Swiss 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 MoreItaly’s Transfer Pricing Changes In 2014
Italy has introduced a number of transfer pricing-related changes within its Finance Act 2014 (Law No 147/2013). These changes will have an effect on both administrative procedures and fundamental transfer pricing concepts. Article 1, Paragraph 281
See MoreItaly dealing with transfer pricing legislation domestically
According to a verdict of the Italian Supreme Court in July 2013, internal transfer prices must follow the arm’s-length principle. Italy has been adopting international transfer pricing rules similar to those in the rest of Europe. The Supreme
See MoreIreland: High taxes may reduce competitiveness
The Irish Government has been warned to control further increases in personal taxes by the head of the country's largest recruitment firm. A recent survey found that almost half of all Irish job seekers are now emigrating to find work. Roughly one
See MoreFrance: Reduced VAT rate on digital newspapers and magazines
The French government is about to propose a VAT reduction for digital newspapers and magazines. The intention behind this move is to provide a level playing field for different forms of publication. The government wants to give the digital versions
See MoreEuropean Parliament Urged To Outlaw Anonymous Shell Companies
The European Parliament has been urged to support the creation of public registries of corporate ownership. This suggestion has been made by a Washington DC-based research and advocacy organization. Global Financial Integrity (GIF) studies and
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