www.internationaltaxreview.com
Indirect Tax
SECOND Leaders EDITION
The comprehensive guide to the world’s leading indirect tax advisers
Contents
2 Introduction and methodology 3 Argentina 5 Australia Nestor House, Playhouse Yard, London EC4V 5EX UK Tel: +44 20 7779 8308 11 Austria Fax: +44 20 7779 8500 14 Belgium Managing editor: Ralph Cunningham 22 Brazil [email protected] 36 Canada Magazine editor: Salman Shaheen 44 Chile [email protected] 45 China Online editor: Sophie Ashley Implementing VAT reform in China [email protected] 54 Cyprus Corporate tax editor: Matthew Gilleard 54 Czech Republic [email protected] 55 Denmark Tax disputes editor: Joe Dalton 61 Finland [email protected] 66 France Production editor: João Fernandes 71 Germany [email protected] 81 Greece Publisher: Oliver Watkins 82 Hong Kong [email protected] 83 India Associate publisher: Andrew Tappin No tax on export of services: Boon or bane? [email protected] 95 Ireland Business manager: Megan Poundall 97 Israel [email protected] 98 Italy Divisional director: Danny Williams 105 Japan © Euromoney Trading Limited, 2013. The copyright of all 108 Luxembourg editorial matter appearing in this Review is reserved by the 110 Malta publisher. 112 Mexico No matter contained herein may be reproduced, duplicated or copied by any means without the prior consent of the 119 Netherlands holder of the copyright, requests for which should be 125 New Zealand addressed to the publisher. Although Euromoney Trading 128 Norway Limited has made every effort to ensure the accuracy of this 131 Philippines publication, neither it nor any contributor can accept any 134 Poland legal responsibility whatsoever for consequences that may arise from errors or omissions, or any opinions or advice 137 Portugal given. This publication is not a substitute for professional 142 Romania advice on specific transactions. 143 Russia Chairman: Richard Ensor 146 Singapore Directors: Sir Patrick Sergeant, The Viscount Rothermere, 153 South Africa Christopher Fordham (managing director), Neil Osborn, Dan 157 South Korea Cohen, John Botts, Colin Jones, Diane Alfano, Jane 158 Spain Wilkinson, Martin Morgan, David Pritchard, Bashar 167 Sweden AL -Rehany, Andrew Ballingal, Tristan Hillgarth 171 Switzerland International Tax Review is published 10 times a year by 174 Turkey Euromoney Trading Limited. 176 UAE This publication is not included in the CLA license. 177 UK Copying without permission of the publisher is prohibited Missing trader intra-community fraud: Are ISSN 0958 -7594 businesses really prepared? Customer services: +44 20 7779 8610 199 US UK subscription hotline: +44 20 7779 8999 US subscription hotline: +1 800 437 9997 210 Index of firms
1IN|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S1 Introduction International Tax Review launched its Indirect Tax Leaders guide last year in response to the growing Methodology importance of indirect taxation. The publication was designed as a tool to help taxpayers identify the Indirect Tax Leaders is a list of the foremost specialists in this area of tax advice. leading indirect tax advisers in the With falling corporate tax rates and revenues, world. governments are increasingly turning to Inclusion in the guide is based VAT/GST to make up the shortfall. There is also a on a minimum number of nomina - growing emphasis on indirect tax to tackle specific tions received. Besides the required problems, such as carbon taxes to bring down number of nominations, entrants emissions and financial transaction taxes to con - must also possess (1) evidence of strain risky trades while clawing back money from outstanding work in the last year; the banks blamed for the crisis and given money and (2) consistently positive feed - for their survival by their governments. back from peers and clients. Firms If anything, that trend has only accelerated in and individuals cannot pay to be the last year. Rates of VAT are rising across the recommended in Indirect Tax world, while new jurisdictions are introducing the Leaders. tax – most significantly China, whose pilot pro - gramme is set to be rolled out nationwide in August. And more and more countries are intro - ducing carbon taxes While taxpayers generally welcome the shift from direct to indirect taxation, it carries with it its own compliance costs and issues to navigate such as exemptions, reduced and zero rates, market distortions, place of taxation and measures to tackle fraud. And while companies are increasingly paying attention to the complexities of indirect tax, only the biggest maintain sizeable specialised VAT/GST departments. As a result of this, many companies will have to rely on external advisers to help them with their indirect tax affairs. And with this in mind, International Tax Review brings you the sec - ond edition of its Indirect Tax Leaders guide to help you chose the right adviser for the right job.
Salman Shaheen, Editor, International Tax Review
I2N|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S2 Argentina
Carlos G Iannucci
Carlos G. Iannucci is the Tax & Legal Managing Partner of the Deloitte member firm network in Latin America. He has more than 25 years of experience in serving multinational and major local companies. He has developed extensive experience in cor - porate and international tax issues, and also acts as lead tax part - ner for large consumer, manufacturing, and oil and gas industry clients. Deloitte He is a regular lecturer at business institutions, universities and professional entities in different tax matters, and is in charge Florida 234, 5th floor Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos of the Tax subject at the Business Administration career of the Aires, C1005AAF Argentine Catholic University. Argentina He also contributes to a number of specialized technical Tel: +54 11 4320 2736 publications, and has been consistently listed among the leading Email: [email protected] tax advisers in Argentina since 1998 in different market surveys (International Tax Review, Mondaq.) Carlos is a Certified Public Accountant, graduated from the School of Economics, Argentine Catholic University, and is a member of the Argentine Fiscal Association and the International Fiscal Association.
3IN|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S3 Argentina Martín Barreiro Baker & McKenzie SC ...... Joaquin Kersman Baker & McKenzie SC ...... Federico Llorente Baker & McKenzie SC ...... Ruben Malvitano Ernst & Young ...... Juan Pablo Menna Baker & McKenzie SC ...... Matias Olivero Vila Bruchou, Fernández Madero & Lombardi – Taxand ......
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Gary Funston
Gary Funston leads the Melbourne Indirect Tax Practice of Deloitte Australia. He recently joined Deloitte after 25 years’ experience with other professional services firms, the last 13 as a partner with Ernst & Young. He advises many of Australia’s leading corpo - rate and government clients in all aspects of indirect tax law, including matters that have been successfully litigated in the Deloitte Australia Federal Court of Australia. He is regularly sought out by the Corporate Tax Association to present to its members on GST 550 Bourke Melbourne 3000 and other indirect tax matters, including at the 2013 CTA Tax Australia Convention where he was the only external indirect tax advisor invited to present. Tel: +61 3 9671 7464 Email: [email protected] Gary has a Bachelor of Commerce from Melbourne University as well as an MBA from Melbourne Business School. He is a member of the Tax Institute, CPA Australia and an affil - iate of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia. Gary has a reputation for providing practical and often inno - vative advice and solutions to clients and working with col - leagues from other service lines to deliver optimal, whole-of-firm solutions.
5IN|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S5 Australia
Dermot Gaffney
Dermot started his career in Indirect Taxes in the late 1970s and has worked in 5 countries across 3 continents in his 30 plus years in the profession. He spent 12 years with the Revenue Commissioners in Ireland, where he was an Inspector of Taxes, and since joining KPMG in 1994 he has led teams in Ireland, Scotland, and England before moving to South Africa in late
2006. After 5 great years in Johannesburg, his most recent KPMG in Australia move (and he says hopefully last) was to accept an invitation from KPMG Australia at the end of 2011 to lead their National 10 Shelley Street Sydney NSW 2000 Indirect Tax practice. Australia With a team of 10 Partners and over 65 professional staff, his team is the largest in Australia and well positioned to advise Tel: + 61 2 9455 9398 Email: dgaffney1@kpmg.com.au clients across the Asia Pacific region. Dermot’s clients cover a Website: www.kpmg.com range of sectors from Pharmaceuticals to Mining; Brewing to Banking; and Aviation to Property. He has focused on tax effi - cient supply chain management and in dispute resolution. Dermot is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland and an Associate of the Institute of Taxation in Ireland. He has lectured for the Taxation Institute and published numerous articles on VAT/GST. Indirect Tax is truly a global skill set as his career shows, and with the increasing reliance on it by Governments around the world, having an in-depth understanding of the commonalities and key differences of major regimes allows him to add real value to his clients businesses. Dermot is married and has 3 children ranging in ages from 12 to 20; he is a keen golfer and an avid supporter of Irish rugby – He has been known to enjoy the odd glass of wine, especially with friends.
I6N|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S6 Australia
Jon Graham
Jon Graham is the partner in charge of the indirect tax practice at Deloitte Australia, a team of approximately 70 dedicated indi - rect tax specialists, including eight partners. Jon has 23 years’ experience advising on global value added tax (VAT) and goods and services tax (GST) matters. He has held a variety of roles during his career, including VAT inspec - tor with UK Revenue & Customs, in-house VAT manager with Deloitte Australia a financial institution in London, and partner in charge of Deloitte’s indirect tax practice in Scotland and Northern Level 9, Grosvenor Place 225 George Street Ireland. In 1999, Jon was seconded to Australia for two years to Sydney NSW 2000 assist clients with the implementation of the GST. He returned Australia permanently to Australia in March 2006 and is based in Tel: +61 (0) 2 9322 7421 Deloitte’s Sydney office. Email: Jon advises across many industry sectors, but remains a [email protected] recognised expert and thought leader in the global financial Website: www.deloitte.com.au services sector. He advises on all aspects of GST/VAT planning and compliance, including retail and investment banks, general and life insurance companies, fund managers, venture capital businesses and providers to those sectors such as information technology and telecommunications businesses. Jon and his team have a reputation for providing innovative and practical solutions to clients in the field of indirect tax, including negotiating with the tax authorities at a senior level. Jon is also very experienced in assisting clients with disputes through alternative dispute resolution and litigation. Jon has a number of qualifications and memberships, including the Taxation Institute of Australia, the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia, the UK Institute of Taxation and the UK Association of Taxation Technicians. Jon is also listed as a tax expert in the 2011 Guide to the World’s Leading Tax Advisers.
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Deborah Jenkins
Deborah is an Indirect Tax Partner with KPMG Australia based in Sydney and has been with KPMG since May 2000. She is a passionate tax professional and brings multinational experience to the practice, having previously worked for New Zealand’s Inland Revenue Department and a New Zealand law firm, before joining KPMG.
As part of her involvement in KPMG’s Global Indirect Tax KPMG in Australia leadership team, she is currently focused on delivering global indirect tax compliance solutions for KPMG’s clients in the Asia 10 Shelley Street Sydney, NSW 2000 Pacific Region. Deborah was Regional Leader of KPMG’s Australia Global Indirect Tax Services in the Asia Pacific Region from 2009 – 2013. Tel: +61 2 9335 7323 Fax: +61 424 161 760 Deborah provides practical GST assistance to clients in serv - Email: [email protected] ice-based industries, including advising a number of large Website: www.kpmg.com.au Australian corporates and multi-nationals on a variety of GST technical issues as well as broader business issues associated with complying with the relevant GST legislation. She leverages her experience both in other jurisdictions and with other taxes such as transfer pricing, and corporate tax to provide holistic global solutions. She advises a number of clients in various industries on the GST implications of a variety of large commercial transactions, including IPOs, mergers & acquisitions and group restructuring. Deborah has also led a number of GST assurance reviews to examine the GST technical correctness of existing policies and procedures, and adherence to those policies and proce - dures. During the course of this work, Deborah has identified key areas of risk and opportu - nity for clients. Her work has involved designing approaches to enhance business processes to realize opportunities as well as minimize risks, drafting policy documents and providing training.
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John Koutsogiannis
John Koutsogiannis is the partner in charge of the New South Wales indirect tax practice of Deloitte Australia. His team com - prises approximately 30 indirect tax specialists, including five partners. John is a recognised expert and thought leader in matters related to government, cross-border transactions and real estate, as well as other industries. He advises clients on all aspects of Deloitte Australia GST/VAT planning and compliance. He is regularly consulted by central agencies and the Australian Taxation Office on GST Grosvenor Place 225 George Street technical matters. Sydney; 2000 John and his team have established a reputation for provid - Australia ing innovative and practical indirect tax solutions to clients, Tel: +61 2 9322 7419 including obtaining significant GST refunds through value Email: added opportunities and negotiating such refunds with the tax [email protected] authorities at the most senior level. John is also experienced in providing consultancy and expert services, assisting clients with disputes. John has a number of qualifications and memberships. He regularly participates at seminars for the Institute of Chartered Accountants (ICAA), the Australian Society of CPAs and the Taxation Institute of Australia. He is a member of the GST sub-committees for both the ICAAs and Property Council of Australia, where he actively debates GST matters related to technical and compliance issues.
9IN|D wIRwEwC.Tin TtAerX nLatEiAonDaElRtaS xreview.com www.internaItNioDnIaRltEaCxTre TvAieXw L.cEoAmDE |R S9 Australia Adrian Abbott PwC ...... Jonathan Ackerman DLA Piper ...... Gary Chiert Corrs Taxand ...... Peter Konidaris PwC ...... Amrit MacIntyre Baker & McKenzie ...... Craig Milner Corrs Taxand ...... Kevin O’Rourke PwC ...... Ross Stitt Allens Arthur Robinson ...... Mark Tafft Ernst & Young ...... Ross Thorpe PwC ...... Michelle Tremain PwC ...... Patrick Walker PwC ......
