UK: Updated guidance on the Scottish rate of income tax
On 27 October 2015 the UK published updated guidance on the Scottish rate of income tax that becomes effective from 6 April 2016. The Scottish Parliament is empowered to set a tax rate that is different from the rate applicable in the rest of the
See MoreUK publishes statistics on employment allowance
The UK has published statistics on employers taking up the employment allowance for the first six months of the 2015/16 tax year (6 April 2015 to 5 October 2015). The Employment Allowance was introduced from 2014 and gives up to GBP 2,000 relief
See MoreEthiopia: IMF report comments on economic and fiscal position
Following consultations with Ethiopia under Article IV of the IMF’s articles of agreement the IMF released a staff report and other documents on 30 October 2015. Ethiopia’s recent economic performance has been strong, with economic growth of
See MoreAngola: IMF comments on economic and fiscal position
The Executive Board of the IMF concluded its consultations with Angola under Article IV of its articles of agreement on 28 October 2015 and has published a press release. Angola’s economy has been adversely affected by the low oil price and there
See MoreUK Explains VAT Changes Following the Skandia Decision
The UK has issued Revenue and Customs Brief 18 (2005) explaining VAT grouping rules and the Skandia judgment. The VAT changes in the UK effective from 1 January 2016 result from the Skandia decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ). The
See MoreArgentina-Double Tax Treaty with Switzerland enters into force
The new Double Taxation Treaty between Switzerland and Argentina will enter into force on 27 November 2015. The new treaty will be applicable from 1 January 2015. For taxes withheld at source the relief has become applicable from 2015. The new
See MoreDTA between Czech Republic and Pakistan enters into force
The Income Tax Treaty (2014) between Czech Republic and Pakistan entered into force on 30th October 2015 and it generally applies for the Czech Republic from 1st January 2016 and from 1st July 2016 for
See MoreBosnia: IMF Report Suggests Reforms to Taxation and Social Security
Following consultations in Bosnia by IMF staff under Article IV of the IMF’s articles of agreement a staff report and a selected issues paper were published on 28 October 2015. The selected issues paper includes a section on moving towards a more
See MoreUK: Two year plan to increase SME awareness of R&D tax relief
Following a consultation on research and development tax relief the UK government has announced a two-year plan to make it easier for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) conducting research and development (R&D) to claim the tax relief. The
See MoreBulgaria: Budget for 2016 published
The Finance Ministry (MoF) has published the Budget for 2016 on 26th October 2015. The MoF included the following measures in this budget: The income tax rate, withholding tax rate, and VAT rate will remain unchanged for 2016 through
See MoreLuxembourg: Electronic filing for company income tax return
Electronic filing is now available for Luxembourg resident company. On 29 October 2015, the Finance Minister declared a new e-filing tool for company income tax return, municipal business and net worth tax return. Initially e-filing process is
See MorePoland: The President of Republic amends rules on transfer pricing documentation
The President of Republic of Poland signed an Act amending the Corporate Income Tax (CIT) Act, the Personal Income Tax (PIT) Act on 27 October 2015. The Act initiated important changes related to transfer pricing (TP) documentation. As per the
See MoreGreece: Enacted Rules on Transfer Pricing Penalties and Issued Guidance on TP Documentation
Greece enacted changes to the applicable transfer pricing (TP) documentation rules based on Law 4337/17.10.2015 on 17 October 2015 and issues guidance. Based on the new Law 4337/17.10.2015, the following changes are introduced to the penalties
See MoreCanada: Alberta fiscal budget for 2015-2016 issued
The Finance Minister of Alberta has presented the Province’s fiscal budget for 2015-2016 on 27th October 2015. The budget contains no changes to the personal income tax rates. However, some other new tax measures contained in the budget may
See MoreRussia: A draft order regarding tax exchange information published
The Federal Tax Service (FTS) has released a draft order on 26th October 2015 that contains a list (in Russian) of countries and territories which do not exchange tax information with Russia for discussion purposes. According to article 25.13-1 of
See MoreHungary: Draft bill for tax law changes in 2016
The government of Hungary recently presented to the Parliament a draft bill with proposals for tax law changes which would take effect as from 2016. The proposed draft bill creates a classification system for taxpayers based on the level of risk
See MoreKazakhstan: Amendment to the deductibility of charitable donations
The Senate has passed a bill on 22nd October 2015 that changes the deductibility of charitable donations. In accordance with the bill, the deduction of charitable donation by companies and individual entrepreneurs will be limited to the following
See MoreSecond round of FTA negotiations between China and Pakistan
The 2nd round of the China-Pakistan free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations was held in Beijing on October 14 to 16. The negotiations were based on tax reduction for trade in goods; further opening of trade in services; Pakistan’s regulation
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