North America

Blog

Czech Republic Publishes Guidance on Changes to Filing Instructions for the VAT Control Statement

The Financial Administration of the Czech Republic recently published amended filing instructions for the “Kontrolní hlášení”, or the “Check Report” form, which is a required filing for all taxable persons under the Czech VAT Act. Among the changes to the instructions is, first, a new requirement for contract companies (partnership-structured entities) to now file by individual partner instead […]

Read More
Amendment to Treatment of Vouchers Before Dutch Parliament

Earlier this month, bill number 34755, which would modify the treatment of vouchers under the Dutch VAT Act, was introduced to the Dutch Parliament. The proposed law would differentiate between single use vouchers, defined as vouchers where the place of supply and amount of VAT on the supply are known at the time of the voucher’s issuance, […]

Read More
Denmark Clarifies Positions on VAT Exemptions

The Danish Customs and Tax Administration (SKAT) has announced a limitation on the VAT exemption for supplies of blood plasma. Previously, the SKAT had allowed for exemptions on all deliveries of the human blood plasma. Going forward this exemption will no longer apply to supplies of plasma to companies intending to use the plasma in […]

Read More
Romania Modifies Rules on VAT Refunds

Getting a VAT refund has become simpler for suppliers registered in Romania under the MOSS scheme. In the past, taxable persons established outside the EU who supplied electronic services in Romania were required to appoint a tax representative. But on July 13th, the Fiscal Administration (ANAF) released a press release announcing that in accordance with […]

Read More
Spain SII Requirements Expanded – New Mandates Begin January 1

Businesses in two of Spain’s autonomous communities – Basque Country and Navarra – will soon be subject to Spain’s Immediate Supply of Information on VAT (SII) mandate. On July 1, 2017, Spain launched SII, requiring companies operating in the country to electronically submit ledger and invoice details. With the extension into two of Spain’s autonomous […]

Read More
Puerto Rico Governor Signs Bill Requiring 2 Monthly Sales Tax Payments

The Governor of Puerto Rico has signed into law a bill (PC 1133) that changes the frequency of sales tax remittance. As reported earlier in this forum, the new rule requires most taxpayers to pay sales tax in the same month as it’s collected, in two monthly installments: The first payment is required on the […]

Read More
Tax Reform on the Horizon in Puerto Rico

The Secretary of the Treasury for the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico announced that they plan on encouraging the local legislature to adopt significant tax reform measures, including a number of items that will impact sales tax (locally known as IVU). The details of the proposed reforms have not been released but the Secretary has indicated […]

Read More
SII Reporting to be Adopted in the Basque Region

Organizations operating in the Basque region of Spain will soon be required to comply with SII reporting requirements. As reported in this forum, effective July 1 most companies operating in Spain are now required to transmit information to the Spanish Tax Administration (AEAT) regarding purchase and sale transactions within a few days of invoicing. Today, […]

Read More
unclaimed property reporting services
A Standards-Based Approach for Global Compliance with Real-Time Tax Controls

I follow global tax compliance across continents closely and what can be seen is a clear trend of Tax Administrations (TAs) introducing increased technology-based real-time tax controls. Such controls include e-invoice clearance, e-ledgers and e-accounting, among others. Unfortunately, I’ve seen many real-life cases in different countries where the TAs issue a regulation that may make […]

Read More
The New Strategic Role of Indirect Tax Professionals to Master Compliance

Tax compliance has evolved at a rapid pace in recent years. As governments go digital, loopholes are closing and reporting timelines are shrinking from weeks to milliseconds. The old way of doing things isn’t enough for the new world of rapid-response compliance. But these new challenges can also foster new opportunities. Businesses are taking a […]

Read More
Jammu and Kashmir Enacts GST

The state of Jammu and Kashmir has joined the rest of India by enacting the GST, a week after it was introduced to the rest of the country. Amidst strong opposition, the government of Jammu and Kashmir passed the Jammu and Kashmir Goods and Services Tax Act on July 7th.  The Act, and related orders, can be […]

Read More
Could Thailand Be The Next E-Invoicing Clearance Country?

Since 2012, Thailand´s current e-invoicing legal framework follows the ‘traditional’ rather than a real-time control approach by the Tax Administration. We have therefore so far categorized Thailand as a ‘post-audit’ territory. Despite this, the Thai Revenue Department has currently an on-going e-invoicing project that aims to have a new e-invoicing legal framework in place from […]

Read More
ECJ Case Provides Guidance on Zero-Rated Services relating to the Exporting and Importing of Goods

The European Court of Justice has ruled, in Case C-288/16, that an exemption for services “directly connected” with exportation or importation of goods applies only if those services are supplied directly to the importer/exporter or to the consignee of the goods. The holding turned on the definition of the phrase “direct connection” within Article 146(1)(e) […]

Read More
Misplaced Confidence? Financial Institutions Could Be Underestimating the Challenge of CRS

In the iconic 1997 movie Wag the Dog, Hollywood producer Stanley Motss — played by Dustin Hoffman — has the same reaction to every problem he faces. “This is nothing!” he says repeatedly in his quest to get an unpopular president reelected. His overconfidence, however, ends up having serious consequences as the movie’s dark plot […]

Read More
United Kingdom Publishes Guidance on Supply-Splitting Tax Avoidance Schemes

On June 26, 2017 Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) published Spotlight 38, which divulges the HMRC position on supply-splitting tax avoidance schemes. The publication makes clear that HMRC considers any type of VAT supply-splitting arrangements, when designed to reduce the amount of VAT owed, to be tax avoidance. The publication goes on to state […]

Read More
India Notifies Non-Resident OIDAR GST Registration Process

On June 19, 2017, the Indian Central Board of Excise and Customs published Notification 02/2017-Integrated Tax regarding the registration process for non-resident suppliers of online information and database access retrieval (OIDAR) services. The notification is available here. It provides that, pursuant to sub-section (2) of section 14 of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, non-resident […]

Read More
Final push for Implementing the SII

The Spanish tax administration (AEAT) has released a comprehensive set of files, tools, and documents necessary for the definitive implementation of the Immediate Information Remittance system, locally known as SII Version 1.0. As of June 15, all of the documentation, testing and validation files available to taxpayers and software providers were based on pre-releases used for […]

Read More
Spain Issues SII Filing Deadline Calculator

Spain is quickly and steadily marching towards the planned July 1 implementation of the new Supply of Information System (locally known as SII) reporting requirement. Under the law, businesses have four days from the time an invoice is issued or received to notify the Spanish Tax Administration (AEAT) of the transaction. Determining the exact day […]

Read More