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Christian Buergler
Christian Buergler is the leader of the Deloitte Austria Indirect Tax and Customs Group, operating both in the Vienna and the Salzburg office. Christian joined Deloitte Austria in 1994 and is a certified Tax Advisor and Public Accountant with more than 15 years of professional experience. He specializes in indirect taxes (VAT law, custom duty law), mergers and acquisitions and tax due diligence. Christian has Deloitte Austria provided services for organizations doing business in various industries such as automotive and real estate, on national as well Vienna, Austria as international levels. Tel: +43 1 53700 4940 Christian is a lecturer at the Academy for Chartered Public Email: [email protected] Accountants and Tax Advisors at the Legal Academy in Vienna, and at the Karl-Franzens University of Graz. He has published articles on indirect tax and is one of the editors of the Austrian VAT commentary. Furthermore, he is a member of the EU VAT-experts group.
1IN1 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R1S1 Austria
Gerhard Gratzl
Gerhard Gratzl has more than 20 years of experience in all areas of VAT. He has been with Deloitte Austria since 1988 and has been a partner since 2003. Gerhard leads a group of 20 people, located in Vienna. His team focuses on compliance work (monthly bookkeeping, reporting as well annual accounts and annual reports) and VAT consultancy services. Deloitte Austria Gerhard advises international and global clients doing busi - ness in a wide variety of industries. His focus lies in manufactur - Renngasse 1 / Freyung 1010 Vienna ing and consumer business, the real estate business (rental serv - Austria ices, hotel business, real estate dealers) and the financial servic - es industry. His clients appreciate his expertise in tax audits and Tel: +43 (0)1 537 00 6800 Email: [email protected] tax litigation. Gerhard studied economics at the University of Economies in Vienna, specializing in accounting and tax law. He earned his Master’s degree in business administration in 1995. He has been a Certified Tax Advisor since 1997 and a Certified Austrian CPA since 2003. His mother tongue is German and he is also fluent in English.
I1N2 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R1S2 Austria Imke Gerdes Baker & McKenzie ...... Ingrid Rattinger Ernst & Young ......
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Peter Ackerman
Peter Ackerman is an indirect tax partner with KPMG in Belgium. He has specialized in Value Added Tax (VAT) consult - ing for over 23 years. As head of indirect taxes, he has practice leadership responsibility for KPMG’s indirect tax practice in Belgium and represents Belgium within KPMG’s Global Indirect Tax Services Network. Peter has been involved in vari - ous assignments across a range of sectors. He has been involved KPMG in Belgium in engagements within KPMG globally with respect to cross- border VAT planning, due diligence and implementation proj - Avenue du Bourget 40 1130 Brussels ects, mergers and acquisitions, commissionaire structures, trans - Belgium fer pricing and VAT compliance projects. Peter has worked on international projects focusing on risk management, the devel - Tel: +32 2 7083813 Fax: +32 2 708 44 44 opment and implementation of tax planning strategies and cash Email: [email protected] flow optimization across a range of industry sectors. He has sig - Website: www.kpmg.be nificant experience working with European, US and Japanese multinational clients in a variety of industries. He has deep tech - nical skills covering both Belgian and EU VAT and also has extensive experience of working on transactions in other European countries. Peter has published articles on a variety of issues in VAT. He is a certified tax adviser and an active member of the exam com - mittee of the Belgian Institute of Tax Advisors. He is a frequent speaker on VAT issues and has written articles on indirect taxes in both national and international professional journals. Peter holds a law degree (University Gent) and a tax law degree (Fiscale Hogeschool Brussels). Before joining KPMG in 1993, Peter was with a law firm and another tax consulting firm.
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Thierry Blockerye
Thierry is a corporate tax partner in the Brussels office of Clifford Chance and a member of the firm’s international VAT unit. He specialises in tax law with a strong focus on real estate and the taxation issues of mergers and acquisitions. His scope of tax work includes corporate income tax, personal tax, VAT, international tax, fund structuring and obtaining tax rulings Clifford Chance Brussels aimed at reducing transfer tax or at optimising the VAT treat - ment. His work is supported by his excellent relationship with Avenue Louise 65, Box 2 1050 Brussels the Belgian tax authorities. Belgium Thierry’s clients include local and international real estate developers, local and international investors, Belgian real estate Tel: +32 2533 5061 Email: thierry.blockerye@ investment trusts, private equity funds or ventures. He has spo - cliffordchance.com ken at various seminars and conferences dealing with the tax Website: www.cliffordchance.com optimisation of M&A transactions. Thierry is a member of the International Fiscal Association, and a professor at the Maîtrise en Gestion Fiscale (ULB). He also teaches at the Superieure Ecole des Sciences Fiscales (ESSF).
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Jeroen Gobbin
Jeroen Gobbin joined K law in Brussels in 2012. He has over 15 years’ experience in indirect taxation in general and was until October 2012 head of the Belgian tax practice as well as head of the DLA Piper international VAT group, serving clients worldwide. Legal 500 quotes “ (…) Jeroen Gobbin, who delivers an
‘excellent service in VAT matters’, and focuses on indirect taxes, K law real estate tax and tax disputes.” Jeroen advises clients on indirect taxation aspects, including Avenue du Bourget 40 1130 Brussels those related to value added tax (VAT), registration and stamp Belgium duties, in matters such as VAT structuring and optimization; Indirect tax structuring of real estate transactions; VAT aspects Tel: +32 2 708 3767 Fax: +32 2 708 44 99 of public-private partnerships, project financing and local Email: [email protected] authorities issues; e-commerce (including aspects of the emis - Website: www.klaw.be sion and transactions with e-money, mobile remittance services, etc.); banking and insurance; trading and emission of CO 2 emis - sion rights and credits. He also advises on tax disputes with authorities, helping clients find an optimal solution in both direct and indirect tax matters. Administrative settlements and/or agreements are often reached out of court, but, when necessary and appropri - ate, he defends clients’ interests in court. Jeroen has published an article and prepared several seminars on the influence of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice in the field of VAT and promotional actions for companies Jeroen has published an extensive article on the influence of the jurisprudence of the European Court of Justice concerning the VAT treatment of the activities of holding compa - nies. He has been involved in commenting on the first edition 2002 of the Belgian VAT Code of the legal editors of Die Keure, and was involved in the preparing of the second edition of 2006 and the third edition of 2008 as well. He is one of the co-authors of the book Brownfields in Vlaanderen commenting upon the fiscal implications of the redevelopment of brown fields.
I1N6 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R1S6 Belgium
Fernand Rutten
Fernand Rutten is the Deloitte Global Customs and Global Trade Leader and Managing Partner of the Customs and Global Trade service line of Deloitte Belgium. Fernand has over 18 years of experience in indirect tax, with a strong focus on customs, excises and global trade matters. Before becoming a consultant, he worked as a customs official with the Dutch customs authorities dealing with several cus - Deloitte Belgium toms and global trade matters, issuing rulings on customs valu - ation and customs economic procedures. Some 16 years ago, Berkenlaan 6 Diegem Fernand became a customs and global trade consultant. He fur - Brussels 1831 ther specialized in a variety of customs and global trade matters Belgium and built out a specialized group of experts serving clients in Tel: +32 2 600 6606 both the public and private sectors in business model optimiza - Email: [email protected] tion, automation, compliance, export controls, excises, litiga - Website: www.deloitte.com tion, valuation, origin, classification, and data analytics. In lead - ing the Belgian customs and global trade service line, Fernand has advised clients on customs and global trade matters in many domains. In May 2010, he became the Global Leader for Customs & Global Trade. For six years, Fernand was a lecturer at the University of Leiden in the Netherlands in cus - toms and international trade. He also lectured for three years at the University of Antwerp in customs and international trade. In addition, Fernand is as a regular speaker, has written many articles on customs and global trade and has authored of a number of books on cus - toms and global trade matters. Fernand has a law degree (University of Leiden, the Netherlands) with specialization in Customs, International trade, Excises and VAT. He is a member of the Belgian Institute of Tax Advisors.
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Danny Stas
Danny Stas joined Laga in January 2012. He started his career as a VAT consultant with Arthur Andersen, later working as a partner at Tiberghien. He is a tax lawyer specialised in VAT, in particular with respect to real estate and financial transactions, as well as eco taxes and contributions. As Laga partner, Danny focuses on VAT consulting for Belgian clients in the private and public sectors and the broad corporate market at national and Laga international levels. Danny earned a degree in law from KUL, Leven (1994) and Berkenlaan 8a 1831 Brussels / Diegem a degree in tax and accounting from Vlerick, RUG (1995). He Belgium has authored several books and articles discussing VAT related matters. Tel: + 32 2 800 70 11 Email: [email protected]
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Johan Van der Paal
Johan Van der Paal is an Indirect Tax Partner with Deloitte Belgium, based in Brussels. He heads up the Financial Services Tax group of Deloitte Belgium. Johan has 19 years of experience as an advisor in indirect taxes, with a focus on VAT. He developed a focus on tax mat - ters affecting the financial services and energy and utilities industries. He assists clients on a variety of Belgian and interna - Deloitte Belgium tional indirect tax matters, both in the framework of the expan - sion of multinational groups or in a mergers and acquisitions Berkenlaan 6 Diegem context. He is coordinating global or regional indirect tax work Brussels 1831 for a series of European-based multinationals. Belgium In the financial services industry, Johan’s work includes set - Tel: +32 2 600 6639 ting up VAT efficient group structures and cost sharing arrange - Email: [email protected] ments, both on Belgian and cross border levels. He negotiated Website: www.deloitte.com a number of innovative arrangements with the Belgian tax authorities. His deep knowledge of the energy sector, both in Belgium and Europe, has allowed Johan and his team to help clients develop systems and processes to manage the different indirect taxes affecting their product flows, combining VAT, excise and environmental tax reporting. Johan is a regular speaker at internal and external seminars. He is chief editor of the only periodical on the Belgian market dedicated to VAT, the BTW-Brief / La Lettre TVA . He is regularly consulted by professional federations in Belgium on legislative initiatives. Johan has a law degree from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven as well as a Master’s degree in tax management from the Vlerick Management School. Johan is a member of the Belgian Institute for Accountants and Tax Consultants (IAB), where he also sits on the Continued Education Commission.
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Piet Vandendriessche
Piet Vandendriessche is the Managing Partner of Deloitte Belgium Tax & Legal, and the EMEA Regional Tax & Legal Managing Director. He is a member of the Deloitte Belgium and Global Tax & Legal executive teams. Piet is also a member of the Belgian Institute of Tax Advisors, the Belgian branch of IFA, and a member of the VAT Expert Group at the European
Commission. Deloitte Belgium Piet has over 23 years of experience in international tax mat - ters with a strong focus on indirect taxes. He has specialized in Berkenlaan 6 Diegem indirect taxes for 18 years, and has extensive knowledge in all Brussels 1831 areas of indirect tax, including global outsourcing, supply chain, Belgium tax management consulting, public sector, international tax Tel: +32 2 600 66 60 consulting, compliance, customs, real estate matters, etc. Email: Piet has advised many clients on indirect tax matters in a vari - [email protected] ety of areas. He has led the Belgian Indirect Tax service line for Website: www.deloitte.com many years, and also served as the Global Managing Director – Indirect Tax, DTTL, for 5 years. Piet has led the Belgian Tax & Legal practice since January 2008. Since 22 April 2013, he has also taken on the role of EMEA Regional Tax & Legal Managing Director. Piet is a lecturer at the KU Leuven. He has written many articles and a number of books on VAT matters.
I2N0 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R2S0 Belgium Yves Bernaerts Ernst & Young ...... Sophie Clocheret Baker & McKenzie ...... Guido De Wit Linklaters ...... Koen Dewilde AB Taxand ...... Stéphanie Houx Allen & Overy ...... Ine Lejeune PwC ...... Serge Mary PwC ...... Eric Schmitz PwC ...... Annick van Hoorebeke Baker & McKenzie ...... Jan van Moorsel Ernst & Young ...... Sibylle Vandenberghe PwC ...... Wouter Villette PwC ...... Stéphane Wilmet Liedekerke ...... Ronny Wuytjens Deloitte ......
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Lucio Bastos
Position • Partner, KPMG in Brazil • Head of Indirect Taxes and Customs, KPMG in Brazil • Member of KPMG’s Global Indirect Tax Services Practice Leadership
Background KPMG in Brazil • Lucio has more than 22 years of experience in consulting services related to taxes (indirect and direct), labor and social Av Paulista, 2313-Cerqueira Cesar security charges. Sao Paulo, SP 01311300 • Currently he coordinates the indirect tax and customs Brazil department of KPMG Brazil. Tel: +55 1 131385071 Email: [email protected] Professional and industry experience Website: www.kpmg.com • Lucio Bastos renders services for both national and interna - tional companies in various areas, such as due diligence, acquisition review, tax and business consulting, and acts as clients’ representative in administrative courts. • He is a lawyer and vice-president of ANFAC (Association of Factoring Companies) Ethics’ Council. • Lucio presents courses related to indirect taxes and customs, tax planning and routines in labor and social security areas. Several of his articles have been published in newspapers and magazines.
