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US tax returns, divine inspiration, Cardi B and poetry all feature in this month's less-than-serious look at recent tax news.

I've never been one for fine dining. Don't get me wrong, I love flavour, freshness and fancy food, but to be honest I find myself in the same boat as the tax authorities. Something can be intricately and expensively assembled and put in front of me ever so politely, but what I really crave at the end of the day is substance.

Although it has a small economy, Malta is fully exposed to the whims of the global economic context. The ramifications of Brexit on European markets are an extremely complex issue, write Nicky Gouder, tax partner, and Luana Scicluna, tax manager of ARQ Group.

Read this month's special features on Germany and Malta

On March 12 2018, Serbia joined the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes (Global Forum) in order to combat tax evasion through international tax cooperation.

Over the past decade, permanent establishments (PE) have emerged as one of the hottest topics of dispute during tax inspections in Italy and have also frequently been the subject of contention in the context of tax courts. This has applied especially in relation to the way foreign companies have opted to use the structure to set up their businesses in Italy (the so-called 'undisclosed PE'). And considering the operational impact that a PE risk may trigger, it has become even more crucial to evaluate the possible consequences on the supply chains of the new definitions and concepts brought about by the OECD's work in relation to the BEPS project (in particular, Action 7: Preventing the Artificial Avoidance of Permanent Establishment Status).

In a widely anticipated and important announcement, on March 27 2018, the Australian Treasurer, Scott Morrison, outlined a range of integrity measures to: (i) Tighten the rules on stapled structures; (ii) Limit certain tax concessions for foreign pension funds and foreign governments (including sovereign wealth funds); and (iii) Restrict thin capitalisation.

The long awaited Announcement 9 has been released by the State Administration of Taxation of China (SAT). Effective from April 1 2018, Announcement 9 replaces Circular 601 and Announcement 30, both of which are key circulars setting out the rules for foreign investors claiming tax treaty benefits on their Chinese-sourced dividends, interest and royalties (passive income).

On March 21 2018, the Swiss Federal Council sent to the Swiss Parliament the dispatch on the draft legislation for the so-called Swiss Tax Reform Proposal 17.

Against a backdrop of continuing China-US trade tensions, Chinese President Xi Jinping on April 10, at the Bo'ao Forum for Asia, announced a 'four-point plan' for the further liberalisation of rules governing foreign investment in, and trade with, China.