Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics (FATS)

206 Pages·2012·3.12 MB·English

ISSN 1977-0375
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Methodologies and
W o r k i n g p a p e r s
Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics (FATS)
Recommendations Manual
2012 edition
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Luxembourg: Publications Office of the European Union, 2012

ISBN 978-92-79-25386-7
ISSN 1977-0375
doi:10.2785/32696
Cat. No KS-RA-12-016-EN-N

Theme: Industry, trade and services
Collection: Methodologies & Working papers

© European Union, 2012
Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged.
Preface
The FATS manual is a milestone on the road to EU-wide harmonised Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics
(FATS). Its importance becomes even more apparent when we consider the political background to
this project.
All over the world, ‘globalisation’ is seen as the predominant agent of change and the main policy
challenge. At the heart of this complex and somewhat blurry concept, however, lie businesses and
their ever-increasing drive to expand their activities across national borders, most notably by
establishing foreign affiliates. Europe plays a key role in this. The EU has become a very important
destination for foreign companies and their affiliates, and European businesses are among the most
active around the world. A host of crucial policy challenges flow from this, not least the issue of
outsourcing jobs and keeping European firms competitive.
Consequently, there is a huge and ever-growing demand for data on these developments. FATS
statistics are particularly useful because they help explain how businesses are expanding
internationally and what the consequences are for the European Union. The FATS Regulation ensures
that harmonised FATS are available from 2009 onwards and the FATS Manual plays a crucial role in
compiling them. It gives national compilers the definitions and guidelines they need in order to
produce FATS that can be added together to produce meaningful EU-wide aggregates.
The manual has to comply with the rules in the FATS Regulation and must meet the practical needs of
the national compilers. The first edition was therefore thoroughly discussed at meetings of the FATS
Joint Working Group and went through many rounds of written procedure with Member States at all
stages of its production. Then, in 2008, two new Commission Regulations came into force,
implementing and amending the FATS Regulation, and this made it necessary to improve the manual.
A second edition was therefore published in 2009. However, the Member States' subsequent
experience with FATS data collection and compilation showed that some of the manual's
recommendations needed further clarifications, and that some important guidance were to be
completed. Eurostat therefore proposed an updated edition, with extended content where appropriate.
This third edition of the Manual has been restructured, making it easier to handle. Furthermore,
Chapter I now explains in greater detail how to identify the Ultimate Control Institutional Unit (UCI).
A section on the nature and treatment of Special Purpose Entities (SPEs) has also been added.
During the consultation process, Eurostat received extremely helpful comments from many delegates.
‘Harmonising’ always implies ‘compromising’. Consequently, the definitions and guidelines
contained in this manual are not always the preferred options for every Member State. However,
Eurostat has been extremely careful to ensure that the provisions in the manual are in keeping with the
concerns of the maximum number of Member States.
Walter Radermacher
Director-General, Eurostat
Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics (FATS) Recommendations Manual 3
Table of contents

INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 7
LEGAL BASIS...................................................................................................................9
OBJECTIVE OF THIS MANUAL.....................................................................................9
NEED FOR, AND VALIDITY OF, THIS 3RDEDITION..................................................10
I. FATS ................................................................................................................. 11
I.1 MAIN CONCEPTS AND DEFINITIONS..................................................................................13
I.1.1 CONCEPT OF TARGET POPULATION...........................................................................................13
I.1.1.1 FOREIGN AFFILIATES AND FOREIGN AFFILIATES STATISTICS.................................................................13
I.1.1.2 CONTROL.......................................................................................................................................13
I.1.1.3 FOREIGN CONTROL..........................................................................................................................16
I.1.1.4 STATISTICAL UNIT............................................................................................................................16
I.1.1.5 ULTIMATE CONTROLLING INSTITUTIONAL UNIT (UCI)............................................................................18
I.1.1.6 CONCEPT OF RESIDENCY.................................................................................................................19
I.1.1.7 SPECIAL-PURPOSE ENTITIES.............................................................................................................20
I.1.2 DETERMINING THE UCI............................................................................................................22
I.1.2.1 GENERAL PROCEDURE.....................................................................................................................22
I.1.2.2 INDIRECT CONTROL..........................................................................................................................22
I.1.2.3 MULTIPLE MINORITY OWNERSHIP AND EFFECTIVE MINORITY CONTROL....................................................23
I.1.2.4 SPECIAL CASES...............................................................................................................................26
I.1.2.4.1 NATURAL PERSONS AND FAMILIES..............................................................................................27
I.1.2.4.2 UNITS IN TAX HAVENS, IN OFFSHORE FINANCIAL CENTRES, SPECIAL-PURPOSE ENTITIES, NON-PROFIT
INSTITUTIONS........................................................................................................................................28
I.1.2.4.3 DUAL-LISTED COMPANIES.........................................................................................................28
I.1.2.4.4 JOINT VENTURES.....................................................................................................................29
I.1.2.4.5 STATE-OWNED ENTERPRISES....................................................................................................32
I.1.3 ALLOCATION OF VALUES..........................................................................................................33
I.1.3.1 ALLOCATION BY COUNTRY................................................................................................................33
I.1.3.2 ALLOCATION BY ACTIVITY..................................................................................................................33
I.1.4 REFERENCE PERIOD................................................................................................................34
I.1.5 CUT-OFF THRESHOLDS............................................................................................................34
I.2 DATA COLLECTION................................................................................................35
I.2.1 TARGET POPULATIONS.............................................................................................................35
I.2.1.1 INWARD FATS................................................................................................................................35
I.2.1.2 OUTWARD FATS.............................................................................................................................35
I.2.2 DATA SOURCES.......................................................................................................................37
I.2.2.1 STATISTICAL REGISTERS..................................................................................................................37
I.2.2.1.1 BUSINESS REGISTER FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES......................................................................37
I.2.2.1.2 EUROGROUPS REGISTER.........................................................................................................39
I.2.2.1.3 NATIONAL REGISTERS OF ENTERPRISE GROUPS AND FOREIGN ENTERPRISES..................................40
I.2.2.2 SURVEYS........................................................................................................................................41
I.2.2.2.1 INWARD FATS........................................................................................................................41
I.2.2.2.2 OUTWARD FATS.....................................................................................................................42
I.2.2.3 MISCELLANEOUS SOURCES...............................................................................................................42
I.2.2.3.1 NATIONAL COMPANY REGISTERS...............................................................................................42
I.2.2.3.2 ADMINISTRATIVE SOURCES.......................................................................................................42
I.2.2.3.3 PRIVATE DATABASES................................................................................................................43
I.2.2.3.4 OTHER SOURCES.....................................................................................................................43
I.3 DEFINITIONS OF CHARACTERISTICS................................................................43
I.3.1 NUMBER OF ENTERPRISES.......................................................................................................44
I.3.2 TURNOVER..............................................................................................................................44
I.3.3 PRODUCTION VALUE................................................................................................................45
I.3.4 VALUE ADDED AT FACTOR COST...............................................................................................48
I.3.5 TOTAL PURCHASES OF GOODS AND SERVICES...........................................................................50
I.3.6 PURCHASES OF GOODS AND SERVICES PURCHASED FOR RESALE IN THE SAME CONDITION AS
