Category: Double Taxation

President supports implementation of automatic exchange of financial information

President Joko Widodo remarked that Indonesia supports the implementation of automatic exchange of financial information in tax matters between countries. This, he said, would lead to enhanced income for the developing countries. “Indonesia encourages an international tax system that is fair and transparent,” President Joko Widodo said in his speech… – Continue reading

Obama warns G20 of risk of tax ‘race to the bottom’

The G20 summit in China has stressed the need for international tax cooperation to achieve ‘a globally fair and modern international tax system’, after US President Obama warned of the risks if countries ‘race to the bottom’ in tax policies At a press conference at the conclusion of the summit,… – Continue reading

EU finance ministers to discuss how to make tax policy more evenhanded

European Union countries should better coordinate tax rules to avoid hitting corporations too hard, the Slovak presidency of the European Union has proposed. This would be an effort to provide more balance to an EU campaign against tax avoidance by multinational companies. The proposal will be discussed at an informal… – Continue reading

Luxembourg may be focus of another Brussels tax inquiry

After state aid inquiries into Amazon and McDonald’s, EU looks again at Luxembourg The European Commission may open a fresh investigation into tax rulings offered by Luxembourg as early as this week, as EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager continues her clampdown against corporate tax avoidance. Luxembourg is already awaiting a… – Continue reading

India, Vietnam sign protocol on double taxation avoidance agreement

India and Vietnam on Saturday inked a dozen of agreements, including protocol on double taxation avoidance agreement, to foster better ties between the two sides. India and Vietnam on Saturday inked a dozen of agreements, including protocol on double taxation avoidance agreement, to foster better ties between the two sides…. – Continue reading

Tax Agreements: From Double Taxation To Double Evasion

The issue of tax havens is inherently international in scope. As a result, the government can use tax agreements to fight tax avoidance schemes. Unfortunately, tax agreements haven’t been used for that purpose. On the contrary, they have facilitated the outflow of Canadian money to offshore financial centres, and have… – Continue reading

Ashgabat, Berlin sign tax agreement

Turkmenistan and Germany signed an agreement on avoidance of double taxation with respect to income and property taxes in Berlin, the Turkmen Dovlet Habarlary(TDH) state news agency reported. According to the message, the signing ceremony took place as part of the two-day working visit of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov to… – Continue reading

Pakistan to sign Convention on Tax Matters with OECD on Sep 14: Dar

Pakistan will sign Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters with OECD on September 14 as the Federal Cabinet formally approved this on Wednesday. Minister for Finance Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar termed the decision a historic one while briefing a crowded press conference regarding decisions of Federal Cabinet… – Continue reading

Govt to disclose details of disputes under mutual agreement procedures

Disclosures under the MAP are aimed at improving dispute resolution mechanism and are part of global initiative on base erosion and profit shifting. India will soon disclose the number of disputes being negotiated under the mutual agreement procedures (MAP) of tax treaties as well as details of the time being… – Continue reading

Ireland risks being trampled in US/EU corporate tax fight

For the last three years, the international debate on tax policy was all about consensus. Led by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, countries across the globe agreed that aggressive tax planning by multinational corporations which pushed profits into low-tax countries – or indeed took profits outside the charge… – Continue reading

By singling out Apple over taxes, Brussels is abusing its own rules

Under EU rules it is illegal for countries to give financial help to some companies and not others in a way that distorts fair competition, writes Liza Lovdahl Gormsen. State aid rules were originally designed to protect the internal EU market and avoid retaliation among member states. The US Treasury,… – Continue reading

EU tax probes could threaten international agreements, US warns

The US has warned the EU that it risks damaging international agreements on tax reform if it continues to act as a “supra-national tax authority”. The US Treasury Department “shares the European Commission’s concern with tax avoidance by multinational firms. The international community, including the EU and its member states,… – Continue reading

Dublin and Washington enter talks to update Double Taxation treaty

Talks have begun between the US and Irish governments about updating certain elements of the Double Tax treaty between the two countries. The existing treaty was signed in 1997 and a Protocol to the treaty was signed in 1999. The Department of Finance and the Revenue Commissioners are calling for… – Continue reading

Singapore-Africa trade relations set to deepen with new agreements

Trade relations between Singapore and Africa are set to deepen, with several agreements signed on Wednesday (Aug 24) at the fourth edition of the Africa Singapore Business Forum. These include the signing of the Avoidance of Double Taxation (DTA) with Ethiopia, a bilateral investment treaty (BIT) with Mozambique and an… – Continue reading

Cabinet approves signing of revised DTAA with Cyprus

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday gave its nod for signing of revised double taxation avoidance agreement (DTAA) with Cyprus, a popular tax haven. It is also learnt to have approved the removal of island nation as a non-cooperative jurisdiction for income-tax purpose. Cyprus was the only country to have been… – Continue reading

