Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance

What Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance does

The Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance (Max-Planck-Institut für Steuerrecht und Öffentliche Finanzen) is a non-profit academic research institute established in 2010 and headquartered in Munich, Germany. It operates as a constituent institute of the Max Planck Society (Max-Planck-Gesellschaft), Germany's leading publicly funded basic research organization. The institute is structured around two core research divisions: Business and Tax Law (Unternehmens- und Steuerrecht), which focuses on corporate and tax law including tax avoidance, international tax treaties, transfer pricing, and the intersection of EU law with national tax systems; and Public Economics (Finanzwissenschaft), which studies public finance, behavioral economics, taxation and labor markets, political economics, and environmental economics. It is led by Directors Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Schön and Prof. Dr. Kai A. Konrad, and employs approximately 32 staff.

The institute's outputs are scholarly in nature rather than commercial. It publishes the MPI Studies in Tax Law and Public Finance book series (Springer), issues working papers and journal articles in peer-reviewed venues, hosts an annual Max Planck European Postdoctoral Conference on Tax Law, runs a Ph.D. program with separate tracks in both research divisions, and operates a Scientific Guest Program for visiting researchers. It maintains a specialized library with catalogues, databases, and open access resources. Notable research affiliations and partnerships include co-hosted conferences with Université Catholique de Louvain and the Tax Institute of the University of Liège, and joint workshops with the NYU Jean Monnet Center for International and Regional Economic Law & Justice.

The institute does not sell commercial products or services and does not generate licensing or transaction revenue. It is funded institutionally through the Max Planck Society, which in turn receives the majority of its resources from German federal and state government sources. All research outputs are made publicly available at no charge through publications, conferences, and open access repositories. Its primary "customers" are the international academic and policy research community, including university researchers, legal scholars, and policymakers working on tax law and public economics.

Name

Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance

Legal name

Max-Planck-Institut für Steuerrecht und Öffentliche Finanzen

Website

https://tax.mpg.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance is a Munich-based non-profit research institute within the Max Planck Society, conducting interdisciplinary academic research in international tax law, corporate taxation, and public economics for the scholarly and policy community.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Research (Tax Law and Public Finance)

NAICS

Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities (54172)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAHAFAG

Early Childhood & Elementary Teacher Preparation Programs

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Teacher Training Colleges (Education Schools)

SECONDARYEDAHABAD

Social Sciences & Public Policy Research Universities

Education/Higher Education (Colleges & Universities)/Private Research Universities

SECONDARYMPAJABAJ

Research Monographs & University Press Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Educational & Academic Publishing (Textbooks, Scholarly, STM)

Keywords

• Tax law research
• Public economics research
• Academic research institute
• Fiscal policy analysis
• International taxation scholarship

Headquarters

HQ city

Munich

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Institutional Funding: Funded by the Max Planck Society, which receives government funding for basic research in the public interest

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

The institute conducts interdisciplinary academic research on tax law and public finance through two core departments — Business and Tax Law (Unternehmens- und Steuerrecht) and Public Economics (Finanzwissenschaft). It produces scholarly publications, hosts international conferences and visiting scholars, runs a Ph.D. program, maintains a specialized research library, and publishes the MPI Studies in Tax Law and Public Finance book series through Springer.

Product overview

The Max Planck Institute for Tax Law and Public Finance is a research institute within the Max Planck Society, not a commercial product company. It operates two core research divisions: Business and Tax Law (Unternehmens- und Steuerrecht) and Public Economics (Finanzwissenschaft). Supporting offerings include a Ph.D. program, a Scientific Guest Program for visiting researchers, the MPI Studies in Tax Law and Public Finance book series (published by Springer), library services, and annual postdoctoral conferences on tax law. The institute produces academic publications, organizes workshops and events, and fosters international scholarly exchange but does not offer commercial products or software services.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Researchers publish in leading academic journals including Journal of Environmental Economics and Management, Canadian Tax Journal, Economics of Governance, and other peer-reviewed publications

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Université Catholique de LouvaincoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023Co-hosted the international conference 'Abuse of Law in European Taxation' in November 2023 at the Palais des Académies in Brussels. The conference brought together leading experts to discuss controversial issues in European tax law.
• Tax Institute of the University of LiègecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2023Co-hosted the international conference 'Abuse of Law in European Taxation' in November 2023 at the Palais des Académies in Brussels alongside the Université Catholique de Louvain.
• Max Planck SocietycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerParent organization providing institutional funding, governance framework, and integration into the broader Max Planck network of research institutes. The institute is an official Institute of the Max Planck Society.
• New York University Jean Monnet CenterminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint workshop on European fiscal and social state held at NYU's Jean Monnet Center in May 2026, organized by Professor Joseph H.H. Weiler.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Oxford University Centre for Business Taxation: University-based research center producing leading academic work on international and corporate taxation, including the Oxford Review of Economic Policy special issues on tax. Comparable mission, interdisciplinary approach, and policy orientation.
• Amsterdam Center for Tax Law (ACTL): University research center focused on European and international tax law with a PhD program and visiting scholars; competes for the same European tax law scholarly audience as the Max Planck Institute.
• WU Vienna - Institute for Austrian and International Tax Law: Closest direct peer: also a university-affiliated institute dedicated to international and comparative tax law research, offering doctoral programs and producing the WU tax law publication series. Highly comparable mission, scale, and audience.

Broad incumbents

• Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS): Leading independent UK economic research institute studying tax policy and public finance with strong empirical and policy orientation; broader macro-fiscal scope but overlapping public economics research domain.
• Max Planck Institute for Comparative Public Law and International Law: Sister Max Planck institute covering public and international law more broadly; overlaps on international tax and fiscal constitutional topics but is a wider-scope law institute rather than a tax-focused specialist.
• Centre for Tax Policy and Administration (OECD): OECD's tax policy directorate produces the canonical international tax standards (Model Tax Convention, BEPS reports). Comparable policy-adjacent output and influence on tax law and public finance, but as a supranational policy body rather than an academic institute.

Others

• Tax Analysts: Non-profit publisher covering global tax policy and scholarship; comparable non-profit mission of advancing public understanding of tax law, overlapping on distribution and dissemination of tax policy research.
• International Fiscal Association (IFA): Global scientific organization for international tax law that awards the IFA Congress Award (received by institute researchers in 2026); functions as a peer scholarly association and recurring conference host rather than a research institute.
• European Commission - DG TAXUD: EU body responsible for tax policy and legislation; not a research peer but a primary consumer of the institute's scholarship and a frequent co-host/partner for conferences on European tax law.

Emerging players

• ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research, Mannheim Tax Research Group: German economic research institute running empirical tax policy research with strong focus on corporate taxation; comparable German institutional setting but more empirical/economic than legal scholarship.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/maxplanck-tax-law-public-finance

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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