Education, licenses and certifications • MBA program in Business Management • Law School • Technical degree in Foreign Trade
Languages • English • Portuguese
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Luiz Gustavo AS Bichara
Graduated from Cândido Mendes University, also completed the programme of instruction for lawyers at Harvard Law School in 2003. Professor of the postgraduate course in tax law at UNI - GRANRIO, and of the tax law LLM of IBMEC. Executive director of the Brazilian Association of Financial
Law, member of the General Council of the International Fiscal Bichara, Barata & Costa Association (IFA), member of the Brazilian Academy of Tax Advogados Law, of the Brazilian Institute of Constitutional Law, and of the Rua do Ouvidor, 121 – 23º ao 29º Brazilian Association of Tax Law, president of the Brazil- andar Honduras Chamber of Commerce, and vice-president of the Centro – Rio de Janeiro – RJ Brazil-Argentina Chamber of Commerce. CEP: 20040-030 Brazil Former president for two terms of the Corporate Law Alliance (ALAE). Tel: +55 21 3231 8011 Email: Member of the Special Commission that has drafted the [email protected] Taxpayer Defense Code of the State of Minas Gerais, and of the Website: www.bicharalaw.com.br Commission established with the same objective by the National Congress, vice-president of the Special Commission on Tax Matters, and president of the Commission on Federal Judiciary Matters, both of the Rio de Janeiro State Chapter of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB-RJ). Member of the board of examiners in several exams for Public Attorneys and for Judges in the state of Rio de Janeiro, as examiner on the subject of tax law. Also received successive mentions on international publications being appointed as one of Brazil’s best tax lawyers. Author of numerous studies and articles published on specialized magazines. In 2013 was been nominated as attorney for legal affairs concerning tax matters for Brazilian Federal Bar Association (OAB).
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Mauri Bórnia
Mauri Bórnia is a lawyer with 30 years of experience in the tax area with emphasis on indirect taxes and tax litigation. He joined Machado Associados in 1999 and has been a partner of the firm since 2003. Before this, he has worked as a tax consult - ant at IOB (Informações Objetivas e Publicações Jurídicas) one of the largest legal consulting firms in Brazil and has also worked at an industrial company, where he started his career in Machado Associados the tax area. Advogados e Consultores He graduated in law from Faculdade de Direito de Sorocaba Av Brig Faria Lima, 1656 – 11º and concluded his postgraduate studies in tax law at UNISO – andar Universidade de Sorocaba. He is also an accountant graduated 01451-918 – São Paulo / SP from Faculdade de Ciências Contábeis e Administrativas de Brazil Sorocaba. Tel: +55 11 3819 4855 He is a member of the Brazilian Bar Association – São Paulo Fax: +55 11 3819 5322 Email: mbornia@ Section (OAB/SP), the Regional Accounting Council – São machadoassociados.com.br Paulo Section (CRC/SP) and of Associação Paulista de Estudos Website: Tributários (APET). www.machadoassociados.com.br Mauri was a postgraduate course professor in tax law held by Trevisan Escola de Negócios and by Centro de Extensão Universitária of Instituto Internacional de Ciências Sociais (CEU / IICS). Moreover, he gives several lectures in this area of law, especially on social contributions, taxes levied on con - sumption of goods and services and foreign trade taxation. Along his career, he has authored several articles and given interviews in specialised magazines and newspapers. His academic and professional background provides him a wider view of all aspects relat - ed to the application of the tax law in defense of clients’ interests, mainly as to the correct application of the law in the tax and accounting organisation of their companies. With a highly specialised profile, Mauri is one of the partners in charge of the indirect taxes area at Machado Associados serving domestic and multinational companies, taking part in several tax and corporate restructuring transactions and following up new structures.
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Ricardo Marletti Debatin da Silveira
Ricardo M. Debatin da Silveira is a lawyer with 20 years of expe - rience in the tax area, with emphasis on indirect taxes and tax litigation. He joined Machado Associados in 1993 and has been a partner of the indirect tax area since 2005. He graduated in Law from Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC/SP) in 1994, where he also concluded his postgraduate studies in Tax Law in 1997. Machado Associados He is the chairman of the Board of the Brazilian Institute of Energy Law (IBDE), an entity that has taken an important role Av Brig. Faria Lima, 1656, 11º andar to study legal matters in the Brazilian energy segment, with spe - 01451-918 – São Paulo / SP cial focus on Oil, Gas, Electric Energy and Renewable Sources. Brazil Ricardo is a member of the Brazilian Bar Association in São Tel: +55 11 3819 4855 Paulo (OAB/SP), the Tax Committee of the International Bar Fax: +55 11 3819 5322 Association (IBA), the Legal Committee of the American Email: rsilveira@ machadoassociados.com.br Chamber of Commerce in São Paulo (AMCHAM), and of the Website: International Chamber of Commerce (ICC). www.machadoassociados.com.br During his career, he has authored several articles and given interviews in specialized magazines, books and newspapers. Ricardo has a high international profile and is one of the partners responsible for serving multinational companies with business and/or investing in Brazil, especially assisting foreign clients to understand and deal with tax, customs and corporate issues in Brazil, and heading due diligence work in mergers and acquisitions transactions. The experience from several years of consultancy services and from many significant cases shared with international law firms around the world provides him with a client-oriented per - spective of taxes and tax litigation, especially on highly complex cases. Ricardo is fluent in Portuguese and English.
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Júlio M de Oliveira
Júlio M. de Oliveira is a partner of the law firm Machado Associados, with master’s and PhD degrees in tax law from Pontifícia Universidade Católica de São Paulo (PUC/SP). He has acted in many significant tax proceedings relating to direct and indirect tax as well as taxes levied on the payroll, in addition to rendering consulting services to large domestic and international companies. He is part of several committees and Machado Associados associations made up of companies that seek to improve the Advogados e Consultores Brazilian tax system. Av Brig Faria Lima, 1656 – 11º Júlio Oliveira has already acted as an examining professor on andar boards granting master’s degrees at PUC/SP and as judge of 01451-918 – São Paulo / SP the Tax Administrative Court of the State of São Paulo (TIT). Brazil He is a tax law professor at PUC/SP and GV law and professor Tel: +55 11 3819 4855 of the tax law specialisation course at Universidade de São Paulo Fax: +55 11 3819 5322 Email: joliveira@ (USP). He was appointed as one of the most respected tax machadoassociados.com.br lawyers in Brazil by the Os Mais Admirados do Direito Yearbook Website: in 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010, and nominated as one of the 30 www.machadoassociados.com.br outstanding Brazilian tax lawyers in the corporate area since 2010 by Who’s Who Legal. He is the author of the books Internet e Competência Tributária (Editora Dialética) and O Princípio da Legalidade e sua aplicabilidade ao IPI e ao ICMS (Quartier Latin). Júlio Oliveira has recently co-authored the book Tributação e Desenvolvimento – Homenagem ao Prof. Aires Barreto . He has also co-authored the following books: Processo Tributário Analítico (Editora Noeses); IPI – Aspectos Jurídicos Relevantes (Editora Quartier Latin); ISS – Lei Complementar 116/2003 (Editora Juruá); Comentários ao Código Tributário Nacional (Editora MP); Curso de Especialização em Direito Tributário: Estudos Analíticos em Homenagem a Paulo de Barros Carvalho (Editora Forense); Interpretação e Estado de Direito (Editora Noeses); ICMS – Questões Fundamentais (Editora MP); Questões Fundamentais – IPI (Editora MP); Grandes Questões Atuais do Direito Tributário – 10° Volume (Editora Dialética); Sistema Tributário Brasileiro e a Crise Atual (Editora Noeses); Estudos em Homenagem a José Eduardo Monteiro de Barros – Direito Tributário (MP Editora); Revista Direito Tributário Atual (Revista dos Tribunais); Tributação Empresarial (Saraiva – Série GVLaw); Direito Tributário: Homenagem a Paulo de Barros Carvalho (Quartier Latin); ISS – Lei Complementar 116/2003 (MP EDITORA); Direito Tributário e os Conceitos de Direito Privado (Editora Noeses); and others.
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Thiago de Vasconcellos Chaer Cury
Lawyer graduated from the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), served as counsel in the area of tax advice and litigation and administrative litigation at renowned law firms before. Postgraduate on tax law at the Brazilian Institute of Tax – IBET.
Author of articles published on specialised sites Bichara, Barata & Costa Member of the Brazilian Association of Financial Law Advogados (ABDF) and the Tax Debate Group of Rio de Janeiro (Rio- Email: [email protected] GDT). Website: www.bicharalaw.com.br Member of the Brazilian Bar Association, Rio de Janeiro sec - tion.
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Sandro Machado dos Reis
Law degree from Gama Filho University Law School. Specialisation course (professional MBA) in business law from Fundação Getulio Vargas; specialisation course on strate - gic tax management from Trevisan in 2000. Former professor of financial law at Estácio de Sá Law School, of tax law at Fundação Pró-UniRio and in the postgrad - uate program at Cândido Mendes University Law School. Bichara, Barata & Costa Former councilor of the Rio de Janeiro Municipal Tax Advogados Appeal Council. Now a tax consultant for trade associations Email: [email protected] Member of the Administrative Tax Appeal Council of the Website: www.bicharalaw.com.br Ministry of Finance and the Rio de Janeiro State Tax Appeal Council.
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Douglas Lopes
Douglas Lopes is an Indirect Tax Partner based in Sao Paulo, with more than 20 years of experience in indirect tax matters. He has technical knowledge of indirect tax legislation (ICMS, IPI and ISS), taxes on revenue (PIS and COFINS), import taxes, tax planning, VAT implementation, compliance, audits, spin-offs and consolidation of companies, and assessment of resulting tax impacts and effects on financial statements. Deloitte Douglas is a member of the Regional Accounting Council. He earned a degree in accounting and law from the Rua Jose Guerra, 127 Sao Paulo 04719-030 Universidade Paulista in 2007. Brazil
Tel: +55 11 5186 1002 Email: [email protected]
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Enzo Megozzi
Law degree from Mackenzie Presbyterian University. Postgraduate specialisation in tax law from the Brazilian Institute of Tax Law and the Brazilian Institute of Tax Studies. Enzo Megozzi has 15 years of experience in the tax area and worked at renowned law firms before. Author of articles published in periodicals and specialised sites, he was a professor in the postgraduate program in tax law Bichara, Barata & Costa of Mackenzie Presbyterian University (2002-2003). Advogados Speaker at various events in the tax law area. Member of the Email: Brazilian Bar Association, São Paulo State Chapter. [email protected] Website: www.bicharalaw.com.br
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Murilo Mello
Position • Partner • International Corporate Tax Services (ICT) & Transfer Pricing
Qualifications • Bachelor of law KPMG in Brazil • Post-graduation degree in tax law • Master degree in International Tax Law Av Paulista, 2313-Cerqueira Cesar • Member of Brazilian Bar Association (OAB) Sao Paulo, SP 01311300 • Member of Iberoamerica team Brazil
Tel: + 55 11 2183 3261 Experience Fax: +55 11 2183 3261 • Since 1996, Murilo has been working with tax audit, adviso - Email: [email protected] ry services, tax planning and corporate restructuring. He is Website: www.kpmg.com currently working with domestic and foreign clients, as well as assisting other KPMG’s offices, providing advice to multi - national corporations on cross-border transactions, tax strategies and tax minimization projects. • Murilo is member of KPMG Iberoamerica Tax Markets team, conducting tax projects and assisting clients on the Latin America region.
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Luiz Eugênio Porto Severo da Costa
Lawyer graduated from the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC-Rio), served as counsel in the areas of consulting and tax litigation at renowned law firms before. Postgraduate in public law from the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). Master’s in taxation (LLM Tax) from Northwestern University (USA).
Author of articles published in books specialising in tax law. Bichara, Barata & Costa Delivered several lectures on subjects regarding business Advogados structuring and taxation. Email: Teaches international taxation at the post graduation in tax [email protected] law vourse of the Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro (PUC- Website: www.bicharalaw.com.br Rio). Member of the Brazilian Bar Association, Rio de Janeiro section.
