Recital (16)

In order to render the CMU more effective and competitive, procedures for the relief of excess withholding taxes on income from securities should be facilitated and accelerated where adequate information has been provided by relevant certified financial intermediaries, including on the identity of the investor. The relevant certified financial intermediaries are all those certified financial intermediaries in the securities payment chain that are situated between the investor and the issuer of the securities and that might be required to provide information on payments effected by non-certified financial intermediaries in the chain. Taking into account the different approaches across Member States, two types of procedures should be provided for: first, a relief-at-source system where the appropriate tax rate is applied directly at the time of withholding and second, a quick refund system where a request for a refund is submitted by the certified financial intermediary and is processed by the tax authority of the source Member State by a set deadline provided for in this Directive. If such refunds are not processed by that deadline, late payment interest should be applied where national rules so provide. Member States that apply chapter III of this Directive should be able to introduce a relief-at-source system or a quick refund system or a combination thereof, ensuring that at least one system is available to all investors, in accordance with the requirements of this Directive. A Member State which has opted for such a combination should be able to limit the use of one system to specific cases, such as low-risk scenarios, provided that the other system remains available for all other cases covered by this Directive. Those receiving payments outside the scope of this Directive, such as dividends from listed companies paid to registered owners that are resident for tax purposes in the source Member State, dividends from non-listed companies or interest in cases where a Member State has not opted to apply this Directive to interest payments, could still be entitled to request relief of excess withholding tax under a national relief-at-source or refund system applicable to the procedures corresponding to such payments.