RECEIVED.......................................................................................................................................53
I.3.7 PERSONNEL COSTS.................................................................................................................54
Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics (FATS) Recommendations Manual 4
I.3.8 GROSS INVESTMENT IN TANGIBLE GOODS.................................................................................54
I.3.9 NUMBER OF PERSONS EMPLOYED............................................................................................56
I.3.10 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES........................................................................................................56
I.3.11 TOTAL INTRA-MURAL R&D EXPENDITURE................................................................................57
I.3.12 TOTAL NUMBER OF R&D PERSONNEL.....................................................................................58
I.3.13 EXPORTS AND IMPORTS OF GOODS AND SERVICES..................................................................58
I.3.14 INTRA-GROUP EXPORTS AND IMPORTS OF GOODS AND SERVICES.............................................60
I.4 CONFIDENTIALITY..................................................................................................62
I.5 QUALITY....................................................................................................................64
I.5.1 GENERAL ASPECTS.................................................................................................................64
I.5.2 OBJECTIVES OF FATS QUALITY REPORTING..............................................................................65
I.5.3 CONTENT OF THE FATS QUALITY REPORTS..............................................................................65
I.5.3.1 RELEVANCE....................................................................................................................................66
I.5.3.2 ACCURACY.....................................................................................................................................66
I.5.3.3 COHERENCE AND COMPARABILITY.....................................................................................................69
I.5.3.4 TIMELINESS AND PUNCTUALITY.........................................................................................................69
I.5.3.5 ACCESSIBILITY AND CLARITY............................................................................................................70
I.5.4 TIMELINE AND PROCEDURE......................................................................................................70
I.5.5 METADATA..............................................................................................................................71
IIII.. IINNWWAARRDD FFAATTSS............................................................................................ 73
II.1 DELIVERABLES......................................................................................................75
II.1.1 CHARACTERISTICS.................................................................................................................75
II.1.2 LEVEL OF DETAIL....................................................................................................................76
II.1.3 GEOGRAPHICAL BREAKDOWN..................................................................................................77
II.1.4 ACTIVITY BREAKDOWN............................................................................................................84
II.1.4.1 REQUESTED LEVEL OF DETAIL..........................................................................................................84
II.1.4.2 RECOMMENDATION FOR FINANCIAL AND INSURANCE ACTIVITIES...........................................................87
II.2 DATA TRANSMISSION..........................................................................................88
II.2.1 DATA TRANSMISSION GUIDELINES............................................................................................88
II.2.1.1 DEADLINE AND PERIODICITY.............................................................................................................88
II.2.1.2 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS............................................................................................................88
II.2.2 QUALITY CHECKS...................................................................................................................94
II.3 CONFIDENTIALITY TREATMENT........................................................................96
IIIIII.. OOUUTTWWAARRDD FFAATTSS..................................................................................... 99
III.1 DELIVERABLES..................................................................................................101
III.1.1 CHARACTERISTICS..............................................................................................................101
III.1.2.1 LIST OF REQUIREMENTS AND MEASUREMENT UNITS.........................................................................101
III.1.2.2 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR APPLYING THE DEFINITIONS......................................................................102
III.1.2 LEVEL OF DETAIL.................................................................................................................105
III.1.3 GEOGRAPHICAL BREAKDOWN..............................................................................................106
III.1.4 ACTIVITY BREAKDOWN........................................................................................................112
III.1.4.1 REQUESTED LEVEL OF DETAIL.......................................................................................................112
III.1.4.2 RECOMMENDATIONS FOR COMPILING FINANCIAL AND INSURANCE ACTIVITIES......................................115
III.2 DATA TRANSMISSION.......................................................................................116
III.2.1 DATA-TRANSMISSION GUIDELINES........................................................................................116
III.2.1.1 DEADLINE AND PERIODICITY..........................................................................................................116
III.2.1.2 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS.........................................................................................................116
III.2.2 QUALITY CHECKS FOR DATA INTEGRITY.................................................................................123
III.3 CONFIDENTIALITY TREATMENT.....................................................................125
AABBBBRREEVVIIAATTIIOONNSS......................................................................................... 127
BBIIBBLLIIOOGGRRAAPPHHYY............................................................................................ 131
AANNNNEEXXEESS......................................................................................................... 135

Foreign AffiliaTes Statistics (FATS) Recommendations Manual 5

Introduction