The European Union has formally adopted new rules to prevent tax avoidance via non-EU countries, following an agreement brokered by the Maltese EU Council presidency last February. 

Rules preventing so-called hybrid mismatches are intended to stop companies from dodging the taxman by taking advantage of differences between the tax systems of EU member states and third countries. 

The agreement, which member states signed off on in February but which had to be approved by European Parliament before it could come into force, completes the Anti Tax Avoidance Directive. 

New rules will come into force on 1 January 2020, with a longer phasing-in period of 2022 for one provision. 

In a statement, the European Commission welcomed the new rules and said it would soon be putting forward another new transparency initiative for intermediaries to report cross-border tax planning schemes. 

The Commission listed some of the EU's efforts to curb tax abuse in recent years. As of January, member states must automatically exchange information on financial accounts, and from July similar transparency rules will apply for tax rulings. 

Member states are also working on other initiatives, having recently relaunched efforts to establish a Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base while also working on drafting a list of non-cooperative tax havens around the world, the Commission said.