Malta has become the latest country to ratify the OECD’s multilateral convention to counter base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS). A notice was published in Legal Notice 142 of 2018 in the territory’s Official Gazette. The Convention, negotiated by more than 100 countries and jurisdictions under a mandate from G20… – Continue reading
The UK tax agency, HM Revenue and Customs, on April 16, 2018, released proposed changes to the list of amendments it intends to make to its bilateral double tax avoidance agreements through the OECD’s base erosion and profit shifting multilateral instrument. The new document – Proposed changes to the provisional… – Continue reading
The Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT ) yesterday released a draft notification which proposes to amend Rule 44E, Form 34C, 34D and 34DA of Income Tax Rules, 1962 as per Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Item 5. The proposal has been made with a view to… – Continue reading
Luxembourg and France have signed a new double taxation treaty (DTT), replacing the existing treaty that had been in force since 1958. The accord was inked during the official state visit led by Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, in Paris, on 20 March 2018. A communiqué released… – Continue reading
Granting tax relief to Deloitte India, the Mumbai bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) held that the provisions relating to Tax deduction at Source (TDS) are not applicable to the professional fee paid by them to its Group Entities in US and Singapore. The division bench of the… – Continue reading
The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) on February 23, 2018, released the fifth edition of its Transfer Pricing Guidelines for income tax. During a public consultation held in June 2017, stakeholders asked the Ministry of Finance to provide more clarity and guidance on transfer pricing documentation (TPD) requirements, specifically… – Continue reading
Finance Ministry’s move under BEPS treaty will impact Google, Facebook, Amazon MUMBAI, FEBRUARY 5 Digital players such as Google, Facebook and mobile application services providers must pay taxes in India on income generated from Indian consumers even if the companies’ infrastructure is physically located abroad. According to a new proposal… – Continue reading
Ukraine’s Law No. 2245-VIII “On Introduction of Changes to the Tax Code of Ukraine and Some Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Ensuring the Balance of Budget Revenues in 2018,” which came into effect on January 1, 2018, includes important changes to transfer pricing (TP) regulations. These changes are outlined below…. – Continue reading
On December 29, 2017, the Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 6) Bill 2017 (BEPS bill) was gazetted in Hong Kong. The BEPS bill introduces a transfer pricing regulatory regime and mandatory transfer pricing documentation requirement in Hong Kong as well as a variety of other anti-BEPS changes. The BEPS bill marks… – Continue reading
Ernst and Young Solutions LLP, Singapore, has released its wish list for the Singapore Budget 2018, calling for reforms to sharpen the territory’s competitiveness. The firm said that Singapore should maintain its 17 percent corporate income tax (CIT) rate, which is one of the lowest in the world, but recommended… – Continue reading
Vietnam has lost thousands of billions of dong in taxes as foreign enterprises, especially large-scale ones, refuse to pay based on the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement. Massive revenue without having to pay taxes The Ho Chi Minh City Department of Taxation has recently issued an ultimatum for Uber B.V Netherlands… – Continue reading
On December 2, the OECD released the first analysis of individual countries’ progress in spontaneously exchanging information on tax rulings in accordance with Action 5 of the BEPS package of measures released in October 2015. The first annual report on the exchange of information on rulings evaluates how 44 countries,… – Continue reading
A new royalty withholding tax will apply from April 2019 where a non-UK resident entity making sales in the UK pays a royalty to a connected party in a low tax jurisdiction, according to a consultation document which sets out further details of the proposal, which was first announced in… – Continue reading
On November 21, 2017, the OECD Council approved the contents of the 2017 Update to the OECD Model Tax Convention. The 2017 Update primarily comprises changes to the OECD Model Tax Convention and related commentary that were developed through the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project including changes… – Continue reading
The Italian government has introduced a “temporary web tax” which will be in force until the long-awaited OECD/EU strategy for the reshaping of traditional taxation systems based on the residence of companies (or on the location of permanent establishments) has been defined. Said reshaping is aimed at introducing taxation principles… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: Inclusion of consultancy services under Construction PEs, foreign firms engaged in construction activities in the country, is likely to impact the real estate sector, says a PwC report. PE (Permanent Establishment) is a fixed place of business which generally gives rise to income or value-added tax liability in… – Continue reading
The Russian President and the Japanese Prime Minister signed the Convention for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance (the “Convention”) on 7 September 2017. The Convention will replace the existing treaty signed in 1986 by the Soviet… – Continue reading