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Luiz Fernando Rezende Gomes
Luiz Fernando Rezende Gomes began his career in taxation and corporate law in 1997, specializing in review procedures related to indirect tax, revision of tax burdens and due diligence. He has participated in several projects involving corporate restruc - turing and tax planning. He advises clients on matters of direct and indirect tax, customs law, international tax, tax and corpo - rate consulting and tax planning, among others. Luiz serves Deloitte clients across a broad spectrum of industries including oil and gas, mining, manufacturing and leisure. Av Presidente Wilson, 231 Andar 22 Luiz earned a degree in law from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro 20030-021 Rio de Janeiro – UFRJ and an MBA in finance from IBMEC. Brazil He speaks English. Tel: +55 21 3981 0451 Email: [email protected]
3IN3 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R3S3 Brazil Danilo Aoad Gimenez BM&A Consultoria Tributária – Taxand ...... Paulo de Barros Carvalho Barros Carvalho Advogados Associados ...... José Eduardo S de Melo Soares de Melo Advogados ...... Hamilton Dias de Souza Dias de Souza Advogados Associados ...... Maria Fernanda Furtado Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados, Associated with Baker & McKenzie International ...... Ives Gandra Martins Gandra Martins Advocacia ...... Carlos Gardel Ernst & Young ...... Maria Eugenia Kanazawa Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados, Associated with Baker & McKenzie International ...... Leonardo Krakowiak Advocacia Krakowiak ...... Armênio Lopes Correia Rolim, Viotti & Leite Campos ...... Alessandra Machado Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados, Associated with Baker & McKenzie International ...... Ricardo Mariz de Oliveira Escritório Mariz de Oliveira e Siqueira Campos Advogados Associados ...... Alessandro Mendes Cardoso Rolim, Viotti & Leite Campos ...... Marina Perfetti Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados, Associated with Baker & McKenzie International ...... Roberto Quiroga Mosquera Mattos Filho, Veiga Filho, Marrey Jr e Quiroga Advogados ...... Antonio Roque Carrazza Fernando José Fernandes Nelson Luiz Pinto ...... Antonio C Salla Machado Associados ...... Roberto Siqueira Campos Mariz De Oliveira e Siqueira Campos Advogados ...... Adriana Stamato Trench, Rossi e Watanabe Advogados, Associated with Baker & McKenzie International ......
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John Bain
John is a Partner at KPMG LLP based in Toronto and has more than 22 years of commodity tax experience both in Canada and the European Union. He leads KPMG’s Indirect Tax Practice in the Greater Toronto Area and is a member of KPMG’s Global Indirect Tax steering committee. He advises a wide array of clients on the application of Canadian indirect taxes and is prin - cipally focused on the financial and manufacturing sectors. He KPMG in Canada leads KPMG’s Indirect Tax Technology offering in Canada. John began his career with KPMG in the UK where he spent KPMG Global Resource Centre 333 Bay Street three years advising on VAT issues. Suite 4600 John is a former senior tax policy officer with the Bay Adelaide Centre Department of Finance Canada, where he was responsible for Toronto, ON M5H 2S5 Canada GST policy and legislation for services and cross-border move - ment of goods. He worked for the European Commission in Tel: +1 416 777 3894 Email: [email protected] Belgium as VAT policy officer on issues related to the financial Website: www.kpmg.com sector and cross-border services. He has also worked at the Canada Revenue Agency, where he was a manager responsible for GST interpretive policy and rulings related to real property issues. John is the Chair of the Commodity Tax Policy Committee for the Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada associa - tion, is a participant in the GST Leaders Forum, and in the past has participated in indirect tax technical advisory groups and working groups at both the OECD and WTO on cross-border issues. He is a contributor to the Toronto Financial Services Alliance on Islamic finance and advises a number of financial sector industry associ - ations. He speaks frequently at tax conferences and is a published author on VAT and GST- related matters.
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Michael Bussmann
Michael Bussmann is leader of the Gowlings Tax Group, with a focus on indirect tax matters, including all forms of federal and provincial commodity taxes. He advises clients in a wide range of industries including banking, finance and leasing, insurance, pay - ments, manufacturing, apparel, traditional and internet retail, telecommunications, real estate, transportation and energy.
Providing indirect tax planning advice to international and Gowling Lafleur Henderson domestic clients in respect of both acquisitions and greenfield operations, Michael also counsels clients on matters relating to 1 First Canadian Place 100 King Street West tax audits and customs verifications, appeals and voluntary dis - Suite 1600 closures. He draws on expertise that embraces the full spectrum Toronto, ON M5X 1G5 of compulsory contributions including the value-added taxes Canada GST, HST and the Québec sales tax (QST); provincial, excise Tel: +1 416 369 4663 and land transfer taxes; environmental and carbon charges; taxes Fax: +1 416 369 7250 Email: on insurance premiums; telecommunications contributions; and [email protected] custom duties, including all manner of value for duty, tariff clas - Website: www.gowlings.com/ sification, rules of origin and import and export control matters. Services/tax-law Michael has represented clients before the Canada Revenue Agency, the Canada Border Services Agency, the Tax Court of Canada, the Canadian International Trade Tribunal, as well as the provincial tax authorities in appeals of assessments for GST/HST and QST, other provincial sales taxes and customs administrative monetary penalties. Speaking regularly on mat - ters relating to tax, Michael is a member of the Canadian Bar Association, Sales & Commodity Tax Section; the Canadian Tax Foundation; the Tax Committee of the Canadian Finance & Leasing Association; and the indirect tax team of Taxand, an award winning glob - al organization that provides high-quality integrated tax advice on international transactions. Michael speaks English and German fluently and is conversant in French as well.
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Danny Cisterna
Danny Cisterna is a Deloitte Canada Partner based in Toronto. He is the National Leader for Tax for the Financial Services Industry. He has extensive experience in public accounting and in the private sector where he spent four years with a major bank responsible for managing over CAD100m of indirect taxes. He advises and consults with a wide array of clients on indirect taxes with particular emphasis in the financial services industry. Deloitte Canada Danny is an advisor to the IBC Tax Panel on indirect tax matters. He is an advisor to several of IFIC’s working groups 33 Yonge Street 2nd floor dealing with GST and HST matters affecting the mutual funds Toronto, ON M5E 1G4 sector. Danny is a member of a Technical Advisory Group sanc - Canada tioned by the OECD with respect to the development of inter - Tel: +1 416 601 6362 national guidelines on the application of value added taxes to Mobile: +1 476 729 9651 cross-border traded services and intangibles. Danny has been a Email: [email protected] member, a discussion leader and active participant of the GST Website: www.deloitte.com Leaders Forum and was the Chair of the inaugural session in 2007. Danny is the Chair of the CICA Commodity Tax Committee which reports to CICA’s Tax Policy Committee. Finally, Danny is a member of the Tax Roundtable of the Toronto Financial Services Alliance. Danny has written for and presented at numerous CICA Commodity Tax Symposia on matters relating to Financial Services and Goods and Services Tax. He was a regular tutor for the CICA In-Resident In-Depth GST Course, co-developer and co-lecturer at the CICA In- Depth In-Residence Course Part II and, more recently, co-developed the material for and lec - tures on the GST and Financial Services Advanced Topic offering by the CICA. Danny is a regular presenter to the Tax Executives Institute, the Canadian Tax Foundation, the Investment Funds Institute of Canada (IFIC), the Canadian Life and Health Insurers Association and the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) on indirect tax matters affecting their industries. Danny is a Chartered Accountant and member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario.
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Robert Demers, M.Fisc
Profile Robert Demers is Deloitte Canada’s National Indirect Tax Leader. Located in Montreal, he has provided, for 30-plus years, consulting on indirect tax and customs matters. He has helped many large companies in Quebec, Canada and abroad to better plan their transactions and identify additional exemption possi - bilities with government authorities. Deloitte Holding a master’s degree in taxation, Robert has served as chairman of the public finance and tax committee of the Board 1, Place Ville-Marie, Bureau 3000 Montreal H3B 4T9 of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and also as board president Canada of the World Trade Centre of Montreal. He is actively involved in the Charles Bruneau Cancerology Centre foundation, which Tel: +1 514 3935156 Email: [email protected] raises funds for pediatric cancer research. He is also a member Website: www.deloitte.ca of the Association de Planification Fiscale et Financière (APFF) and chairs the organizing committee of the APFF’s consump - tion tax symposium. A highly sought speaker, Robert has given many courses for the Ordre des Comptables Agréés du Québec, the Purchasing Management Association of Canada and the Université du Québec à Montréal.
Education: Certificate in law – University of Montreal – 1992 Master degree in tax – University of Sherbrooke – 1982 Bachelor degree in economics – University of Montreal – 1980
Professional and Community affairs: • Member and Chairman of the board of the Montreal World Trade Center 1997- 2001 • Member and Chair of the Finance committee of The Board of Trade 2002-2008 • Member and Chair of the APFF Indirect Tax Symposium organizing committee 1995- 2012 • Member of the organizing committee of Centre de Cancérologie Charles Bruneau CIBC Cycling Tour 2006-2012
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Audrey Diamant
Audrey Diamant is a partner in the Tax Services practice of PricwaterhouseCoopers LLP and specializes in the GST and PST as it relates to cross-border transactions, technology and telecommunications issues, and the not-for-profit sector. Audrey also provides in-depth analysis and legislative interpreta - tion to clients on provincial retail sales tax programs, with emphasis on the inter-provincial transfer of goods and services, PricwaterhouseCoopers LLP end-use exemptions and special status purchasers, and advises a number of large US-based clients on the intricacies of carrying PwC Tower 18 York Street on business in Canada. Suite 2600 Audrey has practiced in the commodity tax area for more Toronto, ON M5J 0B2 than 25 years and provided advisory services to the Canadian Canada Department of Finance during the implementation of the GST, Tel: +1 416 687 8933 and to the Ontario Ministry of Finance both on software issues Email: [email protected] as well as the implementation of the HST in Ontario. She is also Website: www.pwc.com/ca a leader of the sales tax committee of the Information Technology Association of Canada (Ontario). Audrey has held the position of co-chair/presenter (2003- 2006) and chair/presenter (2007-2012) of the CICA GST/HST In-Depth course, co-developed the CICA advanced course on GST/HST and Public Sector Bodies, and is a regular contributor on sales tax matters to a Canadian Tax Foundation newsletter. She is a regular speaker at the CICA Commodity Tax Symposium and TEI, and is a recipient of the Normand Guerin Award for her contribution to commodity tax studies.
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Mike Firth
Mike specialises in GST as it affects the financial sector. Mike has more than 30 years of experience in working with value added taxes such as the GST, gained in 10 years working with HM Customs and Excise in the UK in a variety of VAT roles, followed by 24 years with PwC in the UK, Canada, Australia and Barbados. Mike has specialised in the financial sec - tor aspects of VAT since 1988. PwC His experience includes: • Developing and coordinating significant GST recovery proj - PwC Tower 18 York Street ects for a number of populations of claimants in the financial Suite 2600 sector; Toronto, ON M5J 0B2 • Proposing and executing detailed provincial harmonised Canada sales tax impact studies for the Canadian banking, fund man - Tel: +1 416 869 8718 agement, and insurance sectors in 2008, a year before the Email: [email protected] 2009 Ontario harmonisation announcement; Website: www.pwc.com • Coordinating Canadian tax, and UK VAT and data-model - ing expertise to deliver very detailed GST recovery method - ologies for two major Canadian banks; • Acknowledged as a contributor to the 1994 Peterson Committee Report on the GST, Mike is a very frequent speaker and presenter on GST matters. He has presented seven papers at the CICA Symposium and was an invited witness to the House of Commons Finance Committee hearings on the 2010 federal budget, to comment on the clauses imposing several new measures on the financial sector; • In November 2011, Mike presented a paper co-written with professor Ken Mackenzie of the University of Calgary School of Policy Study – “The GST and Financial Service: Pausing for Perspective”; and • Mike is the only multiple winner of the Normand Guerin award from Deloitte, for mak - ing an outstanding contribution to the study of commodity taxes.
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Janice Roper
Janice Roper is the lead Indirect Tax partner for Deloitte Canada’s British Columbia region. With over 22 years of expe - rience in the field of indirect taxes, her practice encompasses Goods and Services Tax (GST), Harmonized Sales Tax (HST), Provincial Sales Tax (PST) and customs duties. Her experience covers a wide range of industries, including financial institu - tions, public sector and government, consumer business, tech - Deloitte Canada nology, and forestry. Janice is the national consumer business Indirect Tax leader. 2800 - 1055 Dunsmuir Street, 4 Bentall Centre Janice has been involved in significant projects across all Vancouver, BC V7X 1P4 industry groups. A few examples of her assignments include Canada assisting British Columbia (BC) companies in transitioning back Tel: +1 604 640 3353 to PST; assisting clients with the implementation of HST; pro - Email: [email protected] viding advice on organization structuring and restructuring to Website: www.deloitte.com minimize the incidence and magnitude of indirect taxes; and performing recovery reviews for indirect taxes, resulting in large refunds. Janice has written and presented at numerous Canadian Institute of Chartered Accountants (CICA) Commodity Tax Symposia and at the BC Tax Conference. She is a member of the GST Leaders Forum and is the co-chair and lecturer at the CICA GST In-Depth Course. Janice is a Chartered Accountant and is affiliated to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of British Columbia.
