Congress subjects and seminars
SUBJECT 1
Cross-border business restructuring
Since the mid-90’s, business restructurings (i.e., the cross-border redeployment by a multinational enterprise of functions, assets, or risks) - and their transfer pricing or allocation of profit consequences - have become a major concern for tax authorities worldwide. To address this issue, tax authorities have (i) enacted special legislation to attack unwanted cross-border business restructurings and / or (ii) more systematically audited such reorganizations. This Panel will discuss, on the basis of a case study, (i) the main transfer pricing / allocation of profit issues raised by such business restructurings; (ii) “tools” available to tax authorities to audit such reorganizations, such as the performance of coordinated tax audits within several jurisdictions; and (iii) the availability of mutual agreement procedures to solve potential double taxation cases.
General Reporters
Heinz-Klaus Kroppen (Germany)
José Carlos Silva (Mexico)
Chair
Bruno Gibert (France)
Secretary
Nicolas Cys (France)
Panel Members
Michelle Levac (Canada)
Edward Morris (United Kingdom)
Caroline Silberztein (OECD)
Tim McDonald (USA)
SUBJECT 2
Key practical issues to eliminate double taxation of business income
The Panel will use actual examples of double taxation to examine, first, the extent to which governments should be concerned about double taxation, second, the effectiveness of various systems to alleviate double taxation (questioning the common premise that exemption systems are preferable in this regard), and third, whether there are underlying issues that result in the systematic failure to eliminate double taxation, including inconsistent treatment with respect to how, when, and whether taxable income is recognized; the allocation of expenses; the inability to deduct foreign losses; complex foreign tax credit limitation rules; and variations in entity classification. If underlying issues are discovered, the Panel will provide recommendations for addressing them by policymakers.
General Reporters
Gauthier Blanluet (France)
Philippe Durand (France)
Chair
Philip R. West (USA)
Secretary
Anapaula Marinho (France)
Panel Members
Jürgen Lüdicke (Germany)
Luciana Rosanova Galhardo (Brazil)
Peter Van Dijk (Canada)
Larry Magid (Australia)
Carolina Del Campo (Spain)
SEMINAR A
VAT aspects of business restructuring
This Seminar is designed as a companion Seminar to Subject 1. The Seminar will follow the same case study and illustrate the interrelation between income tax issues and VAT. Situations discussed in Subject 1 from an income tax view shall be discussed in the Seminar from a VAT perspective. This will include the termination of licence agreement within a group, the qualification of sales commissionaire activities and the risks of rejecting the reorganization by tax authorities.
Chair
Markus Achatz (Austria)
Secretary
Victoria Alvarez (France)
Panel Members
Henri Bitar (France)
Michael Graf (Germany)
Piet Battiau (OECD)
Eduardo Perelli (Argentina)
Jan Ole Luuk (Switzerland)
SEMINAR B
The corporate tax base: alternative bases for corporate taxation
and their international consequences
Recently, a number of countries has disconnected the tax base from income or even applied simplified tax accounting techniques to arrive at a taxable base quite different from income as generally understood. This trend is closely related to the need of simplifying tax procedures and the continuous requirement of finding incremental sources of revenue. The Seminar will focus on these new sources of taxation being applied by selected countries, the specific alternative bases being adopted, and the nature of the taxes involved. It will evaluate the financial results achieved and the impact of this trend on business. The Seminar will not only consider traditional taxes on costs but also others such as those based on gross revenues or on assets, considering, for example, the US Alternative Minimum Tax, The Mexican IETU, the Italian IRAP, the Brazilian PIS/COFINS and the German trade tax or “Gewerbesteuer”. The Seminar will also deal with the effectiveness of tax treaties and their possible incompatibility with alternative approaches on corporate taxation.
Chair
Antonio Carlos Florencio
De Abreu e Silva (Brazil)
Secretary
Francisco Zamora (Mexico)
Panel Members
Patrick Brown (USA)
Wolfgang Haas (Germany)
Omar Zuniga (Mexico)
Hervé Lehérissel (France)
Mario Tenore (Italy)
SEMINAR C
Credit versus exemption
As a companion Seminar to Subject 2, the Seminar will bring a real world perspective on the old academic arguments concerning the debate between exemption versus credit (battle of the acronyms including CEN, CIN and CON), by conducting an easy-to-understand “policy case study”. This study will be supported by the recent or ongoing reforms in a few jurisdictions including the United Kingdom, Japan and the USA. The debate will focus not only on the content of these reforms (or drafts of reform), but also on their political motivations (e.g. revenue losses, erosion of tax base, tax avoidance), on their economic context (which may differ significantly from one jurisdiction to another) and, finally, on the perspectives: What would be the impact of such reforms on multinational enterprises and on other countries? Would some other countries follow the move?
Chair
Yoshihiro Masui (Japan)
Secretary
Suat Göydeniz (Germany)
Panel Members
Tanja Bender (Netherlands)
Bob Dilworth (USA)
Philippe Durand (France)
Angelo Nikolakakis (Canada)
Edward Troup (United Kingdom)
SEMINAR D
IFA/EU: Double taxation and EU law
This Seminar will examine whether an internal market tolerates double taxation. It will discuss results already achieved by EU-Directives and ECJ judgements, and the most important issues remaining. In particular, the Panel will discuss why the ECJ distinguishes between economic double taxation and juridical double taxation, which of the two States involved may be held responsible for elimination of double taxation, whether a choice should be made between credit and exemption and/or between territoriality (compartmentalization) and EUwide taxation with prevention, whether maintaining an OECD-modelled tax treaty in force keeps the ECJ at bay, and what role the European Commission plays or should play in getting the member States to eliminate any remaining double taxation.
