This work is the result of an extensive research into the permanent establishment concept, a concept that plays a vital role within the international taxation system through the fair allocation of taxing rights over cross-border business profits in the context of the tenuous balance between the residence and source principles, as a threshold for source taxation. Our research sought to explore and explain the evolution of this concept in the context of recent changes resulting from the joint work of the G20 and the OECD, namely under the aegis of the BEPS Project (Action 7), and later with the enactment of the Multilateral Instrument and the update to the OECD Model Convention. We also address the Portuguese permanent establishment concept and, finally, the future of the permanent establishment concept within the international taxation system.
The study of Permanent Establishment has emerged as intriguing and complex subject. This book serves as a complete guide for resolution of complexities involved in the concept of permanent establishment. The structure of the book is as follows: • This book opens up with ‘adaptation of Indian domestic tax laws’ to the ‘global trend’ • The advent of ‘Significant Economic Presence’ and its ramification on the changing concept on business connection has been deliberated in this book • Evolution of permanent establishment (‘PE’) in the e-world • Insights into Multilateral Conventions (‘MLI’) & OECDs position on the changing garb of PE • The book closes with the impact of changing philosophy of PE in the international tax space & in the domestic tax legislature. The contents of the book are as follows: • Introduction • Territorial nexus becomes aerial • Adaptation of Indian Domestic Laws • PE in digital economy • PE under Data Localisation Regime • Server as PE • Modification in Agency PE definition • Modification in Independent agent definition • Preparatory or auxiliary activities • Construction PE – Journey, Abuse and Remedy • Conclusion • Annexures 𝚘 Relevant Provisions of the Act 𝚘 OECD Model Convention (Relevant extract) 𝚘 PE Articles under various treaties 𝚘 Relevant Articles of Multilateral Conventions 𝚘 MLI Impact on PE Article of treaties extracted in Part III
A new edition of the preeminent work on the permanent establishment (PE) is a major event in tax law scholarship. Taking into account changes in judicial and administrative practice as well as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) and the United Nation’s (UN’s) work in the three decades since the first edition, the present study brings the analysis up to date with the current internationally accepted interpretation of PE. The analysis is based on more than 720 cases from more than 20 countries, in addition to the OECD and UN model treaties and more than 630 books, articles, and official documents. The increased significance of the digital economy has rendered the traditional concept of PE inadequate for the allocation of taxing jurisdiction over the modern, mobile or digital international business. The author’s in-depth analysis explains the legal elements of the PE principle with attention to their continuing benefit and their shortcomings: criteria defining a PE- place of business, location, right of use, duration, business connection, business activity, ordinary course of business; evidence of a right of use to a place of business; business activities included in the PE concept of the tax treaties; identification of projects offshore and onshore; UN model treaty deviations from the OECD agency clause; distinction between jurisdictions with significant natural resources and countries possessing the capital, technology and know-how necessary to explore and exploit these resources; and how policies in each country may erode the PE concept. The book provides many synopses of court decisions and administrative rulings upon which the analysis is based. In addition to cases previously published in law reports and other publications, a number of unpublished decisions are included. A key word index makes it easy to find what is needed in any particular matter. The PE principle, in one version or another, is used in several thousand tax treaties in force today. This updated comprehensive study reveals the obligations imposed through the use of PE in tax treaties and will continue to be of immeasurable value to tax practitioners and scholars worldwide. In addition, the discussion of whether the notion of PE is an appropriate criterion for taxing jurisdiction in international fiscal law today provides authoritative and insightful food for thought.
The Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (MLI) is the most forceful multilateral initiative to coordinate tax regimes on a worldwide basis since the dawn of modern income taxation over a century ago. This book evaluates two radically opposed viewpoints on the convention—a momentous and revolutionary paradigm shift versus a mechanism that merely continues an ongoing flow of limited policy coordination—with detailed investigations that bring to life the hopes and the realities of the current era of multilateral tax cooperation. Bringing together authors from national jurisdictions across the globe to scrutinize the MLI and its likely future ramifications, the book provides in-depth commentary and analysis in the following sequence: first, a comprehensive discussion of the design and goals of the MLI as a treaty and an institutional framework; second, an overview of the structure of the convention and its take-up across the globe to date; and third, the substantive implementation of the MLI with a wide range of country reports. Practice areas covered include tax law, international law, and international relations. The legal workings and implications of the MLI might still seem mysterious to those whose daily work is impacted by it, and there is as yet little jurisprudence regarding its legal nature or ultimate effect on the bilateral treaties coming within its scope. For these reasons, this pathbreaking book will be warmly welcomed by in-house counsel and law firms advising cross-border investors and firms; nongovernmental organizations involved in policy analysis and issue advocacy; researchers working on technical areas of international tax law; and lawyers interested in international policymaking, including the creation and diffusion of consensus-based fiscal and related regulatory norms across jurisdictions of differing development levels.
This interim report of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS is a follow-up to the work delivered in 2015 under Action 1 of the BEPS Project on addressing the tax challenges of the digital economy.
