector such as taxation. Here, a residual margin of error of 1% does not merely result in a minor discrepancy, but carries the concrete risk of losing the entire invested capital due to penalties, interest, and potential criminal implications.
Therefore, the Firm disclaims all liability for actions taken independently based on information provided by generative software. While we encourage the use of technology exclusively to enhance taxpayer awareness and to formulate the right questions, the definition of the answers must remain the exclusive prerogative of the professional.
To request tax defense or international tax consultancy, write to us at info@itaxa.it
or fill out the Contact Form.
Avv. Antonio Merola – Managing Partner of ITAXA
Professional profile
Partner of ITAXA Law Firm (#1 Italian Tax Law Firm specializing in International Tax Legal Advice), Author of ITAXA Blog – International Taxation in simple words (#1 Italian Blog on International Taxation), “Liquid Taxation” theorist, previously Tax Lawyer at Tinelli & Associati – Tax Law Firm and Of Counsel of various foreign professional firms, he practices the profession of lawyer in the field of Tax Law and Corporate Law, providing both national and international consultancy to the service of resident and non-resident individuals and companies residents.
The lawyer Antonio Merola is a lecturer in the II Level University Master’s Degree in International Tax Planning at the University of Rome “La Sapienza,” holding lessons on the topic of abuse of international treaties, as well as having collaborated for several years with the University of Studies of Naples “Federico II” in relation to the subjects of Financial Science and Theory of Fiscal Federalism as well as with reference to the II Level Master in Public Finance, also carrying out research and publication activities.
The professional specialized in International Taxation (“international tax law”) in the Netherlands at the International Tax Center (ITC Leiden) of Leiden University (Leiden University), obtaining a Full-time Advanced LL.M. (Master of Laws) in International Tax Law with a final thesis entitled “EU Most Favored Nation treatment v. Tax treaty shopping: re-evaluating the anti-abuse justification in the «rule of reason» doctrine“, published in the well-known magazine “International Tax Law Review” (Sapienza Università Editrice).
Before that, the professional specialized in tax matters (“tax law”), obtaining the II Level Annual Master’s diploma in Tax Law from the University of Rome “Tor Vergata” and the II Level Annual Master’s diploma in International Tax Planning from the University of Rome “La Sapienza.”
The aforementioned specializations were acquired after he graduated with a degree in Law from the University of Naples “Federico II.”
The same is qualified to practice the legal profession, registered in the Register of Lawyers of the Rome Bar Association, and is a member of the National Association of Italian Tax Lawyers (ANTI).
He founded the LinkedIn group “Imprenditori Italiani all’Estero” (Italian Entrepreneurs Abroad), which has over 2,000 members. The group aims to connect Italian entrepreneurs operating abroad, encourage the exchange of information and suggestions relating to strategies adopted to become competitive in new markets and promote the development of new entrepreneurial synergies.
To request tax defense or international tax consultancy, write to us at info@itaxa.it
or fill out the Contact Form.
