its tax bulletins, the legislation will apply to transactions even between unconnected parties if the non-Jamaican party is in a tax haven. In addition, it will take into account the use of captive insurance companies, that is, insurance companies established by a parent group or groups with the specific objective… – Continue reading
Background The transfer pricing debate between the taxpayers and the Indian tax authorities has been a never-ending story. The taxpayers in India have faced eleven rounds of transfer pricing audits so far. Each round of transfer pricing audit has seen new controversies in areas such as marketing intangibles, share valuation,… – Continue reading
On 17 September, 2015, China State Administration of Taxation (SAT) released the Discussion Draft for the Implementation Measures for Special Tax Adjustments (“Discussion Draft”), as a complete revamp to the existing trial version of the Implementation Measures, i.e., Circular 2. Circular 2 has been serving as a backbone transfer pricing… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) on October 13 signed four unilateral advance pricing agreements (APAs), including India’s second APA with a rollback provision. The nature of the transactions covered under these agreements varied from software development to share price valuation. According to government sources, the total number… – Continue reading
The Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released its final reports on the G20/OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project on Monday October 5th, 2015. The final package of BEPS measures includes new minimum standards on: country-by-country reporting, which for the first time will give tax administrations a… – Continue reading
On October 5, 2015, the OECD released its final reports relating to the OECD/G20 base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project (the Final Reports). The BEPS project began in 2013 and has received unprecedented attention from governments and the private sector. The Final Reports outline the OECD’s recommendations and the… – Continue reading
On 6 October 2015, the Council of the European Union reached agreement on a proposal for a Council Directive (‘the New Directive’) amending Directive 2011/16/EU (Directive on administrative cooperation between Member States) and requiring automatic exchange of information on ‘advance tax rulings’ (‘Tax Rulings’) and ‘advance pricing arrangements’ (‘APAs’) between… – Continue reading
EU finance ministers today agreed to introduce provisions for the automatic exchange of information on cross-border tax rulings—the latest development concerning the European Commission’s initiative to address tax avoidance and harmful tax competition. Detailed provisions to be included in a directive are expected to be finalized before the end of… – Continue reading
The income tax department has signed 16 advance pricing agreements (APAs) with multinational companies (MNCs) so far, exempting their transactions with local units from rigorous tax audits. The income tax department has signed 16 advance pricing agreements (APAs) with multinational companies (MNCs) so far, exempting their transactions with local units… – Continue reading
On September 18, 2015, the Danish Ministry of Taxation published draft legislation to introduce a new country-by-country reporting obligation for multinational corporations. The draft Bill would introduce the new three-tiered approach to transfer pricing documentation that is to be proposed formally by the OECD as part of the BEPS deliverables… – Continue reading
On September 17, 2015, the Canadian Border Services Agency (“CBSA“) released a revised D-Memorandum D13-4-5, “Transaction Value Method for Related Persons” (the “Memorandum“), addressing the impact of income tax transfer pricing on the value for duty to be declared on goods imported into Canada. This new guidance will have a… – Continue reading
Honda’s manufacturing plant in India, one of the emerging countries where many Japanese companies are in disputes with local tax authorities. TOKYO — Many Japanese companies operating in emerging countries are grappling with taxation problems they would never face in major industrial nations. Honda Motor, for instance, has gotten embroiled… – Continue reading
The IRS recently replaced Rev. Proc. 2006-54 for requesting assistance under the Mutual Agreement Procedure (“MAP”) article of U.S. tax treaties, and Rev. Proc. 2006-9 for requesting Advance Pricing Agreements (“APAs”). The new Rev. Procs. (2015-40 and 2015-41, respectively) largely track draft procedures issued in 2013 (Notices 2013-78 and 2013-79),… – Continue reading
Through Wetsvoorstel Overige Fiscale Maatregelen 2016, released on September 15, the Netherlands has confirmed the introduction of a new country-by-country (CbC) reporting obligation for multinational corporations. These regulations provide for the implementation of the recommendations of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) on transfer pricing documentation under Action… – Continue reading
Read the full newsletter. The OECD’s recent recommendations1 with respect to transfer pricing documentation and country-by-country reporting may have the most significant impact on multinational enterprises (“MNEs”) of all of the OECD’s BEPS proposals. The adoption of these recommendations, without consensus on effective dispute resolution, is likely to alter the… – Continue reading
Note: This article was published by Bloomberg BNA in Tax Planning International European Tax Service Vol. 17 No. 7 July 2015 Introduction The recent LuxLeaks scandal has once again focused political attention on tax planning practices of multinationals (“MNEs”). It comes in the wake of the European Commission investigation of… – Continue reading
