MOF-OECD webinar on ‘Taxation Agreements and Transfer Pricing’
The Ministry of Finance (MOF), in co-operation with the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), organised a virtual seminar as part of its commitment to build a network of qualified tax experts and its endeavour to strengthen cooperation with various global and regional organisations.
The seminar, titled ‘Taxation Agreements and Transfer Pricing’, took place from November 16 to 18, 2020, and discussed key developments related to international taxation.
Younis Haji Al Khoori, Undersecretary of MOF and a number of government officials, invited commercial and consulting firms, and negotiation experts from the invited countries attended the seminar.
In his opening speech, Al Khoori welcomed the participants, and emphasised the importance of such seminars in enhancing the tax environment and raising awareness of the latest developments - ultimately pushing forward more stable international tax rules.
He also noted that the digitalisation of the economy brought its own set of challenges that require a unified global response.
Al Khoori said: “The UAE is devising a comprehensive network of taxation agreements to enhance the country’s standing as a leading global hub for the commercial and financial sectors, increase its effective role in the exchange of information for tax purposes area, and provide comprehensive responses to its tax treaty partners.”
The seminar tackled various topics, including the latest developments related to international taxes, especially those related to the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative; and ways to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy and transfer pricing. Also discussed was developing a unified response to mitigate the exceptional challenges facing the taxation agreement.
Since 2006, the UAE, in cooperation with the OECD, has organised more than 13 annual seminars to build a taxation agreements network in the MENA region, where officials from the region and the invited countries exchanged their experiences with the UAE and the OECD.
Meanwhile the Federal Tax Authority (FTA), earlier in coordination with the Ministry of Finance (MOF), has completed its preparations to issue both digital tax residency and commercial activities certificates, in line with the Cabinet Decision No. 65 of 2020 on Fees for Services provided by the Federal Tax Authority issued October 2020.
The Authority will begin receiving applications for the issuance of Tax Residency and Commercial Activities Certificates via its e-services portal as of 14 November 2020.
The FTA explained that there are two categories of tax certificates which are issued to companies and individuals, the first being the ‘Tax Residency Certificate’, a certificate issued by the FTA upon request to enable applicants to benefit from Double Tax Avoidance Agreements (DTAA) signed between UAE and other countries . The second is the Commercial Activities Certificate which is a certificate issued by the FTA to enable applicants to refund VAT paid in advance outside the UAE, whether or not DTAAS are applicable.
The Authority emphasized that the new service provides advantages and ease for the issuance of certificates to those registered with the tax system, as all their data is available in the FTA database so they can apply for Tax Certificates through direct and quick digital procedures.
The Authority clarified that via their online services portal, the user is directed to the login page to enter his/her username and password to log in, and upon successfully registering with the services portal, the user will be directed to the list of all requests related to tax certificates assigned to him/her, appearing in the control panel. The registrant has the opportunity to choose to submit one or several requests, and once selected his/her desired option, all the details of the request will appear and will be provided with the choice to approve, complete, reject or refund any taxes paid outside the UAE which allows for a tax refund.
The registrant may download the attachments to verify the data, complete the process and follow-up the status of their request.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, Director-general of the FTA, confirmed that this step is part of an ongoing cooperation between the FTA and the Ministry of Finance as a strategic partner to the Authority, noting that a joint working group from both entities have made the necessary arrangements to ensure a smooth transfer for the digital issuance of Tax Residency and Commercial Activities Certificates from the Ministry to the Authority.
Event meant to build a network of qualified tax experts and to strengthen cooperation with various global and regional organisations