Austria’s platform VAT law advances digital tax conversation A package proposed by the Austrian government includes a reform to platforms’ VAT obligations, mirroring the laws in the UK and Germany. However, with the EU poised to act in 2021, Alexander Hartley asks why Austria is bothering to move in 2020.
Tax technologists increasingly important but hard to find for MNEs Demand for tax technologists is rising in the post-BEPS environment, according to tax and technology leaders, as tax departments find it increasingly important to prepare systems for new developments coming from tax authorities.
Uber’s VAT battles illustrate different approaches to taxing the platform economy Uber has been fighting on multiple fronts over its VAT obligations in different jurisdictions. Alexander Hartley examines how a settlement with the Egyptian authorities and an ongoing legal drama in the UK signal two different approaches to making the ‘platform economy’ subject to VAT rules.
India happy to be the leader in tax but still craves consensus During International Tax Review’s India Tax Forum, Hitesh D Gajaria, partner and head of tax at KPMG India, sat down with Akhilesh Ranjan, member of the Central Board of Direct Taxes and key figure in the international tax community, to talk about a variety of tax topics.
Stepping up: Companies get into the stride of post-BEPS tax transactions After a buoyant start to 2018, M&A activity tailed off in the final quarter of the year. Despite this, for transactional tax, many large companies are restructuring as they adjust to the US Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, post-BEPS rules such as the EU Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive, and to the new reality of the digital economy.
Americas: Increasing corporate cash flows drive deal-making across the Americas Tax professionals across the Americas have a positive outlook on deal-making activity for the first half of 2019 as multinationals are ‘flush with cash’ after the repatriation of funds under provisions in the 2017 US tax reform, writes Danish Mehboob.
Asia-Pacific: Companies play defence with transactions in APAC The need to align cross-border transactions with commercial substance to gain tax certainty and avoid litigation is driving deal-making across the Asia Pacific region. Alexander Hartley explains how the M&A tax strategies of Asian companies intersect with trade disputes, political volatility and market nervousness.
Europe, Middle East and Africa: EMEA investors seek safe transactions that fit tax transparency initiatives Across Europe, Middle East and Africa, deal volumes are expected to fall slightly in 2019, but there are some strong sectors bucking this trend. Real estate is powering ahead despite significant upcoming changes in the UK and Germany, while other companies are looking to insurance to get deals through, writes Joe Stanley-Smith.
Government and customers – the driving force of digitisation Kim Hau, senior proposition manager for ONESOURCE Indirect Tax at Thomson Reuters, explains why corporate indirect tax teams must shift their approach from ‘surviving’ the compliance cycle to a more proactive and considered way of working.
Technology’s impact on the tax outsourcing debate Technology and regulatory changes are encouraging heads of tax to revisit their operating models to determine the most effective way to deliver their objectives, writes Sandy Markwick, head of the Tax Director Network at Winmark.
Brexit planning provokes considerable tax recruitment Companies are hiring tax professionals to become the ‘Head of Brexit Tax’ as they look to deal with the uncertainty. Ian Barker, UK director of professional services at Morgan McKinley highlights the trends across the UK tax recruitment sphere and what is coming next.
Special features - March / April 2019 Read this month's special features on Malta, Luxembourg and Chile
Australia updates corporate collective investment vehicle legislation The Australian government released draft legislation on January 17 2019, outlining the tax and regulatory components of the corporate collective investment vehicle (CCIV) regime, which is intended to make Australia more attractive and competitive in the funds management industry.
New venture tax capital rules and support for inbound investment in China In recent years, China's venture capital (VC) industry has undergone rapid development and expansion.
Croatia: Croatia enters its third chapter of tax reform The Croatian government has worked relentlessly on the nation's economic recovery, having already completed two rounds of tax reform in 2017 and 2018, with a third round to commence in 2019.
Cyprus: Tax department clarifies 60-day rule for nominee directors Under the 60-day rule in Cyprus, individuals are considered tax residents of Cyprus and benefit from the island's tax regime.
German transfer pricing methods in the context of digital transformations In our last article, we described the challenges that the digital transformation poses for transfer pricing (TP). In this article, we want to show how emerging business interdependencies can be translated into new TP models.
Greece amends century-old corporate laws Law 4548/2018 (new law) on sociétés anonymes (SAs), or corporations in Greece, entered into force on January 1 2019, replacing Law 2190/1920, which governed the operations of corporations in Greece for almost one century.
Mumbai tribunal affirms territorial nexus as essential in determining attributable profits The Mumbai Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (tribunal) has held that a territorial nexus is necessary for determining profits attributable to operations carried out in India. Agency commission accrued, or arising, outside of India is not taxable under domestic laws.
Indonesia updates double taxation avoidance regulations Indonesia's Director General of Tax (DGT) issued Regulation No. PER-25/PJ/2018 (PER-25) on November 21 2018, simplifying the procedures concerning the implementation of the double taxation avoidance agreement.
Ireland’s High Court evaluates information powers of revenue commissioners Ireland's High Court recently considered the powers of the Irish Revenue Commissioners (Revenue) and their ability to obtain information from a third party in its decision regarding Florence Carey v. A Company (2019, IEHC 90).
Corporate tax issues in South Africa’s 2019 budget A number of proposed tax changes were highlighted in documents released as part of South Africa's annual budget on February 20 2019. The draft legislation dealing with these will only be released for comment later in the year, but some of the key takeaways have been highlighted below.
‘When can we have robots to get rid of all tax departments?’ During a panel session at the ITR Tax and Technology Forum, a head of tax said he had recently been asked by their CFO: “When can we have robots to get rid of all tax departments?”
Tax Relief Because tax doesn’t have to be taxing. A less-than-serious look back at some of the quirkier tax stories from the past month.
International updates - March/April 2019 The latest international updates from our correspondents around the world.
Euromoney LMG Americas Women in Business Law Awards 2019 – shortlist announced The shortlist for the eighth annual Euromoney Legal Media Group Americas Women in Business Law Awards has been announced. For the 2019 nominees, please see below.
Euromoney LMG Europe Women in Business Law Awards 2019 – shortlist announced The shortlist for the ninth annual Euromoney Legal Media Group Europe Women in Business Law Awards has been announced. For the 2019 nominees, please see below.