OECD consults on branch mismatch structures to curb profit shifting

The OECD is consulting on the mechanics of dealing with branch mismatch structures under Base Erosion & Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action 2, designed to neutralise the effects of hybrid mismatch arrangements as part of the wider anti-avoidance action plan The BEPs project has already released a report on Action 2,… – Continue reading

Switzerland, Italy Seek Progress On Cross-Border Taxation

Switzerland has informed Italy of its desire to sign the bilateral agreement on the taxation of cross-border commuters. The point was made by Didier Burkhalter, the head of Switzerland’s Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, during a meeting with the Italian Foreign Minister, Paolo Gentiloni. They discussed bilateral issues, Switzerland’s policy… – Continue reading

Top corporate players sign up for voluntary tax code

Twenty of the nation’s largest companies have voluntarily signed up to a comprehensive new code to disclose more details of their tax affairs in their latest ¬annual accounts following a series of scandals involving local and offshore firms. In the May budget, the federal government announced it was committed to… – Continue reading

India notifies capital gains exemption norms for Mauritius investors

Private equity (PE) investors and venture capital (VC) funds from Mauritius will have to pay capital gains tax on investments into quasi-equity in India, under the revised tax treaty, unless the conversion of investments into equity is not finalised before 1 April 2017. The government has notified the revised double… – Continue reading

Assessing the Hong Kong – Russia Double Taxation Agreement: Another Step Towards Amplifying China’s Eurasian Connection

Assessing the Hong Kong – Russia Double Taxation Agreement: Another Step Towards Amplifying China’s Eurasian Connection   The long-awaited Comprehensive Double Taxation Agreement (CDTA) between Hong Kong and Russia entered into force on July 29, 2016. The agreement will take effect on April 1, 2017 in Hong Kong and January… – Continue reading

Costa Rica and Germany Sign Agreement to End Double Taxation

Last Wednesday August 10 at Germany’s Federal Foreign Ministry Office, Costa Rica and Germany celebrated the ratification of the establishment of legal instruments as part of an agreement to eliminate double taxation of income and assets, stated Costa Rica’s Ministry of Foreign Relations in a press release Friday. The agreement… – Continue reading

Wesfarmers urges Aldi to sign tax code in ‘corporate peer pressure’

Coles has urged its German rival Aldi to sign up to a new tax transparency code that will lead to more big businesses, particularly multinationals, releasing detailed information about the tax they pay. Aldi has yet to sign up to the Voluntary Tax Transparency Code, which targets more than 1500… – Continue reading

India Ratifies Mauritius Double Tax Protocol

Through Notification No. 68/2016, the Government of India has ratified a Protocol to its tax treaty with Mauritius. The protocol was signed on May 10, 2016, in Mauritius, in a bid to limit abuse of the India-Mauritius double tax avoidance agreement. The protocol provides India with the right to tax… – Continue reading

A Talk on the Benefits of Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement between Cambodia and Singapore

In May 2016, the Cambodian and Singaporean government authorities signed a new agreement to avoid double taxation with respect to taxes on income and on capital. What are the objectives and benefits of a double taxation avoidance (DTA) agreement? The “big-picture” objectives of the DTA between Singapore and Cambodia are… – Continue reading

Equalisation Levy seeks to cast Indian tax net wider

Budget 2016 introduced a new tax called Equalisation Levy (“EL”), aimed at taxing online transactions. EL was originally mooted by the OECD in Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project Final Report on Action 1 – Addressing the Tax Challenges of the Digital Economy (the “Report”). We will examine Equalisation… – Continue reading

Mauritius to revive negotiations for CECPA with India

Mauritius is looking to revive efforts to put in place a comprehensive economic cooperation pact with India, close on the heels of sorting out long-pending issues related to the bilateral tax treaty. The island nation, a major source of foreign direct investments coming into India, is also eyeing a preferential… – Continue reading

Hong Kong, Russia DTA Enters Into Force

The comprehensive double taxation agreement (CDTA) between Hong Kong and Russia, which was signed in January this year, entered into force on July 29, 2016, and will be in effect in Hong Kong for any year of assessment beginning on or after April 1, 2017. The CDTA is said to… – Continue reading

Ukraine, Malaysia sign agreement on avoidance of double taxation

An agreement on avoidance of double taxation, which was signed today between the governments of Ukraine and Malaysia, will allow enhancing business contacts and attracting investors. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said this at a joint news conference with Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. “We think… – Continue reading

Nine measures taken by government to curb black money

The government is hell-bent on cracking down on black money and undisclosed income of Indians within the country and safely stowed away abroad. While there is no proper estimation of the actual amount of black money in the economy, the government is actively taking measures to stop it. Recent media… – Continue reading

Senate panel for abolishing double taxation in Fata

A parliamentary committee on Wednesday recommended to the government to abolish double taxation in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and additional taxes being collected on edible items upon entry into the tribal areas. The Senate Standing Committee on States and Frontier Regions (SAFRON), chaired by Senator Hilal-ur-Rehman, Wednesday took strong… – Continue reading

