Taxation Committee Roundtable Luncheon: Bracing for a Heightened Level of Tax Transparency
Tracy Ho, Tax Managing Partner for EY Hong Kong and Macau, and Kathy Kun, Senior Manager, National Tax Centre of EY, spoke at the Chamber's roundtable luncheon on Hong Kong'ssigningof a standalone tax information exchange agreement (TIEA) with the United States. Under this new legal framework, the Inland Revenue Department's (IRD) information gathering power has been extended from information in the "possession" to that in the "control" of a taxpayer.They explained how the signing of TIEA will affect businesses in Hong Kong, and how the IRD might exercise its extended information gathering powers.
2014/09/22
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Major Tax Considerations on Intragroup Amalgamation, Share Buy-back and Capital Reduction Under the New Companies Ordinance (NCO)
Since March3, 2014, Hong Kong companies can consider implementing court-free statutory amalgamation as an option to streamline their group structure under the NCO. The NCO also allows both public and private companies to buy back their own shares out of capital. In addition, the NCO has introduced a court-free procedure for capital reduction. These changes provide new alternatives for Hong Kong companies to manage their share capital more flexibly. Ricky Tam, Executive Director at Ernst & Young, spoke on the major tax considerations with intragroup amalgamation, share buy-back and capital reduction under the NCO at a lunchtime seminar on June30.
2014/06/30
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A China Committee and Taxation Committee Roundtable: Update on PRC Withholding Tax and Recent PRC Tax Developments
Since the implementation of Circular [2009] No.601, there have been some uncertainties in applying for the preferential PRC withholding tax rate treatment on dividend/interest/royalty income derived from PRC companies. As a result, the PRC State Administration of Taxation (“SAT“) issued Announcement [2012] No.30 to provide further clarification on certain issues. This announcement provided additional guidelines for taxpayers in determining beneficial owner status in relation to income subject to preferential tax treatment.Simon Wang, Partner, and Carol Liu, Senior Manager, Ernst & Young, talk about the latest updates on tax developments in China.
2013/04/22
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Navigating Risks in Hong Kong’s Changing Taxation Landscape
Tax disputes can pose a significant challenge to and drain on businesses, operationally and financially. In many cases, companies cannot afford to re-allocate much-needed resources in addressing such controversies, which usually have grave cash-flow implications. This is especially problematic under the current economic climate. At the Chamber’s February 23 seminar, tax experts from Ernst & Young provided updates on the latest situation with tax controversies and the enforcement environment including:
• Areas that are currently of interest to the IRD
• Nature of challenges being raised by the IRD
• Steps taxpayers can take in preparation for challenges from the IRD; and
• Approaches that can be taken when responding to or negotiating with the IRD. (In Cantonese)
2012/02/23
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Keeping Up with Transfer Pricing Developments in Hong Kong and the PRC
Since the launch of new requirements and guidance by the tax administrations in the Mainland and Hong Kong, transfer pricing has become a key issue for companies doing business on both sides of the border. Recently, tax officials have stepped up efforts on anti-avoidance enforcements resulting in a notable shift in the focus of transfer pricing-related investigations and a significant increase in additional tax liabilities for companies. These developments suggest that taxpayers should expect closer scrutiny of their operations, both domestic and cross-border, and their extent of compliance. Ernst & Young’s Patrick Cheung, Partner, and Kenny Wei, Senior Manager, explained what businesses need to watch out for.
2011/12/05
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