Chair
Peter J. Wattel (Netherlands)
Secretary
Tomas Balco (Kazakstan)
Panel Members
Malcolm Gammie (United Kingdom)
Philip Kermode (EU)
Georg Kofler (Austria)
Martha O'Brien (Canada)
SEMINAR E
Recent developments in international tax
This Seminar will look at a number of recent developments of significance to the international tax community not covered elsewhere on the programme. We will examine these developments with the aid of an expert Panel drawn from practice, government and academia. At present, the final selection of topics has yet to be made, but it is likely to include an update on the progress of CCCTB as at September 2011, transfer pricing developments, and a VAT/GST issue of significance to international business. The final selection of topics will not be made till the Congress to ensure we do not miss any particularly crucial development. The final selection will be announced at the start of the Seminar, but the Panel may still pull a wild card.
Chair
Philip Baker (United Kingdom)
Secretary
Laurent Sykes (United Kingdom)
Panel Members
Carol Dunahoo (USA)
Liselott Kana (Chile)
SEMINAR F
Uncertain tax positions
Reporting on uncertain tax positions has been experienced for several years by businesses applying US GAAP (FIN 48) and has been introduced recently for US tax purposes. Similarly, the concept of corporate tax governance has been developed in many jurisdictions. It encompasses ethical or behavioural aspects of assessing and managing tax risks and opportunities. This Seminar will examine corporate and investor behaviour and the related professional duties of tax practitioners in relation to identifying and assessing tax risks, decision-making in an uncertain tax environment and reporting on uncertain tax positions. This Seminar aims to provide a discussion based upon practical experience of these topics.
Chair
Philippe Derouin (France)
Secretary
Morgan Vail (France)
Panel Members
Michael Danilack (USA)
Paul Morton (United Kingdom)
Amit Rana (India)
Marius Van Blerck (South Africa)
SEMINAR G
Collective investment vehicles
CIVs generally receive favourable treatment under domestic tax legislation. While CIVs make significant investments in foreign securities, access to treaty relief for some CIVs has historically been problematic. This Seminar will address developments since 2007 to provide relief to CIVs that invest in foreign securities, including the reports of the OECD’s Informal Consultative Group on the Taxation of Collective Investment Vehicles and Procedures for Tax Relief for Cross-Border Investors and Pilot Group on Improving Procedures for Tax Relief for Cross-Border Investors and the 2010 amendments to the Commentary on the OECD Model Convention. Examples of treaty provisions and agreements between competent authorities to address the treatment of CIVs will be discussed. The effect of recent developments in the United States (FATCA) and the European Union will also be considered.
Chair
Nigel Johnston (Canada)
Secretary
Miguel Nicolas (France)
Panel Members
Moon-Kyun Cho (Korea)
Lynne Ed (UK)
Patricia Brown (USA)
Sabine Kirchmayr (Austria)
Alain Steichen (Luxembourg)
SEMINAR H
IFA/OECD: “Liable to no tax”
The treaty definition of “resident” requires that a person be “liable to tax” under the laws of a Contracting State. The application of that requirement has given rise to difficulties with respect to a number of entities that are effectively exempt from tax. The Panel will discuss the interpretation of the concept of “liable to tax” through case studies dealing with different domestic law mechanisms that result in no tax being payable in many countries by legal entities such as partnerships, Limited Liability Companies, charitable organisations, sovereign wealth funds, pension funds and collective investment funds.
Chair
Richard Vann (Australia)
Secretary
Caterina Innamorato (France)
Panel Members
Mary Bennett (OECD)
Andrew Dawson (United Kingdom)
Pramod Kumar (India) tbc
Jean-Pierre Lieb (France)
Jeffrey Owens (OECD)
Jacques Sasseville (OECD)
SEMINAR I
Immovable property and treaties
Real estate including buildings, mortgages or rights concerning the exploration and exploitation of natural resources on-shore or off-shore has always been a subject of tax conventions. This Seminar covers relevant treaty issues on the taxation of income that stems, directly or indirectly, from immovable property. It will also shed some light on the impact of tax treaties on specific real property taxes. While articles 6, 13 (1) & (4) and 22 of the OECD Model Convention are very clear in that they express a primary right of the state of situs to tax real property (and income therefrom), the exact scope of these rules has given rise to considerable discussion.
Chair
Ekkehart Reimer (Germany)
Secretary
Matthias Valta (Germany)
Panel Members
Alil Alvarez (Mexico)
Irene Burgers (Netherlands)
Claudine Devillet (Belgium)
Peter Glicklich (USA)
Raul Papotti (Italy)
SEMINAR J
Tax rulings in an international framework
This Seminar deals with tax rulings and their application from the viewpoint of other countries. After a review of whether the transparency recommendations of the 1998 OECD Report “Harmful Tax Competition - an Emerging Issue” have been implemented, it will examine whether tax authorities can demand production of foreign rulings directly from their taxpayers or through exchange of information and, if so, under what conditions. Finally, it will debate whether tax authorities can assert foreign rulings granted to the taxpayer or its affiliates.
Chair
Marcus Desax (Switzerland)
Secretary
Norma Caballero (France)
Panel Members
Anita Kapur (India)
Juan Carlos Rizo Leon (Mexico)
Pascal St. Amans (OECD)
Paul Oosterhuis (USA)
Dariusz Wasylkowski (Poland)