The European Commission is preparing a new directive on the cross-border transfer of company headquarters, a move that could have far-reaching implications for other areas of corporate governance, including tax planning and cross-border mergers, EURACTIV has learned. With Brexit on the horizon, UK companies are busy weighing their options for… – Continue reading
Markus J Beyrer, Director General of Business Europe, has expressed concerns about the proposed introduction of a European Union turnover tax on digital businesses. On September 21, the European Commission launched a new agenda to ensure that the digital economy is taxed “in a fair and growth-friendly way.” This could… – Continue reading
The Inter-American Center of Tax Administration (CIAT) has released a new statement summarizing the feedback from Latin American and Caribbean countries from ongoing discussions on countering base erosion and profit shifting. CIAT said it and a number of regional and international organizations have brought together policymakers from countries in the… – Continue reading
Operations in the European Union haven’t been easy going for tech companies for quite a long time. While many European countries earlier called for strict privacy regulations and large fines on tech companies for violating them, they have now called for increased taxation for these companies for their operations in… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS — European Union finance ministers are set to discuss rule changes next week aimed at increasing taxes on digital multinationals such as Google and Amazon, an EU document seen by Reuters said. Online giants are facing increasing pressure in Europe over the low tax they pay, but states have… – Continue reading
This article is the third of a series of articles that examines tax aspects of the UK company which make it an attractive international business company, or “IBC”. This generic label, and its acronym, are normally associated with the BVI company, and its international competitors in other offshore financial centres…. – Continue reading
France intends to appeal against a recent court decision in favor of Google in a major tax avoidance case, but is open to settling the dispute outside of court, a government minister has said. In an interview with Les Echos, Minister of Action and Public Accounts, Gerald Darmanin, said that… – Continue reading
As of 1st July 2017, the tax treatment of intra-group financing arrangements has been amended in Cyprus. Intra-group financing transactions refers to finance activities between related parties (as defined in Section 33 of the Income Tax Law), including permanent establishments in Cyprus. Based on the Interpretative Circular issued by the… – Continue reading
The OECD has released for stakeholders’ comments two new discussion drafts as part of its base erosion and profit shifting work. The first draft builds on the OECD’s final report on BEPS Action 7 (on preventing the artificial avoidance of permanent establishment status). The final Report on Action 7 of… – Continue reading
Muscat: Dodging taxes can lead to a jail term of up to three years and a maximum fine of OMR50,000 under tax law amendments published by the Ministry of Finance, as government begins its crack down on evaders. Out of the 300,000 companies registered by the Oman Chamber of Commerce… – Continue reading
Brazil’s federal revenue service is continuing to adapt the country’s tax rules to OECD recommendations, as shown in recent guidance on how companies should seek help from the government on international tax questions. Normative Instruction 1689, issued Feb. 21, spells out the requirements for companies to request a consultation on… – Continue reading
The National Assembly of the Republic of Srpska (RS) adopted amendments to the Profit Tax Law on 28 December 2016. The main changes have become effective as of 1 January 2017 and will be briefly presented in this article. With the amendments, the Law clarifies the definition of “taxable person”… – Continue reading
A Republican plan to overhaul the U.S. corporate income tax could put the dozens of existing U.S. double-tax treaties in limbo. U.S. companies doing business abroad may no longer be able to rely on the mechanisms in treaties for resolving cross-border tax disputes—overlapping claims on a company’s tax—or they may… – Continue reading
The OECD made its end-November 2016 deadline to release the text of the multilateral treaty to give effect to the BEPS Actions which involve changes to tax treaties, see here. The 49 page treaty text, which is commonly referred to as the multilateral instrument or MLI, and 85 page explanatory… – Continue reading
THE scope of the withholding tax — a tax imposed on non-residents for services rendered to Malaysia-based companies — has been widened. It is one of the major tax changes that came into effect on Jan 17 under the Finance Act 2017. Under the changes, non-residents must pay withholding tax… – Continue reading
A key outcome of the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation’s (OECD’s) final Report on Action Plan 13 (Transfer Pricing Documentation and Country-by-Country reporting) is the commitment of OECD and G20 countries to introduce Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting along with the associated master file and local file documentation for large Multinational… – Continue reading
CROSS-border taxation in current times is poised for significant changes. Tax is key in foreign ventures. Absent tax strategies and foreign tax leakages would erode margins and return of investment. Although international tax-efficient strategies to mitigate capital gains tax (CGT), withholding tax (WHT) and the risk of creating a taxable… – Continue reading