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David Schlesinger
Dave is the Partner-in-Charge of KPMG in Canada’s National Indirect Tax practice. He has over 36 years of tax and account - ing experience. Dave utilizes his industry, government and pub - lic practice experience to bring the best solutions to KPMG clients. Dave focuses on the most complex areas of the indirect tax practice including financial services, gaming and real estate KPMG in Canada where he advises clients on planning, structuring, recovery and compliance issues. KPMG Global Resource Centre 333 Bay Street Dave is responsible for keeping clients and KPMG indirect Suite 4600 tax professionals up to date on changes to legislation, policies Bay Adelaide Centre and court cases. He has assisted clients in dealing with the many Toronto, ON M5H 2S5 Canada changes to legislature and policy that have occurred over the years. Dave has worked with team members to develop tools to Tel: +1 416 777 3833 Email: [email protected] deal with many of the complex changes in the financial sector. Website: www.kpmg.com He has also worked with the financial sector association to assist them in understanding the many changes in the legislation. Dave has been working with the gaming industry and the Department of Finance is changing the approach to taxation of gaming. Prior to joining KPMG, Dave was a manager within the GST Policy and Legislation Directorate of Revenue Canada where he was responsible for GST policy for financial institutions. He was seconded to the Department of Finance to prepare papers on replacements of the GST. He was manager of Industry Studies Section that dealt with Income Tax Issues for Revenue Canada on Banks, Insurance companies as well as other industries. Dave was Income Tax manager for one of Canada’s largest real estate companies for five years. Dave is a frequent speaker on GST/HST issues at many conferences.
4IN3 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R4S3 Canada Neal H Armstrong Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg ...... Wendy Brousseau McCarthy Tétrault ...... Brian Cacic Baker & McKenzie ...... Jean-Hugues Chabot Ernst & Young ...... Allan J Gelkopf Blakes ...... Greg Kanargelidis Blakes ......
Chile Pablo Grieber Ernst & Young ...... Sergio Illanes Baker & McKenzie Ltda. - Abogados ...... Alberto Maturana Baker & McKenzie Ltda. - Abogados ......
I4N4 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R4S4 China Implementing VAT reform in China
Sarah Chin & Li Qun Gao of Deloitte explore the evolving challenges of a single VAT system
China’s tax landscape in 2012 was dominated by the VAT pilot reform programme. Launched in Shanghai on January 1, the pilot moved certain services (transportation and modern servic - es) out of the scope of the business tax (BT) regime into the scope of the VAT regime. This was the first phase of an overall plan to replace the dual BT/VAT systems with a single system applying to the supply of both goods and services. The pilot was subsequently expanded to another eight cities/provinces. In April 2013, the government announced that the reform will be implemented nationwide as from August 1 2013, and on May 24 2013 the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation issued a circular (Circular 37) that formalises the national implementation of the VAT reform from a legislative perspective and provides detailed – and positive – implementa - tion rules on the national rollout. The pilot reform has given rise to some issues, such as a dis - tortion of competition between businesses within and outside pilot areas. By far the most controversial issue has been the prac - tical implementation of Circulars 110 and 111, which detail the Sarah Chin and Li Qun Gao general guidelines for the VAT reform, including applicable Deloitte rates and scope, provide detailed implementation rules for the Shanghai pilot and lay the foundation for other cities to join the VAT pilot. The implementation rules in Circular 37 do address a num - ber of issues that have arisen during the pilot reform (for exam - ple which treatment applies when both exemption and zero rated treatment apply, and the method to be used when accounting for zero rated services). After 18 months of practical experience with the pilot reform, this article looks at the technical developments and the main challenges for implementation of the reform nationwide.
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We also comment on what we believe will be the approach over the next two years given that the reform will be completed by 2015. One thing is certain: major changes and refinements will continue to be part of the landscape as China learns, through practical implementation, what measures are needed to ensure an efficient and effective system. Transition from pilot to full-fledged reform The issuance of Circular 71 in July 2012, which set the formal timetable for, and scope of, the expansion of the pilot from Shanghai to eight cities/provinces, was the first indication that the pilot was entering a new phase. The transition from a pilot programme to a full- fledged reform became clear with the announcement by the State Council on April 10 2013 (and subsequent issuance of Circular 37) that the focus will move away from a city-by-city implementation to a national initiative. Another change confirmed in Circular 37 is the nationwide implementation of the trans - portation and modern services sectors as from August 1 2013. Bringing the reform to a national level is the correct step given the distortion of competition initially created by the Shanghai pilot. Circular 37 also brings the production, broadcasting and distribution of TV and radio programmes and films into the model services sectors covered by the nationwide VAT reform. Railway transportation, postal and telecommunications services, which were mentioned in the April announcement (but no timeline for their inclusion) are not covered by Circular 37, so it is unclear when these sectors will join the VAT reform. Technical possibility and practical reality The most beneficial aspect of the reform clearly is the fact that no VAT is charged when cov - ered services are supplied overseas; this is achieved either via a zero rating or, in most cases, an exemption. At the time this feature was announced at the end of 2011, it was met with immense excitement, especially as this had been broadly lobbied for in previous years. However, when taxpayers in Shanghai attempted to apply the exemption on January 1 2012, it became apparent that it could not be used because the local tax bureaus themselves were uncertain of the implementation rules. Today, some 18 months after the pilot was launched, Shanghai and Beijing have become slightly more relaxed and allow certain taxpayers to apply for the exemption at their own risk (if any inconsistences are found during an audit, for exam - ple, the taxpayer must repay the VAT). However, some local tax bureaus remain conservative and require VAT to be charged until they receive further clarifications from the central gov - ernment. Companies doing business in China always cite local variations and the VAT reform is no exception. In this case, the good news is that some cities, such as Shenzhen, have issued local guidance on how to apply for a VAT exemption, and we are aware that new guidance is being drafted by local tax authorities and being reviewed by the SAT, so there is reason to believe that some of the practical issues will be resolved soon. VAT or BT: Which is more beneficial? Being subject to VAT generally is beneficial for businesses because they are able to claim an input VAT credit charged on their purchases of goods/services against their own VAT liability. However, the definitions of pilot services in the current rules are broad and, in
I4N6 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R4S6 China many cases, vague. As a result, some taxpayers have found themselves in a difficult situa - tion when assessing whether they should continue to pay BT or start paying VAT after the pilot. While the ambiguity of the scope of the pilot creates some uncertainty, taxpayers also have the opportunity to interpret the scope of included services to their benefit and argue for the desired treatment. For example, although market research services per se are not covered by the reform, it is possible that, where such services can be shown to include an advisory ele - ment because there are comments on how the marketing can be tailored to the Chinese mar - ket, market research services can be classified as a form of consulting, which is included in the reform, thus allowing VAT to be charged. In contrast, some taxpayers may prefer to continue to pay BT because, for example, they have negotiated financial subsidies based on the BT paid. A move to VAT liability would result in a reduction or loss of such subsidies and the creation of a VAT cost. For example, take the case of a Chinese company that is located in a special trade zone, such as an export processing zone, because the company’s main business is the manufacturing of goods for export. The Chinese company must pay a royalty to its overseas related parties for licensed technology used in the manufacturing process. Under the pilot, the company is required to withhold VAT instead of BT from the royalty payment. Unless the financial subsidy is still available and can effectively offset any VAT in excess of the BT, the company will incur a cost because, as a company registered in an export processing zone, it does not suffer VAT and, thus, cannot credit input VAT. Future rollout of industries There is considerable interest in whether the real estate and construction sectors and finan - cial services will transition from BT to VAT rules and, if so, when. The strategic economic importance of these industries in China means that the government will need to consider many issues and competing interests before converting them to VAT to ensure both sectors continue to thrive. The April 2013 announcement was silent on this issue. If real estate services ultimately will be covered under the VAT regime, the question is how they will be subject to VAT, that is under the simplified taxation method where a flat rate applies with no input VAT credit or under the normal input and output mechanism. If the simplified taxation method is chosen, real estate businesses would be taxed in substantially the same way as they are now, the only difference being the name of the tax and possibly the rate. If the normal mechanism is adopted, however, many issues will need to be addressed, including the rate (and any exemptions), eligibility to claim input VAT credits and the admin - istration of VAT invoices. The potential impact on real estate prices in China is an issue of interest to both the government and the public. Construction is closely linked to real estate development as the main service purchased by real estate developers so these two industries are likely to be considered together. Circular 110 stated that, in principle, financial services should be taxed using the simplified taxation method. Financial service institutions would prefer zero-rating or exemption, though signals are that neither is likely to be adopted because the government is not ready to relin - quish the BT revenue from financial services. If neither of these treatments is available, a rate lower than the 5% BT rate may be the best a financial service institution can hope for.
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What to expect over the next two years The Chinese government has confirmed that the reform will be finalised by the end of 2015 – an ambitious deadline. There is still a lot of work to do, such as defining VATable services, rolling out the reform to more industries and balancing the impact on the economy. The gov - ernment has been looking at other VAT systems and has been consulting with foreign tax authorities to formulate an appropriate system for China. The issuance of Circular 37 demon - strates that the government has taken into consideration experience gained from the pilot pro - gramme and introduced some positive changes, which should be welcomed by businesses. However, since there generally is no public consultation when issuing new tax rules in China, the challenge is whether the new rules can be implemented by businesses. For the VAT reform to be a success, the legislators need to understand the real life transactions affect - ed and what changes innovations bring to such transactions. The VAT reform has broad implications for companies doing business in China, and all companies need to monitor developments carefully – despite the demanding deadline of 2015 for full VAT implementa - tion, experience has shown that this deadline will be met.
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Sarah Pui Pui Chin
Sarah Chin is the National Indirect Tax and Customs Leader for Deloitte China and the Tax Managing Partner for Deloitte Hong Kong. She focuses on working with multinational com - panies, assisting them to identify, plan, and implement solutions for their local operations from PRC VAT and customs points of view.
Sarah began her career as an inspector with UK HMRC Deloitte China before moving into VAT consultancy. She spent seven years in the UK primarily advising on governmental issues and interna - 30/F Bund Center 222 Yan An Road East tional VAT before relocating to Zurich where she established an Shanghai 200002 EU VAT Centre of Excellence before building and heading up China a VAT team in Switzerland. Sarah is the global indirect tax Tel: +86 21 6141 1218 leader for several of Deloitte’s strategic accounts. Email: [email protected] Sarah is a frequent speaker and has authored numerous arti - Website: www.deloitte.com cles. Since 2008, Sarah has worked with Chinese governmental bodies on the approach and design of Chinese VAT Reform. She is also an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of England and Wales.
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Liqun Gao
Liqun Gao is an indirect tax partner of the Deloitte China mem - ber firm and is based in Shanghai. She focuses on providing advisory and compliance services to multinational companies in relation to their operations or transactions from PRC VAT, cus - toms, business tax and consumption tax perspectives.
Professional Experience Deloitte China Liqun’s professional experience includes general PRC tax and regulatory advisory, tax aligned supply chain, VAT and customs 30/F Bund Center 222 Yan An Road East issues in processing trade, mitigation of export VAT refund Shanghai 200002 costs, foreign exchange issues, operating in special zones like China free trade zones, export processing zones and bonded logistics Tel: +86 21 6141 1053 parks. She has assisted clients in retail business to review and Email: [email protected] restructure their discount programs to achieve tax efficiency. Website: www.deloitte.com From 2006 to 2007, Liqun took a secondment in the Indirect Tax Group of the London office of Deloitte UK. Liqun provides China tax training at various institutions and is a frequent speaker at seminars and conferences. She also worked as a domestic expert with the National People’s Congress and the Ministry of Finance in the drafting of New VAT Law. Liqun is a key member of Deloitte’s Asia Pacific Indirect Tax Team, a highly specialized, experienced and integrated group bringing global and Asia Pacific expertise to clients. The Deloitte Asia Pacific Indirect Tax Team has a singular focus on dealing with clients’ compli - ance, advisory and consultancy needs regardless of geography, and has built a reputation in the marketplace for its practical, efficient and effective approach.
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Jean Li
Position • Partner, Tax, China
Qualifications • Bachelor degrees in Laws and Business • Master in Commercial Laws
• A member of Certified Practising Accountants of Australia KPMG in China • A member of the Law Society of New South Wales, Australia China Resources Building, 9th Floor Experience Shenzhen, Guangdong • Jean commenced her tax profession in Sydney, Australia 518001 1997. Prior to relocating to China in June 2001, Jean spe - China cialised in indirect taxes in Australia. During the last ten years Tel: +86 75525471198 in China, Jean has acquired rich and solid experience in Email: [email protected] advising multinational clients on taxation and business regu - Website: www.kpmg.com/cn lations in respect of business activities in the PRC and cross- border transactions. She also has extensive experience in M&A projects as well as dealing with tax issues of domestic Chinese companies who are planning to list on the overseas stock exchanges or invest abroad. • Starting from 2006, Jean has taken an active part in organ - izing roundtable meetings with the Chinese government officials and major foreign investors in China to discuss new tax regulations and policies, such as the Petroleum Special Profits Tax and the Resource Tax reform. In last few years, she has been actively advising the Legislative Affairs Department of the National People’s Congress ,the Ministry of Finance and the State Administration of Taxation in respect of the VAT reform in China. She is also now participating in the Environmental Tax legislation. • Recently, Jean has co-authored an article on the China VAT reform as well as the chapter on “ Green from shaping to shade ” for the publications of International Tax Review.
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Lachlan Wolfers
Since July 2011, Lachlan Wolfers has been the leader of KPMG’s Centre of Excellence for Indirect Taxes in China, and prior to that, he was the leader of KPMG’s Indirect Taxes and Tax Controversy practices in Australia. He is currently a mem - ber of KPMG’s global leadership team for indirect taxes and is the leader for KPMG’s Indirect Taxes practice for Asia Pacific.