On August 12 the IRS issued final guidance (Rev. Proc. 2015-40) significantly updating procedures for requesting and obtaining an advance pricing agreement (APA) from the Advance Pricing and Mutual Agreement (APMA) program. All new APA requests will need to be filed under these “new procedures”, however, an APA request may… – Continue reading
On August 12, 2015, the IRS issued Rev. Proc. 2015-40, which revises the procedures for obtaining competent authority (CA) assistance concerning issues arising under U.S. income tax treaties. This revenue procedure replaces current guidance, which was last updated almost 10 years ago, in Rev. Proc. 2006-54. Revisions to the former… – Continue reading
A recent Central Board of Direct Taxes (‘CBDT’) press release of August 6, 2015 announced signing of 2 unilateral APAs, including one with a rollback provision, and this has raised hopes of many MNCs, that hope to witness expeditious and reasonable closures. n July 2012, with a view to providing… – Continue reading
India will soon settle international tax disputes with close to 120 American companies as well as entities from Japan and other such countries, according to the nation’s Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das. Earlier this month, India announced a Framework Agreement under the mutual agreement procedure provision of the India-US tax treaty… – Continue reading
Hopeful of settling disputes with 120 US companies in next 3 months NEW DELHI, AUG 23: India will, in the next three months, settle tax disputes involving 120 US companies, Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das has said. This will be done under the new framework agreement on Mutual Agreement Procedure (MAP)… – Continue reading
The IRS on 12 August 2015 released a revenue procedure—Rev. Proc. 2015-41—providing guidance and updated procedures regarding advance pricing agreements (APAs). Rev. Proc. 2015-41 addresses the process of how to request and obtain an APA from the IRS’s Advance Pricing and Mutual Agreement (APMA) program and with respect to the… – Continue reading
The IRS today released two revenue procedures that that provide guidance regarding the advance pricing agreement (APA) program, and that offer guidance on the process for taxpayers to request and obtain the assistance of the U.S. Competent Authority under the U.S. network of income tax treaties. Rev. Proc. 2015-41 [PDF… – Continue reading
On May 20, 2015, the U.S. Treasury Department (“Treasury”) released five sets of proposed revisions to the U.S. Model Income Tax Convention (“Model Treaty”) for public comment. The Model Treaty was last updated in 2006. The purpose of the proposed revisions is to ensure that the United States maintains the… – Continue reading
On 11 July 2015 a new Corporate Income Tax Regulation (CITR) was approved in Spain, introducing, amongst other things, amendments to the Spanish transfer pricing reporting requirements. The new requirements largely reflect the recommendations made by the OECD with respect to Action 13 of the OECD Base Erosion and Profit… – Continue reading
New Delhi, Aug 3: India has signed its first unilateral roll back Advance Pricing Agreement (APA), bringing certainty to tax liability of a US-headquartered multinational company for a nine year period. This is significant as this agreement between the central board of direct taxes (CBDT) and the taxpayer comes within… – Continue reading
DELHI: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today said as many as 37,506 tax dispute cases were pending before various Income Tax Appellate Tribunals having a financial implication of Rs 1.45 lakh crore at end March 2015. Similarly, Rs 37,683.98 crore has been locked in 34,281 tax dispute cases pending before various… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The identity of taxpayers who opt for an advance pricing agreement (APA) in the field of transfer pricing will continue to remain confidential. Such information cannot be made available under the provisions of the Right to Information Act (RTI), according to the Central However, responding to a second appeal… – Continue reading
Consultation on the ATO’s practical guide for offshore marketing hub arrangements is kicking off in August. The guide may also assist taxpayers with offshore intellectual property (IP) hubs. Here is what you need to know if you market Australian produced goods offshore or have centralised your IP offshore. Do you… – Continue reading
On 25 July 2015 the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine published an order on the conclusion of advance pricing agreements (“APA”) in respect of controlled transactions for transfer pricing purposes* (“the APA Order”). The APA Order replaces the former procedure for the conclusion of APAs which became outdated due to… – Continue reading
None of the pharmaceutical companies that are accused of profit shifting have been taken to court, the Australian Taxation Office has said in written responses to the Senate inquiry into corporate tax avoidance. Earlier in July executives from the largest global pharmaceutical companies operating in Australia were hauled before the… – Continue reading
With the focus of 2014 being international tax competition, 2015 shows signs of continuing this trend. The European Commission (COM) and European Parliament (EP) are starting to debate and extensively investigate Member States’ tax ruling policies, partly as a result of the LuxLeaks revelations and partly in relation to the… – Continue reading
The Commissioner of Taxation has released a new Practice Statement, PS LA 2015/4, setting out “refreshed” practice and procedures for Advance Pricing Arrangements (APAs). The process outlined in PS LA 2015/4 retains many of the features of the old APA process described in PS LA 2011/1, but adopts a new… – Continue reading