Permanent establishment is the key concept for allocating taxation rights in respect of business income, and the question ‘Is there a permanent establishment?’ is a tax treaty issue that advisers, government officials, and courts perennially confront. Based on a ‘fixed link to the ground’, the idea has become progressively more difficult to apply until, at this stage, re-evaluation has become a political necessity. If a permanent establishment may exist in the context of e-commerce, the concept of a geographical presence must be redefined. However, the question remains: Is e-commerce a sufficient reason for challenging the well-established permanent establishment nexus? Drawing on case law, administrative practice, and business decisions in numerous jurisdictions, the author discusses the permanent establishment criteria under conditions of e-commerce and the service economy. He shows that the OECD Model Convention and its commentaries already offer the basis for the evolution of the analysis of the concept, and that the preservation of permanent establishment protects and maintains the level playing field between capital importing and capital exporting economies. He examines in depth such elements as the following: ;the prevalence of commercial coherence over geographic coherence; the role of value-added tax; services permanent establishment; relevant definitions of ‘activity’ and ‘personnel’; multiple permanent establishments; supervision activity and sub-contracting; the differences between civil law and common law concepts of representation; particular treatment of the insurance sector; the ‘force of attraction’ concept; and specific exceptions (e.g., transportation, artists and sportsmen, rental income, agricultural activities, pipelines). Taking into account important distinctions between two model conventions (OECD and UN), as well as pertinent EU directives and the impact of EU law, the author proposes minor amendments to the OECD Model that adapt it to economic reality and current trends in jurisprudence and that can be implemented immediately. An appendix includes Article 5 and its commentaries as they have evolved since 1963, with the successive addenda and deletions. The author’s 20-plus years of experience as a tax lawyer lend the presentation a thoroughly practical aspect. The work addresses in more detail than any other publication the topic of profit allocation to a permanent establishment in the e-commerce world, an issue which is evolving rapidly in the current economic environment. Tax advisors, lawyers, and interested academics and policymakers will benefit from the book’s clear analysis of the conditions under which a permanent establishment not only should be preserved, but also how it is likely to be adapted in the future.
The concept of beneficial ownership is frequently called one of the most decisive questions in international tax law. Despite this fact, neither scholars nor courts have found a generally accepted definition. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the latest developments concerning the concept of beneficial ownership. Highly renowned tax experts both from academia and practice analyse the most important decisions recently made by courts around the world. Moreover, the recently published OECD Discussion Draft on the meaning of beneficial ownership is being taken into account and the meaning of the term "beneficial owner" used in European tax law in comparison to its meaning in tax treaty law is being assessed. The authors not only draw a better picture of the status quo but also enhance the discussion of the future meaning of the term "beneficial owner".
Explains the concepts that underlie international tax law and double tax treaties and provides an insight into how international tax policy, law and practice operate to ultimately impose tax on international business and investment.
The Future of the Profit Split Method Edited by Robert Danon, Guglielmo Maisto, Vikram Chand & Gabriella Cappelleri Among the various transfer pricing methods, the profit split method (PSM) is under the spotlight after the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. However, both expert analysis and experience indicate that this method is not straightforward either for taxpayers to apply or for tax administrations to evaluate. In this thorough and detailed commentary – the first book to analyse this increasingly adopted transfer pricing method – notable scholars and practitioners working in the international tax community express their views on the method, answering some unresolved questions and highlighting issues that are still open and pending, especially in light of the digitalization of the economy. Crucial issues covered by the contributors include the following: choice of the appropriate splitting factors, their relative weights, and valuation of the contributions; uncertainties and outcomes potentially not aligned with the arm’s-length standard; possible role of assessments made by the European Commission on State aid; nexus with the work done by the EU Joint Transfer Pricing Forum; impact of profit split on indirect taxes (VAT/customs tax/excise tax); and application to digital business models and, in general, to the digitalized economy. Moreover, relevant experience of applying this method in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States is provided. A concluding chapter also deals with selected industry experiences. Due to a high level of uncertainty in alignment with international guidance in the application of the PSM – and to the underdeveloped nature of current literature on the subject – there is a need for this book because both tax administrations and taxpayers, going forward, will apply the PSM extensively. The book is highly relevant for policymakers, tax administrations, practitioners and academics engaged in the areas of international taxation, transfer pricing and tax policy.
Dependent Agents as Permanent Establishments The article on business profits may be the most relevant one in tax treaties. If patterned after the OECD Model Tax Convention, this article allocates the exclusive taxing right over the profits of an enterprise to the residence country, unless the enterprise carries on business in the source country through a permanent establishment. Considering the importance of allocating taxation rights, tax authorities and courts of many countries have increasingly focused on the concept of agency permanent establishment. This book includes 12 chapters which provide an in-depth analysis of the key aspects that need to be taken into account for interpreting the concept of agency permanent establishment. It incorporates the perspectives of leading scholars and practitioners dealing with international tax cases. This book is designed to provide essential insights to academics, practitioners, tax officials and judges who deal or are interested in the field of international taxation.