During his time at KPMG in Australia, Lachlan managed a KPMG China substantial tax litigation practice, including conducting the first substantive GST case in Australia. He is also formerly a Director 8th Floor, Prince’s Building 10 Chater Road of The Tax Institute, which is the most prestigious tax profes - Central, Hong Kong sional association in Australia. In this role, Lachlan was fre - quently invited to consult with the Australian Taxation Office Tel: +85 2 26857791 Email: and Commonwealth Treasury on tax issues. In Australia [email protected] Lachlan also co-authored the leading textbook on capital gains Website: www.kpmg.com.cn tax, as well as authoring chapters for leading texts on income tax and GST. In his current role, Lachlan is advising China’s Ministry of Finance and State Administration of Taxation in relation to sev - eral new developments, including the VAT reforms and the pro - posed introduction of a system of Advance Rulings in China. Lachlan is applying his experiences and insights with the VAT reforms for clients in a wide range of sectors, especially multinational companies in the IT, financial services, insurance, real estate and construction and consulting sectors. Lachlan is a noted speaker and media commentator on tax issues, both in Australia and China. He holds a Masters of Taxation with First Class Honours, together with combined Economics and Law degrees (also with Honours), all from the University of Sydney.
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Zhou Yi
Zhou Yi is an Indirect Tax partner of Deloitte China and leads the Customs practice. He has extensive experience in advising multinational and domestic companies in customs, VAT, busi - ness tax and other indirect tax issues. Zhou is experienced in advising on indirect tax/customs issues, such as customs valuation, classification, export process - ing trade relief, duty and VAT optimization, free trade zones, Deloitte China customs and VAT compliance. He also has experiences in transfer pricing and is an expert in Beijing 100738 China leveraging transfer pricing and indirect tax tools in tax planning. He has advised and assisted many companies to restructure their Tel: +86 20 28311228 import/export operation, business model and supply chain to Email: [email protected] be customs duty/VAT efficient. Zhou has helped many companies to establish or develop internal control and risk management systems to ensure both efficiency and compliance. He has presented and negotiated cases with customs, tax and other government authorities to defend against their challenges and help to manage/mitigate the associated risks for companies. Zhou is both a PRC Certified Public Accountant and a PRC Certified Tax Agent. He is also admitted to the PRC Bar. Prior to joining Deloitte, he worked in a law firm providing legal consultancy services to multinational and domestic companies in respect of internation - al trade and investment issues.
5IN3 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R5S3 China Kenneth Leung Ernst & Young ...... Lili Shi Ernst & Young ...... Robert Smith Ernst & Young ...... Eddie Wang Hendersen Taxand ...... Alan Wu PwC ...... Sarah Chin Deloitte ...... Eddy M Hartman Deloitte ......
Cyprus Neophytos Neophytou Ernst & Young ......
Czech Republic Jan Capek Ernst & Young ...... Eliska Kominkova Baker & McKenzie ......
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Thomas Svane Jensen
Thomas Svane Jensen is a Deloitte Denmark partner. Thomas has more than 16 years of experience working in indirect tax with Deloitte in Copenhagen and Bratislava, the Danish tax authorities, and an independent tax advisory company. He has worked with clients doing business in the financial services, real estate, leisure, private equity, pharmaceuticals, and shipping industries. Deloitte Denmark Thomas is the author of several VAT articles. Weidekampsgade 6; Postboks 1600 København C; Copenhagen 0900 Denmark
Email: [email protected]
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Lars Loftager Jørgensen
Lars Loftager Jørgensen is a Partner in Deloitte Denmark. Lars has been with Deloitte since 1999. He has 30 years of Indirect Tax experience, including comprehensive knowledge of Danish and international VAT law. His experience covers a wide range of industries with a focus on large multinational companies, public limited companies and institutions in recent years. One focus area currently for Lars is large infrastructure projects in Deloitte Denmark Denmark, where he is advising the developers on the major Danish on-going projects. Lars is co-author of the comprehen - Weidekampsgade 6; Postboks 1601 sive commentary on the Danish VAT Act, published by København C; Copenhagen 0901 Thomson Reuters since 1994. From 2008 to 2012, Lars was Denmark country tax leader in Deloitte Denmark. As of January 1 2013, Email: [email protected] Lars stepped down and returned to Indirect Tax, where he is managing several clients and client teams.
I5N6 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R5S6 Denmark
Peter Lunau Larsen
Peter Lunau Larsen is a Partner and Head of markets in Indirect Tax with KPMG in Denmark. Peter has extensive knowledge of VAT, customs and other indirect tax matters, including energy/environmental taxation, and in related legal areas for instance environmental and energy law regulation, which he includes in his tax advice.
Peter has a strong dedication to incorporate other business KPMG in Denmark areas with indirect tax, to improve the value for KPMG clients. Through this work Peter has achieved a broad knowledge of Vaerkmestergade 25 8000 Aarhus C critical focus areas in his sector which enables him to identify DK-Denmark and handle complex issues. Denmark Peter primarily has clients in the industrial and energy sector Tel: +45 7 3234691 and works closely with his clients on a wide range of indirect tax Fax: +45 25 29 46 91 matters such as controversy with the tax authorities and appeals Email: [email protected] to legal advice on advanced indirect tax. Peter is also often Website: www.kpmg.dk involved in strategic advice related to change in existing nation - al legislation and negotiations. Peter has 13 years of experience in indirect tax. Since 2000 where Peter took a Masters degree in law from Aarhus University, Peter started his career working as a tax inspector at the tax authorities. After joining KPMG in 2004 he has been working as an associate professor of Aarhus School of Business for three years.
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Kim Pedersen
Kim Pedersen is a Deloitte Denmark partner and Indirect Tax Leader. Kim has been with Deloitte since 2001 and has 24 years of professional experience, including six years as a commercial banker. His experience primarily covers cross-border structuring of multinational service companies in banking, insurance, IT, telecom, and travel. Kim provides strategic advice aligning busi - ness strategies with indirect tax strategies and general risk man - Deloitte Denmark agement. Kim is a member of the Indirect Tax Executive Board of Deloitte member firms in EMEA, and the VAT working Weidekampsgade 6 2300 Copenhagen S group under the auspices of several industry organizations. Denmark
Tel: +45 36 10 33 57 Fax: +45 36 10 20 40 Email: [email protected] Website: www.deloitte.dk
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Peter K Svendsen
Peter K. Svendsen is a Partner and Head of Indirect Tax at KPMG in Denmark. He joined KPMG in 1997 and works pri - marily with VAT, car registration tax and other indirect taxes. Peter started his career in indirect tax working for the Danish tax and customs authorities for 11 years before joining KPMG. Peter is widely experienced and has an in-depth knowledge of Danish and international VAT, customs and excise duties and KPMG in Denmark assists both national and multinational organisations on com - plex VAT and indirect tax issues. Osvald Helmuths Vej 4 2000 Frederiksberg He has special expertise in the building, construction and Denmark real property industry as well as in the transport industry. Peter regularly teaches in VAT and indirect taxes – both in Tel: +45 7 3233545 Email: [email protected] company-specific seminars and in general seminars. Moreover, Website: www.kpmg.dk he acts as an external examiner at Aarhus University. Peter is also the author of a book on car taxation in Denmark.
5IN9 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R5S9 Denmark Jan Huusmann Christensen PwC ...... Thomas Frøbert Bech-Bruun – Taxand ...... Flemming Lind Johansen Ernst & Young ...... Mette Juul Ernst & Young ...... Tom Kari Kristjansson Plesner ...... Søren Lehmann Nielsen Bruun & Hjejle ...... Carsten Pals Bech-Bruun – Taxand ......
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Harri Huikuri
Harri Huikuri leads the Indirect Tax service line in Deloitte Finland. Harri has previously worked as a tax director in anoth - er audit firm, as a tax professional in a major law firm, and at the Finnish Tax Administration. He has extensive experience in both international and domestic indirect tax issues. Harri has served several international and Finnish companies in their VAT related matters, including infrastructure and real Deloitte Finland estate industries, international trade and project deliveries, busi - ness model reorganizations and transaction advisory, as well as Porkkalankatu 24, PO Box 122 00181 Helsinki VAT exempt businesses. He has acted as an adviser in numerous Finland acquisitions and restructurings for both industrial clients and venture capitalists. Tel: +358 20 755 5545 Email: [email protected] Harri’s expertise is international VAT, M&A and real estate. He has a degree in law (LLM), and is also an experienced lec - turer at tax seminars.
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Juha Sääskilahti
Juha is a Tax Partner based in Helsinki and Head of the Indirect Tax group at KPMG Finland, leading a national team of VAT and Customs professionals. Juha has worked in VAT for 20 years within the advisory environment. Juha leads indirect tax services for a significant group of multinational businesses, Finnish and worldwide, providing guidance from an international and strategic VAT viewpoint. In KPMG in Finland such a role, Juha advises on cross-border arrangements, work - ing with a global team on projects including supply chain man - Mannerheimintie 20 B Helsinki 00100 agement, building new business models as well as indirect tax Finland mapping and policies in an international environment. In addition to this role, Juha advises inbound businesses Tel: +358 207603378 Email: [email protected] coming into Finland, helping them manage Finnish indirect tax Website: www.kpmg.com issues and set up efficient and accurate VAT accounting and reporting procedures. Juha’s indirect tax work focuses on the manufacturing and retail sectors as well as VAT in the audit process and working to identify and manage indirect tax risk and exposures. The KPMG Finland team, under Juha, has developed an experienced team to provide an innovative technology service offering a specialised indirect tax approach to ERP implementation, Shared Service Centre projects, technology-led forensic indirect tax reviews and audits as well as working capital and indirect tax cash flow projects. Juha has also published numerous articles and books on VAT and indirect tax topics and is a regular speaker at tax and finance events in Finland and the Nordic region.
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Petri Salomaa
Petri Salomaa acts as a partner in the Indirect Tax practice of Deloitte Finland. Petri specializes in indirect tax and has extensive experience in Finnish and international VAT matters. Petri joined Deloitte in February 2005. He previously worked as an internal tax adviser at Nokia Group and from 1997 as a tax consultant at other Big Four companies. Deloitte Finland Petri has acted as an adviser in numerous acquisitions and restructurings as well as in outsourcing and cross-border supply Porkkalankatu 24, PO Box 122 00181 Helsinki chain projects. He also specializes in VAT issues relating to the Finland financial sector, real estate and construction industry. Petri has served several EU, U.S. and Asia-based multinationals in their Tel: +358 20 755 5506 Email: [email protected] Finnish indirect tax matters. Global tax planning publications have, for several years, nominated Petri as one of the leading tax advisers in the Finnish market. Petri has published articles in Finnish tax and accounting magazines, co-authored tax planning publications, and lectured in hundreds of tax seminars. Petri has a university degree in both law (LLM, taxation) and economics (accounting).
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Timo Sneck
Timo Sneck joined Deloitte Finland in 2012. He has been advising Finnish and multinational clients on customs and excise duties since 1999. Timo worked at other Big Four companies before joining Deloitte, and prior to that was with the National Board of Customs (1996-1999). Timo specializes in international sourcing and distribution structures, customs duty planning, free trade optimization, cus - Deloitte Finland toms valuation and classification reviews, customs compliance programs and customs litigation. He has assisted many large Porkkalankatu 24, PO Box 122 00181 Helsinki Finnish industrial companies with customs duty compliance, Finland risk management and planning. Timo has extensive experience advising companies operating Tel: +358 20 755 5655 Email: [email protected] in the energy industry with matters related to energy taxation and climate regulation. He is a regular speaker and has facilitated numerous customs and excise trainings for Finnish and multinational clients. He is the author of a textbook on European customs law (WSOY 2002). Timo has a Masters in Law from the University of Turku.
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Aurélia de Viry
Aurélia de Viry is a counsel in the Paris office of Clifford Chance and a member of the firm’s international VAT unit. Over the last 16 years, she has become an expert in all VAT matters, with a particular focus on real estate, banking and financial transactions, as well as acquisition finance and the transport and logistics sector. She also advises on international taxation, and the general tax aspects of real estate investments, Clifford Chance Paris acquisition finance and structured finance (securitisations and derivatives), as well as acquisitions, disposals, restructurings and 9, place Vendôme CS 50018 joint-ventures. 75038 Paris Cedex 01 France
Tel: +33 (0)1 44 05 51 43 Email: aurelia.deviry@ cliffordchance.com Website: www.cliffordchance.com
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Michel Guichard
Background After working for 17 years in the tax legislation department of Ministry of Economy, Finance and Budget in charge of VAT and custom, and international tax treaties, Michel Guichard has focused his professional practice on counsel to French and for - eign firms. He has kept a fruitful contact with the French Tax
Administration (FTA). Deloitte
Professional experience 181 avenue Charles de Gaulle 92524 Neuilly-sur-Seine cedex Michel has nearly 30 years of experience in International and France French VAT law. He was a member of the Tax Legislation Department from 1983 at the French Treasury in VAT Tel: +33 1 55 61 66 72 Email: [email protected] Department and in International Tax Department. He followed Website: www.deloitte.com his career at Andersen in 1999, and joined Deloitte & Touche Paris as a director in 2002 – now renamed TAJ. Michel advises some of the firm’s global strategic clients. He is the Tax Leader of French Indirect Tax and Custom team and of the Tax con - troversy team at TAJ. He is a member of the International Fiscal Association and APTE, a non-profit organization with EU VAT experts. He is also the Lead Tax Partner at Deloitte targeting French multinational companies.
