Search results for

Tom Seymour The tax consolidation rules should remain high on any Australian group's assessment of potential tax risks, particularly as we see the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) focus on reviewing prior year claims, and we still have a number of retrospective unenacted tax consolidation changes. In recent times the ATO has been very active in issuing detailed questionnaires to tax consolidated groups which it believes may have made claims affected by the provisions enacted in 2012 to retrospectively unwind the rights to future income (RTFI) and residual tax cost setting rules. Some of the issues the ATO is focussing on include:

Dajana Topic A tax treaty between Bosnia & Herzegovina (B&H) and Azerbaijan for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion (DTT) related to income and capital taxes was concluded on October 18 2012. Following ratifications from both parties, the DTT entered into force on December 26 2013 and became aplicable as of January 1 2014. The treaty is generally based on the OECD Model Convention.

Rossitza Koleva The amendments in the legislation in 2012 which resulted in the inability of physical persons and legal entities to specify which of their obligations towards the tax authorities they pay off contradict the Constitution. This is formulated in a decision of the Constitutional Court from February 5 2014. This decision practically revokes the principle of functioning of the unified tax-insurance account which was established during the GERB government with the idea to minimise bureaucracy. As a consequence, from the beginning of 2013 each payment done by physical persons and legal entities towards the state effectively meant paying off the oldest obligation, regardless of whether it was for taxes or contributions. As these two payments have different legal bases, they also have different legal consequences. The insurance contributions do not have the character of a tax since, when paid, the insured receives the right to be covered by social and health insurance (which is guaranteed by the Constitution), while taxes are due state receivables. According to the Constitutional Court right now the payments of the tax payers enter a single account, without being classified by tax type and insurance installments.

Kathleen Penny

Loreto Pelegrí

Khoonming Ho

Bob van der Made The German and French leaders publicly restated their commitment to lead the way on EU FTT on February 19 and also offered a self-imposed, concrete timeline for a compromise agreement among the EU11 participating member states by May. Notwithstanding that announcement, much remains to be done on the technical side and to reconcile the various interests of the EU11. The EU11 are meeting regularly and informally again in Brussels.

Christophe Plainchamp

Elena Kostovska Effective from July 2010 and up until February 2014, the tax treatment of dividends in FYR Macedonia depended on the residency of the dividend-receiving entity/individual. This was because of the fact that in July 2010, the government had introduced an anti-crisis taxation exemption principle, whereby all forms of profit distribution made to resident legal entities were exempt from corporate income tax, effectively eliminating the tax burden on the transfer of profits between resident companies. Profit distributions to non-resident entities and individuals were taxed with a 10% withholding tax rate. However, on January 21 2014 the FYR Macedonian Parliament adopted the proposed amendments to the Law on Profit Tax (published in the Official Gazette no.13 on January 23 2014 and effective as of January 31 2014) which reinstate the final withholding tax of 10% on dividends paid to resident companies. The law effectively levels the field for taxation of all dividend distributions, regardless of the tax residency of the receiving entity or individual.

David Cuellar