The UK Government’s goal is to make the UK the best place in the world to locate an international business; it has one of the most open economies globally, a highly skilled workforce, access to capital markets, a first-class infrastructure, and a highly competitive corporate tax system. UK tax policy… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The Central Board of Direct Taxes has signed a taxation rate agreement with BNP Paribas India Solutions, the local arm of the European bank, as part of efforts to reduce disputes with foreign companies over tax-related issues. BNP Paribas Solutions is the first company in the information technology and… – Continue reading
The Advance Pricing Agreement (‘APA’) program was introduced in August 2012. APA helps a tax payer to ascertain the transfer pricing between related party transactions upfront to avoid any litigation. The APA program has been a success and there has been a rise in the number of applications filed year… – Continue reading
A firm directly involved in one of Europe’s largest tax scandals is now giving tax advice to the European Commission and member states. The audit firm, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), sits in a group called the EU Joint Transfer Pricing Forum. The forum’s been around for years, but its mandate was recently… – Continue reading
Executive summary On 8 June 2015, the Presidency of the EU Council (Latvia) sent a report (The Report) to the Permanent Representatives Committee and the European Council. The Report sets out the current state, as well as a number of open issues and questions, in regard to the 18 March… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) recently issued clarifications on the rollback provisions available under the advance pricing agreement (APA) mechanism in the arena of transfer pricing. While some clarifications – such as availability of a rollback even when a revised income tax return is filed, or the… – Continue reading
Transfer pricing has emerged as a key focus area both globally and locally. From an international scene, the OECD/G20 venture — a club of advanced countries in Europe and North America, has been working on action plans to help tax administrations deal with Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project…. – Continue reading
The Diverted Profits Tax (DPT), known by many as the “Google Tax”, is intended to stop large groups diverting profits from the UK by seeking to avoid creating a UK permanent establishment or using arrangements or entities which lack economic substance to exploit tax mismatches. Tax mismatches occur where intra-group… – Continue reading
In November 2014 the WikiLeaks scandal known as “LuxLeaks”, the large scale exposure of over 340 companies (such as IKEA, Coca-Cola and Disney) who paid a rate of one per cent or less tax on profits moved to Luxembourg by advance pricing arrangements has affected all nationalities and brought the… – Continue reading
New Delhi/Mumbai: India’s goal of a friendlier tax regime for global companies to help power China-beating economic growth is hitting a manpower hurdle. Fewer than 20 officials face the complex task of working with hundreds of multinational companies (MNCs) on pacts to avert tax rows, people familiar with the matter… – Continue reading
Half the 30 such cases, worth Rs 10,000 crore, to be addressed India is set to sign agreements with Japan to resolve as many as 15 transfer pricing disputes. These agreements follow the one recently signed with the US. The agreements will be for cases that fall in the ambit… – Continue reading
On March 18, 2015, the European Commission (the “Commission”) published a package of tax transparency measures. The tax transparency package is the result of the Commission’s ambitious agenda to confront harmful tax competition and perceived corporate tax avoidance in the European Union. The Commission has prepared a proposal for a… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is taking a close look at 120 transfer pricing disputes with a view to settling them as the Narendra Modi government tries to rid India of the label that it’s overly aggressive on taxation. While the government aims to sign the 120… – Continue reading
Thailand is expected to introduce new transfer pricing (TP) laws in the near future, which will apply to all companies in the Kingdom with related-party transactions. At a recent Deloitte seminar on “Thailand TP Developments”, with participation from senior officials from the Revenue Department, we shared some valuable insights on… – Continue reading
SEJONG, April 22 (Yonhap) — South Korea and China on Wednesday signed a so-called advance pricing agreement (APA) that can ease tax audit burdens for companies operating in each other’s country. The new accord, signed during a meeting of their tax chiefs, will allow authorities to better check “transfer prices”… – Continue reading
In his recent article, “A Cursory Analysis of the Impact of Combined Reporting in the District”, Dr. Eric Cook claims that the District of Columbia’s (D.C. or the District) newly implemented combined reporting tax regime is an effective means of increasing tax revenue from corporate taxpayers, but it will have… – Continue reading
“Tax policy and administration should incentivise compliance. They should be administered fairly, transparently, with minimum discretion, with no harassment of taxpayers but also ensuring that tax evasion is dealt with firmly.” Promising a ‘modern tax system’ with low and globally competitive rates, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has assured foreign investors… – Continue reading