Expertise relevant to the subject: • VAT planning and due diligences, • Business restructurings and VAT refunds, • Cross-border VAT, • IPT, salaries tax including Organic • Counsel on Customs to French and foreign multinational groups • Optimizing the management of flows • VAT and Customs audit and negotiation, • Audit of the French agreed economic operator procedure, • Export control • Assistance to litigation on all tax matters, • Regularization procedure for companies and individuals • Lobbying actions to FTA and EU Commission.
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Jean-Paul Ouaksel
Jean-Paul Ouaksel is a Partner of the law firm and Head of Indirect Tax practice for France in the KPMG network. Jean-Paul has worked in VAT for over 25 years. He started his career working for the French Tax Administration as a tax inspector. He worked then as a Lawyer with big law firms, spe - cializing in VAT and Indirect Taxes. Then he worked for a multinational company as Global Indirect Tax Director. KPMG in France Dealing with indirect tax and VAT issues in these very differ - ent environments has provided Jean-Paul with a complete 171 boulevard Haussmann Paris 75008 understanding of the various challenges facing companies on a France daily basis as well the different options available to resolve these issues. Tel: +33 153 533030 Email: [email protected] On top of his indirect tax expertise, Jean-Paul has developed Website: www.kpmg.com real technical skills concerning VAT in IT systems and tax audits within IT systems. Aside from his practice leadership role, Jean-Paul is the President of the MEDEF VAT commission (union of French companies) with the responsibility of updating French compa - nies on VAT new development, coordinating and negotiation with the French Ministry of Finance including drafting and review of proposed VAT laws and administrative guidelines. Jean-Paul is also a Member of the VAT Expert group of the European Commission.
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Alain Recoules
Alain Recoules is the deputy leader of Taxand’s global indirect tax team. He is based in Taxand France where he is a partner of Arsene Taxand. After obtaining a DESS (postgraduate degree) in company tax management, Alain joined Arthur Andersen International in 1989. He worked for several years in the finan - cial services practice, and in 1998 he became the partner in charge of the VAT/customs practice that he created at Arsene Taxand Andersen Legal. While at Andersen Legal, he also helped build a team that specialised in tax audit of computerised accounting 32, Rue de Monceau 75008 Paris systems. In addition to his proficiency in VAT and internation - France al trade regulations, Alain has acquired particular expertise, in both France and Europe, of the retail and leisure sectors and Tel: +33 170388817 Mobile: +33 626565028 computer services companies, along with solid knowledge of Email: alain.recoules@ the banking and fund management company sectors. In 2002, arsene -taxand.com Website: he applied his knowledge to the Landwell VAT/customs prac - www.arsene -taxand.com tice, of which he was joint head. Alain was actively involved in developing the financial services practice at Landwell as well.
Areas of Expertise • VAT • Indirect Tax • Customs
6IN9 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R6S9 France Jean-Claude Bouchard Deloitte ...... Delphine Bouchet Ernst & Young ...... Frederic Ghidalia Ernst & Young ...... Stéphane Henrion PwC ...... Thierry Vialaneix Baker & McKenzie ......
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Kristina Bexa
Kristina is a counsel in the Düsseldorf office of Clifford Chance. Her work focuses on VAT, customs and tax compliance. She also advises clients in relation to tax (fraud) investigations and tax court proceedings. She has advised companies on cross-border transactions and structures, outsourcing projects (in particular in the financial and insurance sectors), tax fraud investigations, filing protests Clifford Chance Düsseldorf and conducting tax court proceedings. Her work includes securing binding tax rulings, especially in respect of VAT issues. Königsallee 59 40215 Düsseldorf Kristina also advises on customs-related questions, audits and Germany fraud proceedings. Tel: +49 211 4355 5676 Email: kristina.bexa@ cliffordchance.com Website: www.cliffordchance.com
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Dr Michael Bohnhardt
Michael is a counsel in the Frankfurt office of Clifford Chance. He joined the firm in 2005 and is a member of its internation - al VAT unit. He advises institutions such as banks and insurance compa - nies on the VAT aspects of a wide range of transactions – in par - ticular, outsourcing projects, reorganisations of business opera - tions, inward investment and permanent establishment issues. Clifford Chance Frankfurt He has also advised clients on asset and share sales, field audits and acquisitions. Mainzer Landstraße 46 60325 Frankfurt am Main Germany
Tel: +49 69 7199 1623 Email: michael.bohnhardt@ cliffordchance.com Website: www.cliffordchance.com
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Christof Braun
Christof Braun has been an associate in the Frankfurt office of Clifford Chance since 2010. He specialises in VAT, the taxation of investments in German real estate, and tax administrative and fiscal proceedings. Having served from 1999 to 2007 as a tax administrator and a tax field auditor for the State of Hessen in Frankfurt am Main
(retiring with the rank of senior civil servant off duty Clifford Chance Frankfurt (Steueramtmann a.D. )), Christof has more than 16 years of experience working with German and international companies Mainzer Landstraße 46 60325 Frankfurt am Main in various sectors. His clients include companies in the commer - Germany cial, banking and insurance, real estate development and man - agement, telecommunications and postal, travel and leisure, and Tel: +49 69 7199 1668 Email: christof.braun@ automotive and professional sports sectors. cliffordchance.com Website: www.cliffordchance.com
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Johan De Spiegeleer
Johan has more than 20 years of experience in all areas of VAT. He is a Partner with Deloitte Germany in Frankfurt am Main. Having been with Deloitte since 2002, Johan is Deloitte Germany’s Category Leader for Indirect Tax. He leads a group of 70 people located in eight offices across Germany. He is a member of Deloitte’s EMEA and Global Indirect Tax Steering
Committee. In this role Johan is responsible for the co-opera - Deloitte Germany tion of the German indirect tax group with Deloitte’s interna - tional member firm network, serving multinational and global Franklinstraße 50 60486 Frankfurt am Main clients. Germany Before joining Deloitte, Johan worked for Arthur Andersen for seven years in Brussels and Frankfurt. Before that, he served Tel: +49 69 75695 6204 Fax: +49 69 75695 6724 for two and one-half years as a tax inspector at the Belgian VAT Email: [email protected] authority in the Brussels region. Website: www.deloitte.de Johan advises international and global clients in a wide vari - ety of industries. His focus is on the financial services industry, advising multinational investment banks on many occasions. He also advises clients doing business in the manufacturing and consumer business industries. Johan has vast expertise in plan - ning and coordinating large multinational engagements, focus - ing on efficient compliance, VAT-aligned supply chain and identification of VAT opportuni - ties and risks (indirect tax review projects). Johan has also assisted clients in complex tax audits and tax litigation. Johan has a Master’s degree in Administrative Sciences and a Bachelor’s degree in Fiscal Sciences. He is a Belgian Certified Tax Consultant ( Belastingconsulent ). Johan is a frequent speaker at national and international tax seminars. Since 2012, he has lectured at the University of Wuerzburg, teaching VAT for Masters candidates. His mother tongue is Dutch (Flemish) and he is fluent in English, German and French.
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Gregor Dzieyk
Gregor Dzieyk is a tax partner with KPMG in Hamburg, responsible for Indirect Taxes in the Northern region of Germany (Hamburg, Hannover, Bremen) and also serves as the Head of Tax in Hamburg. Gregor has been working in VAT for more than 15 years and over that time has accumulated a great knowledge and practical experience.
The main focus of his work is providing VAT advisory serv - KPMG in Germany ices to international operating corporate groups, medium-sized businesses and service providers. Being a lawyer he is also pre - Ludwig-Erhard-Str. 11-17 Hamburg 20459 ferred contact person for the cut surface between civil and tax Germany law. Gregor has considerable experience of advising clients on the Tel: +49 40 32015-5843 Email: [email protected] effective structuring and management of VAT on a multi- Website: www.kpmg.com national basis and has led many national and international proj - ects, in a range of industry sectors, focussing on risk manage - ment, value creation and ironing out the complexities of man - aging VAT across multiple markets. Gregor is also German head of the international Indirect Tax subgroup for Energy & Natural Resources (ENR). With his experience in the wind energy business Gregor is tax advisor to one of the world’s leading wind mill producers. He has also provided VAT advice to various off-shore wind projects. Last but not least, he is co-author of the publication Handbuch Offshore-Windenergie – Rechtliche, technische und wirtschaftliche Aspekte (Handbook Offshore Windenergy – legal, technical and economical aspects). Gregor has written articles in indirect tax journals and is a frequent speaker at tax confer - ences and seminars. He is also associate lecturer at the University of Hamburg.
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Eduard Forster
Eduard Forster has more than 15 years of experience in domes - tic and international tax covering a wide range of international tax planning issues. He is focused on VAT matters in general and on supply chain management and real estate in particular. Eduard advises medium-sized and small enterprises as well as corporations related to domestic and foreign groups. He has managed various VAT projects (e.g. improving cash position, Deloitte avoiding registrations and increasing the ratio of input VAT deduction). Wirtschaftsprüfungsgesellschaft Rosenheimer Platz 4 Eduard has a Master’s degree in economics and a Doctorate 81669 Munich with a VAT focused thesis (“Public bodies and VAT harmoniza - Germany tion”). He is a certified German Tax Expert and is a regular Tel: +49 (89) 29036 8514 speaker at external tax conferences (e.g. EUROFORUM and Email: [email protected] ManagementCircle) as well as at various Deloitte client seminars (e.g. VAT Package 2010). He is a permanent author with Der Umsatz-Steuer-Berater and has authored articles in various tax journals.
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Claudia Hillek
Claudia Hillek has worked for KPMG as an Indirect Tax Partner out of the Munich, Frankfurt as well as London office since 1991. She is a member of the German Indirect Tax Service Line leadership team as well as German representative of the Global Indirect Tax Group of KPMG. Claudia is advising multinational corporations in tax matters such as tax planning and cash-flow optimization, supply chain KPMG in Germany optimization (TESCM) and compliance services. Claudia led an enterprise-wide Global Customs & Ganghoferstraße 29 München 80339 Compliance Project in the Automotive sector. Additionally she Germany advised a lot of international world-class companies in complex indirect tax issues. Furthermore she is very experienced in tax- Tel: +49 89 9282-1528 Email: [email protected] fraud cases and works very closely with KPMG Legal. Together Website: www.kpmg.com with KPMG Advisory she is assisting multinational clients in set - ting up central procurement entities by structuring and opti - mizing their supply chains from an indirect tax perspective. For national and international clients she delivers VAT maturity assessments and supports the implementation of defined improvement measures such as internal control systems and VAT outsourcing initiatives. Claudia is in demand as a speaker for various external and internal conferences as well as tailored client workshops. Furthermore she is author of several publications. Claudia anno - tates the renowned German VAT Law commentary “Rau/Dürrwächter”.
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Eva Rehberg
Eva Rehberg is a Deloitte Germany Indirect Tax partner special - izing in customs and global trade. Eva started her career with the German customs authorities as a customs officer, later working as a Director of Export and Import at several customs offices. Eva has over 20 years’ experience of cross-border customs transactions, during which she has gained deep knowledge of Deloitte Germany European and German customs legislation including Customs Valuation, Origin, Preferential Agreements, Classification and Dammtorstrasse 12 Hamburg D 20354 Foreign Trade Law. Eva advises clients in all areas of customs Germany and global trade, including process management and supply chain design/business model optimization and strategic plan - Tel: +49 40320804951 Email: [email protected] ning of cross-border transactions. Eva has been recognized by International Tax Review as one of Germany’s leading indirect tax advisors. She is a regular speaker at seminars and workshops and is actively involved with various training and knowledge management initiatives. Eva is a member of the European Forum for Foreign Trade, Customs and Excise e.v.
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Karsten Schuck
Karsten Schuck is a tax partner in KPMG’s Frankfurt office where he also serves as the head of KPMG in Germany’s indi - rect tax practice. Having over 20 years of experience working in and for the financial services industry, Karsten’s operational focus is on tax advice for banks and financial sector clients (in particular asset finance companies) in connection with national and internation - KPMG in Germany al corporate tax and indirect tax (VAT) issues. His service expe - rience includes the establishment, acquisition and restructuring The Squaire Am Flughafen of banks, planning and consultancy related to ongoing business 60549 Frankfurt am Main activities as well as tax compliance services. Being in charge of Germany providing tax advice to a number of globally operating clients, Tel: +49 69 9587 2819 Karsten has a detailed knowledge of specific tax issues in the Email: [email protected] financial services sector. Website: www.kpmg.com As an indirect tax practitioner working closely with clients’ in-house advisors and other professionals, much of Karsten’s work on VAT surrounds local and international VAT projects in the financial services sector such as, but not limited to, VAT compliance and savings reviews, tax due diligences, restructur - ing projects, also with cross-border implications, advisory serv - ices on funds management and on portfolio transactions. Karsten has written numerous articles in corporate tax and VAT specialized journals and is a frequent speaker in tax conferences and seminars.
