OECD Releases Discussion Draft on Revisions to Transfer Pricing Guidelines
A discussion draft was released by the OECD on 19 December 2014 setting out revisions to the OECD transfer pricing guidelines as a result of actions 8, 9 and 10 of the action plan on base erosion and profit shifting. These actions are quite closely
See MoreOECD Publishes Discussion Drafts on VAT and BEPS Issues
On 18 December 2014 the OECD published discussion drafts on the international VAT/GST guidance and on aspects of the action plan on base erosion and profit shifting. A discussion draft has been released on two new elements of the OECD International
See MoreLatvia: Parliament adopts the State Budget for 2015
The Latvian Parliament adopted the state budget for 2015 on 17 December, 2014. The state budget for 2015 preserves the existing tax policy and does not envisage an increase in current tax rates. The income gap will be reduced by increasing the
See MoreLithuania Accepts the Amendments to the Law on State Social Insurance
The Lithuanian parliament adopted the amendments to the Law on State Social Insurance on 11 December 2014. If the President approves the amendments, they will enter into force on 1 January 2015. According to the amendments, the taxable base for
See MoreUS: Senate Passes Tax Extenders Bill
The US Senate approved the “Tax Extenders Bill” on 16 December, 2014. The bill, which extends the life of a number of tax breaks through 2014, passed the Senate 76 to 16. Only 60 votes were needed for approval. Dozens of temporary tax breaks,
See MoreUkrainian Cabinet Dissolves DTA With Cyprus
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine approved the draft law on the denunciation of the Cyprus - Ukraine Income Tax Treaty (2012), on December 17, 2014. Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseniy Yatseniuk said that when the convention was signed in 2012, it
See MoreNigeria: First audit cycle under new transfer pricing regulations starts
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in Nigeria has built a Transfer Pricing Division on November 2013 that is accountable for the execution and administration of the Income Tax Transfer Pricing Regulations No.1 2012 (TP Regulations). This
See MoreSouth Africa Issues Tax Exemption Guide for Public Benefit Organisations
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) issued a revised version of its tax exemption guide on 15 December 2014. The publication provides general guidance on the taxation of public benefit organizations in South Africa. The guide is intended to
See MoreSingapore Modifies Tax Information Exchange Procedure
According to a report issued in relation to the international standard for exchange of information for tax purposes (the EOI Standard), Singapore has modified its tax code to put in place the legislative framework to deal with Group Requests, from
See MoreFrance: Assembly Passes Second Draft Finance Bill For 2014
The draft amending budget for 2014 was passed at first reading by the French assembly on 9 December 2014. The legislation also has been passed by the Senate, and enactment is now expected before the end of 2014. This second draft Finance Amendment
See MoreFinland: Government Publishes Transfer Pricing Guidebook For Companies
The Finish Prime Minister’s Office published a guidebook on transfer pricing (TP) rules for Finnish companies on December 4, 2014. Finland wants to encourage companies to expand business activities abroad and to help foreign companies wanting to
See MoreChina: SAT Regulates the Administration of the GAAR
Recently, the State Administration of Taxation (SAT) issued the Administrative Measures on the General Anti-Avoidance Rule (GAAR) to further regulate and clarify various matters, such as applicable scope, judging criteria, adjustment methods,
See MoreEuropean Union: Report on Progress towards Financial Transactions Tax
The European Union’s Italian Presidency which draws to a close at the end of 2014 has issued a report on the progress made towards the introduction of a Financial Transactions Tax (FTT) by some EU countries under the EU’s enhanced cooperation
See MoreHong Kong Exchanges Notes With Japan Regarding Exchange of Information
The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR) exchanged notes on 10 December 10 2014, with the Government of Japan regarding the Exchange of Information (EoI) Article in the double taxation agreement between the Hong Kong SAR
See MoreSouth Africa: Revised Corporate Tax Returns Reflect REIT Reporting Requirements
The South Africa Revenue Service announced changes to the income tax return (ITR14) in respect of the 2014 year of assessment, to reflect rules for identifying a real estate investment trust (REIT). The changes are as follows; For the
See MoreNigeria: Tax withheld on dividends from gas operations
A decision of a case entitled “Nigeria Agrip Co. Ltd v. Federal Inland Revenue Service (10th December 2014)” has been issued by the Tax Appeal Tribunal and it states that dividends paid by a gas exploration and production company and paid out of
See MoreNigeria: Underpayment notices regarding interest, penalty assessments
The Tax Appeal Tribunal in Nigeria has issued a decision in a case regarding a taxpayer’s underpayment of company’s income tax, and the tribunal thought that interest and penalties on the underpayment are triggered and start to run when the
See MoreCanada: Small business income tax rate decreases
The New Brunswick has introduced Legislation (Bill 2) that would cut the small business income tax rate from 4.5% to 4% as of 1st January 2015. Bill 2 has taken first reading on 4th December
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