Back in 2015, my first ever blog asked Does the UK Diverted Profits Tax help or hurt BEPS? Whatever the answer, the level of complexity and the challenges it brought to UK cross-border taxation cannot be underestimated. The recent decision of the UK Upper Tribunal in in Refinitiv Ltd and others v HM Revenue &…

We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Reuven Avi-Yonah, Do Intangibles Fit BEFIT? This article argues that the BEFIT formula should not include intangibles because they are subject to manipulation and their value is reflected by other factors in the existing…

Executive summary: When we look at the digital economy, we tend to think of it as a global, intangible and knowledge-driven system. However, the digital economy is not only driven by patents or trademarks – so-called “intangibles” – but also driven by “resources, data and labour”. Against the background of this incomplete understanding of the…

Bram Markey – EMEA Leader Tax Controversy & Dispute Resolution at PwC Belgium Raphaël Devroye – Transfer Pricing Manager at PwC Belgium In a recent judgement[1], the Belgian Court of Appeal of Ghent ruled in favour of the taxpayer as regards a transfer pricing case in relation to intangibles. Even though the case is complex…

“Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it” George Santayana, The Life of Reason: Reason in Common Sense (1905). A seminar was held in Rotterdam on 18 May 2018 on “value creation” in the new tax universe to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the International Fiscal Association. An erudite panel, comprising Prof…

Taxation of the digital economy featured in discussion on the implementation of the OECD/G20 BEPS action items at the annual conference of the Canadian Tax Foundation in Toronto on 21 November 2017. Several speakers note that no generally accepted solution had been found to address the impact of the digitalisation of the global economy on…

On 23 May the OECD published a Public Discussion Draft on Implementation Guidance on Hard-to-Value intangibles (HTVIs).  Comments are due by 30 June 2017, so hurry. 1.    Introduction All guidance by the CFA and the opportunity to comment is appreciated, especially on a major topic like intangibles.  That being said, I think that this paper…

Lower energy cost is a major factor for U.S. manufacturers … to be able to offer on par production costs to China, and 10 percent to 20 percent lower costs than European manufacture. I’ve been remiss in my blogging since the surprise victory of the presidential election.  It is not because I think the apocalypse…

In a decision that offers the much-needed certainty in the tax treatment of income arising from the cross-border transfer of rights in intangibles used by Indian subsidiaries of multinational corporations, India’s Delhi High Court recently ruled that income arising from the transfer of foreign-owned intangible assets between two non-resident companies cannot be subject to Indian…

Probably without noticing it, Colombia did not take into account that signing the recent DTT with France would allow some treaty-covered taxpayers to claim Most-Favoured-Nation (MFN) protection. Some of Colombia’s DTTs, as the ones signed with Spain, Chile, Switzerland, Portugal and Mexico, include Most-Favoured-Nation clauses with respect to royalties. In this sense, it is important…

Model tax treaties do matter. The OECD and UN Models constitute precedent books with standard clauses that contracting states can follow or adapt to suit their particular circumstances. The US Model treaty, in contrast, is a statement of intent. The preamble to the revised 2016 US Model Income Tax Convention released by the US Treasury…