International Tax Law

International Tax Law is concerned with finding the most optimal solution in the form of establishing a fiscal exemption or a tax sparing credit, in the event a taxpayer is confronted with a bilateral taxation assessment, from two opposing nations, regarding one and the same source of income. The most recurring issue in this regard, is that both nations’ tax authorities claim prevalent fiscal jurisdiction and/or there is not an adequately functioning mutual agreement procedure in place to ensure double taxation relief. As a result, investment and capital inflow is hampered as corporations and/or individuals are heavily frustrated in their ability of movement. There are different methods of solving the difficulties surrounding double taxation; one of the most prominent methods is to utilize rulings of international law and regulations, which are promulgated in bilateral and multilateral tax treaties and subsequent technical explanations. Pivotal questions that need to be answered in fiscal uncertainty to safeguard oneself from double taxation, revolve around the application for treaty eligibility, governing sources of income under the treaty, and the handling of fiscal group structures. The Netherlands has entered into the most bilateral tax treaties in the world, yet even without the framework of a leading treaty, it proves to be beneficial to investigate a nation’s unilateral commitment toward the elimination of double taxation.

“Collecting more taxes than is absolutely necessary is legalized robbery.”

Calvin Coolidge (04/07/1872 – 05/01/1933), American President

Van Clamsfield International Ltd. provides fiscal expertise and robust advice on the following international fiscal matters (yet not limited to the section below):

1. Fiscal facilities and opportunities surrounding cross-border tax liability;
2. Optimal fiscal distribution aligned with fiscal compliance and timely filing of tax returns in correspondence with the commanding tax authorities (E.g. (corporate) income tax returns);
3. Employment of methodology to prevent double taxation, promulgated in governing tax rulings, jurisprudence and bilateral tax treaties;
4. Calculation of applicable taxation credit or fiscal exemption for individuals (E.g. athletes) and for group enterprises (E.g. outbound royalties structures);
5. Computation of foreign direct investment opportunities and subsequent fiscal facilities concerning foreign withholding taxation and the international trade with (developing) countries (E.g. dividends);
6. Determination of international business profits for fiscal purposes in relation to the transactions between (semi-) holding companies and permanent establishments (E.g., currency politics, internal loans, internal interest);
7. Distinct insight into the permanent establishment’s contribution to the general business profit;
8. Information on treaty eligibility and qualification of hybrid entities (E.g. royalties);
9. Fiscal treatment and possibilities regarding double fiscal domicile (E.g. fiscal unity or withholding taxes (dividends));
10. Taxation in Triangular cases (interest and royalties), employing E.g. Japanese royalties rulings;
11. Fiscal jurisdiction and subsequent distribution of taxation authority regarding the qualification of income;
12. Boundaries and restrictions of the tax authorities in the exchange of fiscal information and fiscal investigation (audits) in response to the request of the foreign tax authorities;
13. Transfer Pricing and associated enterprises;
14. Application for Advance Tax Rulings (ATR) and Advance Pricing Agreements (APA);
15. Extraordinary tax rulings and treatments on behalf of E.g. diplomats, a workforce that is employed on the continental shelf, the cross-border employee, artists and athletes, expatriates and cross-border entrepreneurship.

The endless range of possibilities that exist within the legal limits of international tax law, cannot be depleted and the aforementioned list is only a glimpse of the actual and incumbent opportunities and challenges that exist in the international fiscal arena. Van Clamsfield International Ltd. has a thorough in-house comprehension of the beneficial economic impact that is created by the combination of fiscal facilities. Consequently, through Van Clamsfield International Ltd.’ navigation expertise of bilateral tax treaties and jurisprudence, maximal fiscal optimization is accomplished by combining (E.g.) a fiscal exemption of permanent establishment profits under a bilateral tax treaty with a tax sparing credit on withholding taxation under another tax treaty.