International Tax Law LLM pathway

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Taxation of international business and investment has never been more important than today. We focus on the international legal framework that determines where and how profits of global businesses and mobile individuals are taxed. Exploring jurisdiction to tax, relief from double taxation, EU fundamental freedoms and taxation, transfer pricing, tax avoidance and VAT with experienced international tax practitioners, will provide the foundation for a variety of careers in this demanding but intensely practical subject and other areas of international business and financial law. You also have the chance to prepare simultaneously for the CIOT Advanced Diploma in International Taxation (ADIT)

Key benefits

The programme is open to graduates in relevant areas other than law, who have appropriate professional experience such as with a law or accounting firm, in-house tax department or with a tax administration.
Our close links with international tax law practitioners, as evidenced by Richard Lyal, Principal Legal Adviser to the EU Commission, who has represented the Commission in some 500 cases before the EU courts, the EFTA Court and the European Court of Human Rights, making the keynote address at our annual international tax seminar, held jointly with Chartered Institute of Taxation.
You’ll need creativity, intellectual rigour and a willingness to work hard to be able to analyse legal and commercial concepts and then apply them to complex fact patterns. Good tax skills are highly prized by professional firms, government departments and companies. Many leaders in business and government honed their analytical and creative skills in studying or practising tax law.
Through this pathway you will develop critical awareness of, and insights into, the taxation of cross-border situations that concern internationally mobile individuals and multinational enterprises. We study how citizens, businesses and governments manage the challenges of taxation in the international context.

Applying to the International Tax Law LLM pathway

If you wish to apply to the International Tax Law pathway route without a Law degree you must:

Hold a recognised first degree in any discipline of at least hight upper second class honours standard or an equivalent overseas qualification (with a preference for degrees in accounting or other tax related fields) and
Have at least 12 months appropriate work experience in the tax sector

Please note that applicants admitted to the LLM in Internation Tax Law on the basis of the aforementioned requirement must enrol for this specialist LLM programme only. Following admission, they will not be permitted to enrol for any other specialist LLM programmes or for our general LLM programme listed below, and will be obliged to select only modules offered under the LLM in Internation Tax Law.

What you will study

Once enrolled on the General LLM at King’s, students can choose modules to follow the International Tax Law pathway and achieve a specialist LLM in International Tax Law. Full-time students who complete the programme in one year will normally take modules totalling 180 credits.  To graduate with an International Tax Law LLM at least 120 credits must be taken within the pathway. This can be optional modules alone or a combination of optional modules and a writing project, providing its content is relevant to the pathway.    The range of International Tax Law LLM optional modules may typically include:  

EU Tax Law (30 credits)
International Tax Law (30 credits)
International Tax Law: Transfer Pricing (15 credits)
Taxation of Business Enterprises (30 credits)
Value Added Tax (15 credits)

In addition, all students are required to take one of the following writing projects, detailed further on the General LLM prospectus page: 

Dissertation (45 credits)
Dissertation (60 credits)
10,000 word practice or research module (45 credits)

What our students and alumni say

“Prior to coming to London, I was a barrister in tax litigation at Revenue Quebec. I decided to undertake an LLM in international tax to further my career on the global stage. I have chosen to study at King’s because of the quality of teaching and emphasis on practice provided by specialists from the profession. Furthermore, King’s extensive tax law library is a valuable research tool. The comparative approach of teaching has also bolstered my critical thinking about diff erent legal concepts. As a student of King’s we can attend conferences and seminars organised by renowned institutions, in particular, the International Fiscal Association. These are unique opportunities to develop a strong network of contacts.”

Julie, International Tax

To follow the International Tax Law pathway, you must first apply for the General LLM at King's. After enrolment you will select your pathway modules.

Find out more about the LLM at King's and apply

Pathway Leader

Professor Jonathan Schwarz

Visiting Professor

Professor Jonathan Schwarz is a practicing barrister at Temple Tax Chambers in London. His practice focuses on international tax disputes as counsel and as an expert and advises on solving cross-border tax problems. Professor Schwarz has been listed as a leading tax barrister in both the Legal 500 by reference to recommendation for international corporate tax, and Chambers’ Guide to the Legal Profession by reference to international transactions and particular expertise in transfer pricing.