Combating Cyber VAT Fraud in the EU Member States: A Comparative Study of Criminal and Criminal Procedure Law

VAT fraud has long posed a major challenge to the economic stability of individual countries and the European Union (EU) as a whole. In recent years, the convergence of VAT fraud and cybercrime has led to a new phenomenon: cyber VAT fraud. Despite its increasing prevalence, this complex issue has not yet been sufficiently researched and a comprehensive framework to combat it effectively has yet to be developed. This article is an anticipation of the comparative legal analysis on combating cyber VAT fraud in the European Union, which is part of the project "EU CYBER VAT - Fighting cyber-VAT fraud in the EU: a comparative criminological and criminal law study", co-founded by the Union Anti-Fraud Program (EUAF) of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF). The EU CYBER VAT project aims to fill this gap by assessing the adequacy of the existing legal framework both at EU and Member State level. The comparative analysis examines whether the current rules, including the PIF Directive and its implementation at national level, provide solid and effective protection against the new threats posed by cyber VAT fraud.