Tax Treaties

Treaties dealing with the division of taxing rights between states.

Arbitration, Arm's Length, BEPS, Double Taxation, International Tax Law, MAPs and APAs, Norway, OECD, OECD MC Convention, Permanent Establishments, Tax Treaties, Transfer Pricing, UN Tax Convention, United Nations

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Transfer pricing adjustments under Article 9 of the model treaties are the most common form of dispute that is dealt with under the mutual agreement procedure. It is for this reason that the OECD gathers and publishes statistical data on such cases separate from all other kinds of tax treaty disputes. Recourse to MAP to…

Arm's Length, Company, Developing Countries, Direct taxation, Double Taxation, Finland, income tax, India, International Tax Law, MNE Profits, MNEs, OECD, OECD MC Convention, Permanent Establishments, South Africa, Tax Treaties, Transfer Pricing, UAE, UN Tax Convention, Uncategorized, United Kingdom, United Nations, United States

(Temple Tax Chambers; King’s College London)/ /1 Comment

“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, ” it means just what I choose it to mean, neither more nor less.” (Lewis Carroll, Alice through the Looking Glass) Prior to the OECD’s 10 year project on attribution of profits to permanent establishments, there were very few reported cases on…

Canada, Direct taxation, Double Taxation, Individuals, International Tax Law, MAPs and APAs, OECD, OECD MC Convention, Personal income tax, Tax Treaties, UN Tax Convention, Unitary Taxation, United States

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Art 23 of the OECD and UN Model treaties are seldom exactly followed in state treaty practice. More often, the basic principles of relief by credit or exemption in arts 23A and B are tailored to meet specific requirements of contracting states.  The United States is a case in point. Since it taxes its citizens…

India, MFN, OECD, Switzerland, Tax Treaties

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Switzerland has suspended the application of the most favoured nation clause contained in the protocol to its 1994 tax treaty with India. This was done in response to the Supreme Court of India’s judgement in Nestlé.[1] This action appears to have raised a number of legal questions with respect to reciprocity in tax treaty interpretation…

Abuse of law, Abuse of rights, Anti-tax avoidance, Beneficial ownership, Canada, Corporate income tax, Direct taxation, Dividends, Double Taxation, income tax, International Tax Law, Loans, OECD MC Convention, Tax Avoidance, Tax haven, Tax Planning, Tax Treaties, United Kingdom, Withholding Taxes

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The recent English Court of Appeal decision in Hargreaves Property Holdings Ltd v HMRC [2024] EWCA Civ 365 http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWCA/Civ/2024/365.html  has again examined the meaning of beneficial ownership and the related expression “beneficially entitled” in UK domestic tax law. It follows shortly after the Tax Court of Canada decision in Husky Energy Energy Inc. v The…

Beneficial ownership, GAAR, Principal purpose test, Tax Treaties

( PwC Netherlands, Lazarski University and Singapore Management University)/ /Leave a comment

Part II. The (Toxic) Relationship of BO and GAAR in Light of the Husky Energy case. “[T]he concept of beneficial ownership is a basic principle of income taxation: the beneficial owner of income is the person who should be taxed on the income. [(…)] The concept of beneficial ownership is not a good anti-avoidance rule…

Abuse of law, Abuse of rights, Anti-tax avoidance, Beneficial ownership, Canada, Dividends, Double Taxation, Finance, Financial transactions, GAAR, income tax, International Tax Law, Luxembourg, MLI, OECD, OECD MC Convention, Share Dealings, Tax Avoidance, Tax haven, Tax Treaties, Treaty shopping, Withholding Taxes

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In my previous blog I examined the Tax Court of Canada’s analysis of the meaning of beneficial ownership in tax treaties in Husky Energy Inc. v The King, 2023 TCC 167 in relation to stock or securities lending. This post examines the application of the General Anti-Avoidance Rule(GAAR) in Canada to the transactions. The facts…

Carbon pricing, Crypto Staking, Tax Treaties, VAT

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Intertax

We are happy to inform you that the latest issue of the journal is now available and includes the following contributions: Alice Pirlot, Climate Clubs: An International Tax Law Perspective Global carbon pricing has often been portrayed as an interesting idea that will never be implemented due to political hurdles. Yet, this description is being…

Abuse of law, Anti-tax avoidance, Beneficial ownership, Canada, Direct taxation, Dividends, Double non-taxation, Double Taxation, DTA, Finance, Financial transactions, Holding company, International Tax Law, OECD, Tax Treaties, Treaty shopping, Withholding Taxes

(Temple Tax Chambers; King’s College London)/ /2 Comments

Although the meaning of beneficial ownership in tax treaties first burst onto the scene in Indofood International Finance Ltd v JP Morgan Chase Bank N.A. London Branch [2006] EWCA Civ 158  and, for the first time in Canada in Prévost Car Inc. v R 2008 TCC 231, (affirmed 2009 FCA 57), its meaning and application…

Administrative Co-operation, Double Taxation, ECHR, EU, Exchange of Informaion, International Tax Law, OECD, Rule of law, Tax Treaties, United Kingdom, United States

(Temple Tax Chambers; King’s College London)/ /1 Comment

It has been 60 years since publication of the OECD 1963 Draft Double Taxation Convention on Income and Capital. That model has provided the core and structure of all subsequent model double tax treaties published by the OECD, the UN and some states. During this period the number of bilateral tax treaties has grown exponentially….

CJEU, Intangibles, Pillar I, Pillar II, Tax Treaties

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Intertax

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…

Abuse of law, Anti-tax avoidance, Beneficial ownership, BEPS, Direct taxation, Financial transactions, Fund management, Ireland, MLI, OECD, Principal purpose test, Tax haven, Tax Treaties, Treaty shopping, United Kingdom, Withholding Taxes

(Temple Tax Chambers; King’s College London)/ /4 Comments
article 3(2), burden of proof, OECD Commetary, treaty interpretation, UN Commentary

Even before introduction of the BEPS PPT, the UK has had purpose-based provisions in various forms, designed to limit access to treaty benefits in its double tax treaties since the 1960’s. Its standard formulation first appeared in 1992.  Surprisingly, the first case in which the meaning and application of this wording in a tax treaty…

CJEU, Direct taxation, ECJ, EU, Germany, Indirect taxation, International Tax Law, Non-established taxpayers, OECD, Permanent Establishments, Physical presence, Place of taxation, Tax Treaties, United Nations, VAT

(Temple Tax Chambers; King’s College London)/ /Leave a comment

The very recent CJEU judgement in Berlin Chemie A. Menarini v Administraţia Fiscală pentru Contribuabili Mijlocii Bucureşti (Case C-333/20) ECLI:EU:C:2022:291, admirably examined by Giorgio Beretta last week considered the circumstances in which a subsidiary might be a VAT fixed establishment (FE) of its parent company or another affiliate. A Romanian company supplied advertising, marketing and…

Canada, International Tax Law, Tax Treaties, United Kingdom

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English may be the lingua franca of our time, but it is not the only language of international law. Royal Bank of Canada v HMRC [2022] UKUT 45 (TCC).  raised issues around the interpretation of a tax treaty concluded in English and French, both languages being equally authentic. The complex facts are summarised at https://kluwertaxblog.com/2020/07/29/income-from-immoveable-property-article-6-and-royalty-streams/….