New guidelines aim to check tax evasion, ensure foreign firms are not taxed on their global income. New Delhi: The income-tax (I-T) department on Tuesday issued the final guidelines for place of effective management (PoEM) rules that seek to determine the residency status of a firm for calculating its tax liability. The… – Continue reading
On 29 October 2016, the Austrian Ministry of Finance provided interesting guidance on the tax consequences of an alienation of a participation in a Hungarian partner- ship by an Austrian partnership consisting of German partners. The case revolved around an operative Austrian partnership (GmbH & Co KG) with German resident… – Continue reading
Given the recent developments in the Indian economy, the upcoming Union Budget will certainly be critical and important in determining the future outlook of the economy. The financial services industry has been one of the key drivers of growth due to its strong cause and effect relationship with the economy…. – Continue reading
On 23 November 2016, the Swiss Federal Council adopted the dispatch on the Multilateral Agreement on the exchange of Country-by-Country Reports (CbCRs) and draft federal implementing legislation. The proposal is aimed at implementing the minimum standard of the G20 countries and the OECD to combat base erosion and profit shifting… – Continue reading
Lower corporate tax rates around the world are expected to play an important part in multinational companies’ tax planning in 2017, with a rate as low as 15 percent on the table in the U.S. and countries such as the U.K. planning to maintain or lower their current rates. A… – Continue reading
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) welcomes the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD)’s release last week of a multilateral convention which allows for swift implementation of a series of tax treaty measures encompassed in the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. The release follows the conclusion… – Continue reading
On November 22, 2016, the Minister of Finance of Ukraine handed an official letter on Ukraine’s accession to the BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) plan to the Secretary-General of OECD. Being the final stage in the process of joining the project, Ukraine is to become a member of the… – Continue reading
Big U.S. internet companies in France could get hit by a new BEPS-inspired penalty on “diverted profits” under a so-called Google tax measure that France’s National Assembly is set to consider next week. The amendment, proposed by Socialist Deputy Yann Galut and adopted by the Assembly’s finance committee, targets foreign… – Continue reading
New Zealand’s tax agency has set out the international tax initiatives it intends to pursue, in particular in response to the OECD’s base erosion and profit shifting plan. It said it will undertake further work on a package of BEPS initiatives, which will include hybrid mismatch rules to prevent companies… – Continue reading
Ninety-eight countries are poised to formally adopt the OECD’s innovative multilateral tax treaty, which will place recommendations from the BEPS project into more than 3,000 bilateral accords, when the ad-hoc group meets later this month. The “Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty-Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting”… – Continue reading
U.S. companies operating contract manufacturers in Mexico can avoid double taxation between the United States and Mexico under a deal struck between their respective tax authorities and unveiled Friday by the IRS. So-called maquiladoras can avoid double taxation through a unilateral advance pricing agreement signed with the Servicio de Administración… – Continue reading
Applicable to transfer pricing for MNCs whose consolidated annual revenue is over Rs 5,000 crore The finance ministry will issue rules and guidance to address some concerns and ambiguity over mandatory reporting norms with respect to transfer pricing for multinational companies whose consolidated annual revenue is over Rs 5,000 crore…. – Continue reading
The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has published detailed guidance on the implementation of a new country-by-country (CbC) reporting requirement in the territory. The guidance, released on October 10, sets out which entities are obliged to report and how to complete and submit a CbC report to IRAS. For… – Continue reading
The Indonesian government recently launched tax hunt on Google Indonesia. If Google were indeed guilty of tax avoidance, it would have to pay a huge price for its actions. But Google is not alone in avoiding paying tax to Indonesian government. Indonesians and Indonesian companies are squirrelling their wealths in… – Continue reading
The government has stepped up efforts to collect what it says are millions of dollars of outstanding tax liabilities from Singapore-based Google Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., which has allegedly booked hefty revenue from Indonesian advertisers without paying proper taxes. The message to the tech giant is clear: we want a… – Continue reading
Apple Inc. may face double taxation on some of its profits if the European Commission’s Aug. 30 ruling inspires France to slap its own tax adjustment on the company, practitioners said. Apple could even face “triple taxation” if it repatriates profits from the European Union to the U.S., Laurent Leclercq,… – Continue reading