Macau and China add protocol to the agreement to avoid double taxation

The Macau Special Administrative Region (MSAR) and China’s State Administration of Taxation in Beijing signed an additional protocol to the agreement to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion, officials said in Macau. The Additional Protocol, the third, according to the statement released by the Office of the Secretary for… – Continue reading

UAE signs tax info deal with ADGM

The UAE Ministry of Finance has signed an agreement with Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) on the automatic exchange of information for tax purposes in its premises. This step follows the ministry’s commitment to exchange tax information according to international requirements and sign agreements on the avoidance of double taxation…. – Continue reading

Minister Of Finance Visits Kyoto, Japan – OECD BEPS Process And Tax Agreement United Arab Emirates

As part of the aim to sustainably meet the highest international standards in the tax field, the Minister of Finance Dr. Jose Jardim has joined the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting agenda of the OECD. In this context, the section with regard to the Common Reporting Standards concerning the automatic… – Continue reading

Corporate tax avoidance: New rules adopted

On 12 July 2016, the Council adopted new rules addressing some of the practices most commonly used by large companies to reduce their tax liability. The directive is part of a January 2016 package of Commission proposals to strengthen rules against corporate tax avoidance. The package builds on 2015 OECD… – Continue reading

Ukraine, Austria Increase DTA Withholding Tax Rates

Ukraine and Austria have agreed to sign a protocol to their double taxation agreement to increase withholding tax rates on dividends, interest, and royalty income. The protocol increases the withholding tax rate for dividends and interest to 15 percent and five percent, respectively. Additionally, the royalty rate for patents, trademarks,… – Continue reading

India Revamps Its Treaty Provisions With Mauritius

The Government seeks to curb revenue loss, prevent double non-taxation, streamline the flow of investment, and stimulate the flow of exchange of information between India and Mauritius The India – Mauritius double taxation treaty was under negotiation for the last 4 years. The Treaty has now been amended by way… – Continue reading

UBS ordered to provide France with tax information

UBS (UBSG.S) has been ordered by Switzerland’s tax agency to provide France with tax information, the Swiss bank said on Tuesday, adding that it expected other countries to file similar requests. Since the financial crisis, cash-strapped governments around the world have clamped down on tax evasion, with authorities probing Swiss… – Continue reading

India, Cyprus finalise DTAA; capital gains to be taxed at source country

India and Cyprus have reached an in-principle agreement on all pending issues on Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, including taxation of capital gains, which once implemented would help remove the island-nation from a non-cooperative jurisdiction for income tax purposes. An official level meeting between India and Cyprus in New Delhi last… – Continue reading

Armenia and Germany sign intergovernmental agreement to avoid double taxation

On June 29, Edward Nalbandian, Foreign Minister of Armenia, met in Yerevan with Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Federal Foreign Minister of Germany and the OSCE Chairperson-in-office. The meeting started in a tete-a-tete format, and proceeded in the extended format with the participation of delegations. The two ministers signed an Agreement between the… – Continue reading

Assets agreement with US not quite ‘reciprocal’

Government most likely not to access bank data of Argentines in States despite deal As the whitewash bill is set to be approved this week, the government seeks to sign an assets deal with the United States to have access to data of the bank accounts of Argentines in the… – Continue reading

What Brexit is Likely to Mean for Taxes, Trade and More

Regardless of whether you were surprised, overjoyed, dismayed or showed any other emotion (perhaps anger as you saw world markets tank), Brexit is here. Yes, we’re talking about the British exit from the European Union. We are not sure why the media coined the term “Brexit,” when it’s not only… – Continue reading

Taiwan-Italy Tax Treaty Takes Effect from 1 January 2016

With an aim to avoiding double taxation, improving the investment environment for Taiwan, and increasing the attractiveness of foreign investment into Taiwan, the Ministry of Finance in recent years has focused on entering into tax treaties with other jurisdictions. Following tax treaties signed with Italy and Austria, Taiwan entered into… – Continue reading

Bill Proposal FATCA Agreement Curaçao Adopted By Dutch Parliament

The Second Chamber of the Dutch Parliament has recently approved the bill between the Kingdom of the Netherlands, on behalf of Curaçao, and the United States to improve the international liability and the implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). The Dutch Parliament also approved the bill proposal… – Continue reading

Putin Endorses Agreement on Double Taxation Avoidance With Singapore

Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed a law on ratifying Russia-Singapore agreement on the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to the income taxes, according to the official internet portal of legal information. The accord reached on November 17, 2015 in Moscow is aimed at… – Continue reading

Govt approves double taxation avoidance agreement with Belgium

To check abuse of double taxation, India signs agreement with Belgium. The decision regarding this was taken in a meeting chaired by Narendra Modi. The Cabinet on Wednesday approved the signing of a protocol amending an agreement between India and Belgium for avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal… – Continue reading