US: IRS Publishes Updated Tax Guide for Aliens
The US Internal Revenue Service has released a revised United States Tax Guide for Aliens, providing guidance for resident and nonresident aliens for use in preparing their 2013 tax returns, and, in particular, how to determine their residence
See MoreUS: IRS Apologizes To Taxpayers for Poor Service
With its funding restricted within the 2014 Appropriations Bill, the United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner has indicated that taxpayers will have to exercise patience when trying to contact the agency. Among other problems the
See MoreUS Lawmakers Plead for Sales Tax Deduction Renewal
A bipartisan group of 57 Members has, in a letter to the House of Representatives Ways and Means Committee, sought a renewal of the United States state and local sales tax deduction, which expired on January 1, 2014. The state and local sales tax
See MoreUruguay: Extension of tax refund for exports
Uruguay has extended the 4% tax refund for exports of specific products to 30 June 2014 through Executive Decree 393/013. The aim of the measure is to protect different industries that were negatively affected by the decrease in international demand
See MoreECJ: Deduction of input VAT on pension fund management costs
In a Revenue and Customs Brief HMRC has set out its position on VAT on pension fund management costs. This follows decision of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) in the case of Fiscale Eenheid PPG Holdings BV regarding an employer's entitlement to
See MoreSwiss Finance Directors Request Corporate Tax Reform
The Swiss Conference of Cantonal Finance Directors (FDK) has emphasized on the importance of reforming the corporate tax system, making some preliminary recommendations. The FDK believes that some tax measures should be implemented quickly within
See MoreSpanish capital gains tax rules found to be discriminatory by Supreme Court
In a decision on 25 October 2013 in the Brambles France case (appeal No 1374/2011), Spain's Supreme Court ruled that the capital gains tax on non-residents may be discriminatory in some cases. The case involved a French company that sold its shares
See MoreSouth Korea: reducing stock option taxation
South Korea announced measures on 5 February 2014 to ease the tax burden on stock options for the venture capital and start-up sector. Early this year, the Government finalized a range of tax incentives, which were first announced in May 2013, to
See MoreSouth Africa reminds employers to make ETI claims
South African businesses have been reminded that their first monthly claim for the Employment Tax Incentive (ETI), which came into effect on January 1 2014, should be submitted by February 7, 2014. The ETI is an incentive mainly aimed at encouraging
See MoreRussia: Ministry of Finance clarifies the transfer pricing rules
The Ministry of Finance Letter No. 03-01-18/53941, issued on 10 December 2013, clarifies the rules to determine the income for controlled transactions purposes. The Ministry of Finance specified that transactions defined in article 105.14 of the Tax
See MoreRomania: Prime Minister considers tax breaks for reinvested profits
Romania's Prime Minister has said that he hopes to have details ready on a planned tax break on reinvested profits in time for the next International Monetary Fund (IMF) visit to the country in April. The Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister
See MorePortugal: Collection of Food Security Tax being enforced
The Portuguese Government is finally taking action to enforce payment of the country's food security tax from operators of large supermarket chains. Portugal's State Secretary for Food said that 107 cases are currently before the administrative and
See MoreUnited States – IRS releases transfer pricing audit “roadmap”
The IRS Large Business & International (LB&I) division has released a transfer pricing audit "roadmap" that is intended to be a practical, user-friendly toolkit organized around a notional 24-month audit time-line. The roadmap has been
See MoreOECD releases paper on transfer pricing documentation
On 30 January 2014, as part of the action plan on base erosion and profit shifting, the OECD published a discussion draft on transfer pricing documentation. This discussion draft takes the form of a revised Chapter V of the OECD Transfer Pricing
See MoreNetherlands amends the preliminary tax assessment procedure
The amendments to article 23(2) of the Implementing Regulations of the 1994 General Tax Law relating to the issuance of preliminary tax assessments were published in the Official Gazette, No. 2405 . The amendments are summarized below. Under the
See MoreMalaysia: New Public Ruling on Withholding Tax on Special Classes of Income
The Inland Revenue Board of Malaysia issued Public Ruling No. 1/2014 (PR No. 1/2014) on Withholding Tax on Special Classes of Income on 23 January 2014. The special classes of income covered by the public ruling include amounts paid in consideration
See MoreTaiwan – Income tax exemption for royalties and technical service fees
Taiwan has introduced an amendment concerning the rules governing taxpayers (including foreign for-profit entities) that apply for an exemption from income tax on royalties and technical service fees related to the manufacturing, technical service,
See MoreLuxembourg: VAT rate will increase
The Luxembourg Prime Minister has announced that, Luxembourg is set to raise its standard rate of VAT in 2015. The standard VAT rate is currently 15% and at present it is the lowest standard rate in the EU. The Prime Minister has indicated that the
See More