Lehet, nem lehet, ki tudja?

There are different concepts with various meanings when dealing with the phenomenon of retroactivity in legislation. Not only are various concepts used for ‘retroactivity’ (e.g., retroactivity, retrospectivity, formal retroactivity, material retroactivity, and true retroactivity) but the same concept is often used with different meanings (viz., the concepts of retroactivity and retrospectivity1). In this questionnaire, the term ‘retroactivity’ means that the effective entrance date of (one of more provisions of) a statute is set at a date prior to the moment on which the statute enters into force (in Dutch fiscal literature, this is called ‘formal retroactivity’), i.e. (one of more provisions of) the statute covers the period before the date of entry into force. For example, a statute enters into force on February 1, 2010, and stipulates that a certain tax exemption is repealed as from January 1, 2009. The term ‘retrospectivity’ means that the statute has ‘immediate effect’ (i.e., the effective entrance date of a statute is the same date as the date on which the statute enters into force) without grandfathering, as a result of which the statute alters or affects the results of a past event for the future (in Dutch fiscal literature, this is called ‘material retroactivity’). For example, a statute enters into force on January 1, 2010, and stipulates that a certain tax exemption is repealed as from that date without grandfathering accrued but unrealised gains, as a result of which gains that accrued prior to January 1, 2010 are not tax exempt although they accrued in a period when the exemption applied.