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The comprehensive guide to the world's leading tax firms

Ernst & Young has an established presence in Singapore, with experienced professionals in all areas of tax. Like some of its competitors, the firm set up a business incentives advisory group to advise clients on the tax incentives and schemes that have ... [more]

Ernst & Young has an established presence in Singapore, with experienced professionals in all areas of tax. Like some of its competitors, the firm set up a business incentives advisory group to advise clients on the tax incentives and schemes that have been made available through the 2010 and 2011 annual budgets.

Previously in the China office, Luis Coronado took over as head of the Singapore transfer pricing practice in July 2011. His predecessor, Jesper Solgaard, has moved to the Australian office to be co-leader of the Oceania transfer pricing practice.

New addition Jow Lee Ying joined the firm from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) to assist clients with controversy issues including defending tax audits and seeking advance rulings and advance pricing agreements. Aside from her technically sound advice on transfer pricing, Jow has knowledge of the processes from the perspective of the tax authorities.

The transfer pricing practice is handling one of the first bilateral APAs between Singapore and Canada, and is also involved in substantial APAs with Australia, Japan, and Thailand.

Advice for clients on the productivity and innovation credit schemes, R&D schemes, and the increase in transfer pricing compliance requirements, have been keeping KPMG's tax advisers busy. The firm now has an R&D incentive unit for clients, aimed to ... [more]

Advice for clients on the productivity and innovation credit schemes, R&D schemes, and the increase in transfer pricing compliance requirements, have been keeping KPMG's tax advisers busy. The firm now has an R&D incentive unit for clients, aimed to help clients benefit from the tax incentive schemes.

Tay Hong Beng, a local and international corporate tax specialist, heads the tax team. He has overseen an aggressive expansion of the team in the last year, including the addition of five new partners in October 2010.

The strength of Singapore's tax practice is bolstered by the presence of Asia-Pacific regional tax partner Brahma Sharma, who excels at handling cross-border transactions and other tax issues for multinational companies.

Six of the top 10 banks in the world use KPMG for tax advice so this keeps the team in Singapore occupied, too.

PwC's international tax practice is one of the largest in Singapore. The team works with numerous multinational clients, offering a full range of tax services such as compliance, monitoring assessments and mitigating risk generally.The Singapore office ... [more]

PwC's international tax practice is one of the largest in Singapore. The team works with numerous multinational clients, offering a full range of tax services such as compliance, monitoring assessments and mitigating risk generally.

The Singapore office also has Chinese, Indian and Malaysian tax desks operating as part of it.

Partner David Sandison has been recommended by peers as a corporate tax specialist, while Paul Lau is known for his financial services tax work.

Allen & Gledhill's tax practice has had a fruitful year, establishing itself as a leading market player in Singapore. The firm operates with four partners, Nand Singh Gandhi, Sunit Chhabra, Lim Pek Bur and Tang Siau Yan, who advise on all areas of Singapore ... [more]

Allen & Gledhill's tax practice has had a fruitful year, establishing itself as a leading market player in Singapore. The firm operates with four partners, Nand Singh Gandhi, Sunit Chhabra, Lim Pek Bur and Tang Siau Yan, who advise on all areas of Singapore tax. Gandhi has been described as "great in the tax field" by another adviser. The last 12 months have seen an increase in demand for the practice's tax structuring and tax litigation skills.

Chhabra worked on many of the practice's bigger deals over the last year. In February 2011, he advised Temasek Financial on the issuance of a $5 billion Euro-commercial paper programme, the first such programme to be launched by a Singapore company.

In June 2010, Chhabra advised Treasury China Trust on the tax implications of its listing in Singapore, the holding of assets and remittance of income in a tax-efficient manner. The transaction was structured so that the client's listing in Singapore would not result in significant tax exposure.

Edmund Leow leads the tax team at Baker & McKenzie.Wong & Leow, comprising two partners and seven other fee earners. Leow is recognised for his experience and practical approach to tax structuring.Leow, Allen Tan and James Choo are assisting a client ... [more]

Edmund Leow leads the tax team at Baker & McKenzie.Wong & Leow, comprising two partners and seven other fee earners. Leow is recognised for his experience and practical approach to tax structuring.

Leow, Allen Tan and James Choo are assisting a client in restructuring its operations in Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, encompassing 12 jurisdictions. The restructuring involves significant asset transfers in each one. The team is assisting on local tax and international tax planning, and advising and implementing cross-border legal and tax structures. The restructuring will result in a more tax efficient structure for the client and is expected to lead to significant tax savings in the long run.

The firm is also helping several multinational clients cope with the increasing aggression of the tax authorities on issues concerning tax deductibility. The clients are being advised on the Singaporean dispute resolution process, different strategy, and on negotiating with the authorities.

Ajit Prabhu heads the tax department at Deloitte, comprising 17 partners and more than 160 fee earners. Partner Steven Yap joined from Ernst & Young in September 2010 to head the M&A tax advisory team. Steve Towers is the leader of the firm's Asia-Pacific ... [more]

Ajit Prabhu heads the tax department at Deloitte, comprising 17 partners and more than 160 fee earners. Partner Steven Yap joined from Ernst & Young in September 2010 to head the M&A tax advisory team. Steve Towers is the leader of the firm's Asia-Pacific international tax practice and works in Singapore and Hong Kong, where the firm's Asia Pacific international core of excellence is located, while Sum Yee Loong is recognised in the tax community for his expertise in corporate tax structuring, M&A and international tax planning.

The See Jee Chang-led transfer pricing practice advises on regional transfer pricing planning strategies, including the structuring of clients' intellectual property portfolios, service charges and inter-company loans and guarantees to achieve tax efficiency. The group has also successfully negotiated several unilateral and bilateral APAs.

The firm is advising a client on distressed debt investments requiring the unlocking of prospective cash flows through a tax-optimised business model. This involves converting a full-fledged operator into an arm's length toll operator with a hybrid cross-border tax-effective supply chain model to maximise the overall after-tax yield. The deal, worth $1 billion, is being worked on by professionals from a variety of Deloitte's tax practice areas, such as Prabhu and Yap from M&A, Chang and Wong Chee Ming from transfer pricing, Richard Mackender from indirect tax, and Bob Fletcher from customs and global trade.

Drew & Napier's tax practice is headed by the knowledgeable Ong Sim Ho. Together with partner Ong Ken Loon and associate director Seah Ching Ling, the group offers a range of services including tax disputes and litigation, transactional advice and tax ... [more]

Drew & Napier's tax practice is headed by the knowledgeable Ong Sim Ho. Together with partner Ong Ken Loon and associate director Seah Ching Ling, the group offers a range of services including tax disputes and litigation, transactional advice and tax risk management.

Sim Ho and Ken Loon have handled an array of matters over the last year. The pair are leading the team in conducting a review of the business processes of a national oil company to ensure compliance with the applicable tax laws. The team is also advising a US logistics group on the GST exposure for its Singapore transactions.

Ong Ken Loon advised on tax and stamp duty issues regarding the corporate restructuring of international firms. In another recent matter, she, Seah and associate Guo Jiawen obtained stamp duty relief from the Stamp Office and the Ministry of Finance.

Leon Kwong Wing leads the tax department at KhattarWong – Taxand, which has three other partners. Gurbachan Singh is well known in the Singaporean market and has been praised for his tax knowledge and expertise. Partner Moira Khaw works on international ... [more]

Leon Kwong Wing leads the tax department at KhattarWong – Taxand, which has three other partners. Gurbachan Singh is well known in the Singaporean market and has been praised for his tax knowledge and expertise. Partner Moira Khaw works on international tax, while Su-Mei Ban focuses on GST, income tax and stamp duty issues.

Kwong Wing helped a client secure an advance ruling of residency, entitling the firm to certain treaty benefits.

In a separate case, Kwong Wing saved a client $33 million in withholding tax by successfully arguing before the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) and auditors that imputed financing costs are not liable to withholding tax.

The firm offers tax advisory services, negotiates with the tax authorities, tax evasion work and tax disputes.

Chio Lim Stone Forest is a member of the RSM international network and is the biggest accountancy firm in Singapore after the big-four. Services include cross-border structuring and planning, M&A, GST, transfer pricing, tax incentive applications, tax ... [more]

Chio Lim Stone Forest is a member of the RSM international network and is the biggest accountancy firm in Singapore after the big-four. Services include cross-border structuring and planning, M&A, GST, transfer pricing, tax incentive applications, tax audits and investigations, and fund management.

Paul Lee is the firm's managing partner. Partner Cindy Lim joined the firm in August 2010 to head the international tax advisory department. She has experience in tax planning, cross-border structuring, M&A, and transfer pricing.

Since it was set up in 1992, Wong Partnership has become one of the largest law firms in Singapore. Tan Kay Kheng heads the firm's tax practice and is also a partner in the litigation and dispute resolution department. He specialises in both contentious ... [more]

Since it was set up in 1992, Wong Partnership has become one of the largest law firms in Singapore. Tan Kay Kheng heads the firm's tax practice and is also a partner in the litigation and dispute resolution department. He specialises in both contentious and advisory work regarding income tax, stamp duty, property tax and GST.

Partner Leung Yew Kwong focuses on income tax, GST, stamp duty and property tax. Previously with the IRAS, Leung offers unique experience and helps the firm maintain good relationships with the tax authorities.

Loyens & Loeff uses its international tax experience and works with local specialists to provide well rounded advice to its clients. This is particularly relevant as Asian jurisdictions are increasingly placing certain restrictions on taxpayers' ability ... [more]

Loyens & Loeff uses its international tax experience and works with local specialists to provide well rounded advice to its clients. This is particularly relevant as Asian jurisdictions are increasingly placing certain restrictions on taxpayers' ability to apply tax treaty benefits, which affects equity as well as debt structures.

The experienced Pieter de Ridder, the only partner in the tax practice, is also head of the firm's office in Singapore. He has been described as a "popular guy and great to work with" by another tax practitioner in the market.

The firm's tax professionals also advise international investors including financial institutions and private equity investors. The practice comes to the fore when coordinating tax advice for clients from a number of Asian jurisdictions.

In its third year of business, Velten Partners is making its mark as a reputable independent transfer pricing service provider. Penelope Velten is the sole partner leading this niche firm.The firm works with several multinational corporations on their ... [more]

In its third year of business, Velten Partners is making its mark as a reputable independent transfer pricing service provider. Penelope Velten is the sole partner leading this niche firm.

The firm works with several multinational corporations on their transfer pricing challenges in Asia, analysing issues from a domestic and global viewpoint.

Velten advised a multinational client in June 2010 on aligning its corporate objectives with its tax objectives after an internal restructuring of the firm. The work was aimed at ensuring that the client's goals were in line with the correct tax and transfer pricing principles.