7IN9 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R7S9 Germany Mónica Azcárate PwC ...... Daniel Keller PwC ...... Thomas Küffner Küffner Maunz Langer Zugmaier ...... Ronny Langer Küffner Maunz Langer Zugmaier ...... Nicole Looks Baker & McKenzie ...... Stefan Maunz Küffner Maunz Langer Zugmaier ...... Bettina Mertgen Baker & McKenzie ...... Jochen Meyer-Burow Baker & McKenzie ...... Gotz Neuhahn PwC ...... Jens Roehrbein Luther Taxand ...... Guido Schaefer PwC ...... Peter Schilling Ernst & Young ...... Eberhard Kalbfleisch Luther Taxand ...... Burkhard von Loeffelholz Baker & McKenzie ...... Oliver Zugmaier Küffner Maunz Langer Zugmaier ......
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Kyriaki Dafni
Kyriaki Dafni is a Deloitte Greece Senior Manager based in Athens. She joined Deloitte in 2000 having previously worked for a private legal practice and in the legal department of BP Hellas SA during her attorney-at-law training period. Kyriaki has significant experience advising domestic and international clients with respect to indirect (VAT) and international taxation issues (e.g. cross-border taxation and double tax treaties). She Deloitte Greece has also been successfully involved with performing tax due dili - gence reviews for several multinational and domestic compa - 3a Fragkoklissias & Granikou str GR – 151 25 Maroussi nies, especially dealing with the area of indirect taxation, and has Athens provided corporate and VAT tax planning services involving tax Greece efficient structuring to several clients. Furthermore, Kyriaki has Direct: +30 210 6781293 experience in personal taxation and has provided Global Main: +30 210 6781 100 Employer Services for select clients. Email: [email protected] Kyriaki is actively engaged in projects regarding the supply of Website: www.deloitte.com VAT planning and consulting services to a large selection of clients based either in Greece or abroad. During the last seven years, she has focused on issues of indirect taxation and she is the VAT Leader for Greece dealing with all cases referred to the Greek practice in this area. Kyriaki graduated from the National Athens University where she obtained an LLB from the Athens Law School. She also has a diploma in tax from the Athens Economic University and is a qualified attorney-at-law and full-fledged member of the Athens Bar Association. Deloitte has offered her opportunities to take part in various seminars in Greece and abroad both in the field of direct and indirect taxation.
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Hong Kong Eugene Lim Baker & McKenzie ......
I8N2 D|I RwEwCwT. iTnAtXerLnEatAioDnEaRlStaxreview.com www.internatIioNnDaIlRtaExCreTv TiAewX. cLoEmAD |E R8S2 India No tax on export of services: Boon or bane?
Prashant Deshpande and Saloni Roy, of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, look at the convoluted history of India’s legislation governing the tax treatment of the export of services.
The service industry forms the backbone of India’s socio-eco - nomic development, accounting for 56% of India’s gross domestic product in 2011-12. The rapid developments in infor - mation technology and communications have helped make India a hub for the provision of services throughout the world. To maintain this position, India needs to ensure that services are carried out in a competitive manner and that the cost of provid - ing services is not burdened by the imposition of domestic taxes. It is in this context that the rules on the export of servic - es in the service tax law assume critical importance. Prashant Deshpande Service tax is a tax imposed on services provided in India at (above) and Saloni Roy Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu a rate of 12.36% on the gross value of the services; the tax is col - lected by the service provider and paid over to the government. The rules relating to the tax treatment of the export of services have been subject to constant change. In addition to legislative changes, the authorities have released guidance in the form of circulars to ensure a common interpretation and implementa - tion, and the courts have handed down various decisions, in particular, on the issue of when a service qualifies as an export. Service tax was exempt on services for which consideration was received in foreign currency until February 2003. This exemption was revoked in March 2003, and was followed by a circular issued on April 25 by the Central Board of Excise and Customs, which clarified that service tax is a “destination- based” tax and the export of services would continue to be tax- free even after the revocation of the service tax exemption for payments received in foreign exchange. Because of the lack of clarity as to when a service qualified as an export (the concept was not defined in the service tax law), the tax authorities reintroduced the foreign exchange exemp - tion as an interim measure on November 19 2003.
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The export of services rules introduced in 2005 provided that no tax was due on the export of services, thus making the determination of when a service qualified as an export critical. Shortly afterwards, the government announced rebate and refund benefits to service exporters with respect to certain taxes on inputs and input services. The export of services rules divide taxable services into three categories, with prescribed criteria for each category and some common conditions that must be satisfied to qualify as an export of services. The three categories and the prescribed conditions are as follows: • Services relating to immovable property: The services must relate to immovable property situated outside India; • Place of performance of services: The services must be carried out in whole or in part out - side India. If the services relate to the supply of tangible goods for use, or are maintenance or repair services provided through the internet or an electronic network, the goods must be located outside India; and • Location of the service recipient: When services are provided in relation to business or com - merce, the services must be provided to a recipient located outside India and the request for the services must come from a commercial establishment or office outside India. Despite the government’s efforts to clarify the rules, the problems faced by service exporters continued to grow, as is evident from the numerous amendments made to the rules, which are highlighted below. The common conditions for all three categories of export services were prescribed as:
For the period March 15 2005 to April 18 2006 • Payment for export services provided outside India had to be received in convertible for - eign exchange.
For the period April 19 2006 to February 28 2007 • Services had to be delivered outside India and used outside India; and • Payment for services provided outside India had to be received in convertible foreign exchange.
For the period March 1 2007 to May 31 2007 • Services had to be provided from India and used outside India; and • Payment for services provided outside India had to be received in convertible foreign exchange.
For the period June 1 2007 to February 26 2010 • Services had to be provided from India and used outside India; and • Payment for services had to be received in convertible foreign exchange.
For the period February 27 2010 to June 30 2012 • Payment for services had to be received in convertible foreign exchange.
From July 1 2012, the export of service rules were replaced by the place of provision of serv - ices rules. The place of provision of services rules, read in conjunction with Rule 6A of the service tax rules, now govern the export of services.
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Diverging interpretations by the trade and tax officials on when a service qualifies as an export have led to many disputes before various judicial forums throughout India. Category 3 services (that is location of the service recipient) seem to have given rise to the majority of these disputes. A circular issued by the Central Board of Excise and Customs on February 24 2009 clarified that the words “used outside India” in the export of services rules should be interpreted to mean that the benefit in respect of the service should be accrued outside India. The relevant factor is the location of the service recipient, not the place where the services were performed. Therefore, it was possible that an export of services could arise even when all of the relevant activities took place in India provided the benefits of the services accrued outside India. Despite this guidance, tax officers have often disregarded it. Given the many conflicts, Indian courts and tribunals have issued numerous landmark deci - sions on when services can be said to be exported. For example, the Delhi Tribunal held in Paul Merchants Limited vs. Commissioner of Central Excise that the destination of services must be decided based on the place of consumption, not the place of performance. In this case, services were provided by an agent of a foreign entity on behalf of the entity and since the person who gave the instructions for the services and from whom the consideration was paid was located out - side India, the services were deemed to constitute an export of services under the export rules. Similarly, in the case of Vodafone Essar Cellular Limited vs. Commissioner of Central Excise , the Delhi Tribunal held that when a service is provided to a third party at the request of a service provider’s customer, the service recipient is the customer and not the third party. Hence, in the case concerned, the telecom services provided by Vodafone to foreign travellers in India on behalf of foreign telecom operators were held to qualify as the export of services, since the recipient of the services was the foreign telecom operator. The Delhi Tribunal’s upcoming decision in the case of Microsoft India on whether marketing support activities qualify as the export of services is keenly awaited. Under the 2012 place of provision of services rules, the default principle is that services are provided in the place where the service recipient (the service consumer) is located. A service is now considered an export of services (provided the conditions under the service tax rules are sat - isfied) when the services are provided to a recipient located outside India. A matter related to the export of services is the refund relief granted in respect of specified taxes to an exporter of services. In addition to challenges as to whether services qualify as an export of services for purposes of a refund, the authorities often question whether services received by an exporter fall within the scope of the definition of input services (services that go into the provision of output services on which tax is paid). Such challenges, combined with the practical difficulties in obtaining a refund and the fact that the queries also have given rise to transfer pricing issues have often led exporters to question the wisdom of their decisions to set up service centres in India. It has been nearly a decade since the export of services rules were introduced. Industry con - fidence would surely receive a boost if the revenue authorities were to change their approach and abandon their practice of delaying and denying refund relief to service exporters. Clearly, what is called for is a speedy and efficient procedure for dealing with the claims of the many service exporters that are engaged in litigation that they genuinely believe is unwarranted and not in the spirit of governance. Given the volume of this litigation, it is unclear whether provisions govern - ing the export of services and refunds are a boon or have become a bane.
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Santosh Dalvi
Santosh Dalvi is a renowned indirect tax expert with more than 27 years of hands on experience in the areas of indirect taxes, finance and commercial functions that includes 14 years with various multinationals / local corporations in management roles and 13 years with global consulting companies. Santosh is Partner in the ‘Indirect Tax Services Practice’ of
KPMG, Mumbai and heads the Indirect Tax Outsourcing KPMG in India Practice for KPMG. He is a Commerce and Law Graduate from Mumbai University and an Associate Member of The Institute Lodha Excelus, 5th Floor Apollo Mills Compound of Cost & Works Accountants of India. Before Joining KPMG N M Joshi Marg, Mahalaxmi he was Partner in the Indirect Tax Service Practice of PwC for Mumbai – 400 011 three years and prior to PwC as a senior manager in the Indirect India Tax Practice of Ernst & Young for over six years. Tel: +91 2 230902685 Before joining consulting, Santosh was managing the com - Email: [email protected] mercial functions in the industry, including tax planning, legal Website: www.kpmg.com aspects and compliance issues apropos indirect taxes. He has handled complex issues ranging from material procurement to launching of finished products including commercial, logistics, costing and pricing aspects. Santosh played a key role in stream - lining and development of internal control systems and MIS to ensure effective compliance and management of tax issues. Santosh specializes in customs, central excise, service tax, VAT / sales tax, and stamp duty within the FMCG, pharmaceutical, retail, media and indus - trial markets industries. Santosh advises various multinational clients on indirect tax implica - tions, tax planning and compliance aspects concerning the setting up of business operations in India, business restructuring, merger and acquisition transactions and indirect tax manage - ment. He has assisted various corporates in smooth transitioning from erstwhile sales tax regime to VAT regime including impact analysis and implementation assistance. Santosh has been involved in the VAT and GST initiative in India. He has been involved in close interaction with various state governments and industry for GST implementation, strategies and methodologies. He is a frequent speaker in various seminars and has also authored various thought leadership articles in various publications. Santosh has been voted as one of the ten most admired indirect tax advisers in India in the survey conducted by International Tax Review publication, UK in early 2011.
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Prashant Deshpande
Prashant Deshpande heads the Indirect Tax Practice of Deloitte India. He has 31 years of post-qualification experience. Prashant has served a wide spectrum of clients for structur - ing of transactions, supply chains and business processes to opti - mize indirect tax incidence. He has also assisted them with com - pliance with tax laws and has provided litigation support.
Prashant helps clients deal with complex indirect tax laws and Deloitte India has a deep level of local expertise aligned to business perspec - tives and commercial needs. Prashant’s emphasis is on under - India Bulls Finance Centre Tower 3, 27th – 32nd Floor standing business transactions and flows in order to cater to the Senapati Bapat Marg unique indirect tax issues faced in different industries. Elphinstone Road (West) Prashant is at the forefront of tax reforms including the pro - Mumbai 400 013 Maharashtra India posed goods and services tax and has not only helped clients plan their business strategy but also has participated in several Tel: +91 (22) 6185 4220 Mobile: +91 98670 33840 debates over the manner of introduction of reforms. Email: Under Prashant’s leadership, the Indirect Tax Practice of [email protected] Deloitte India has grown and now comprises a large number of Website: www.deloitte.com experienced professionals spread across nine locations. The key strength of the practice is the professional knowledge and expe - rience of its people and the processes being put in place for achieving efficiency in service delivery. Internal tools, processes and training curriculum help them to efficiently provide servic - es. The practice prides itself on deep client relationships devel - oped through a proactive approach of alerting them to changes, and analyzing their implica - tions. Prashant believes the key differentiator for the practice is the zeal to provide meaningful solutions that are practical to implement in areas relating to supply chain tax optimization, tax controversy management and transaction structuring through established and risk miti - gated process. Prashant has been named a leading tax adviser by International Tax Review ’s (ITR) World Tax 2012. Prashant is a Chartered Accountant and Company Secreatry. He earned a Bachelor’s degree and degree in law from the University of Mumbai.
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Rajeev Dimri
Rajeev is a Partner with BMR, leading the indirect tax practice and based in Gurgaon. He has over 25 years’ experience in tax matters and specialises in structuring cross-border transactions for goods and services covering a range of indirect tax issues. Rajeev has extensive experience in advising multinational and domestic companies across a range of industries in the area of customs and other in-country indirect taxes. He has worked BMR Advisors – Taxand closely with the central government and various state govern - ments of India, leading multi-disciplinary teams on projects to 22nd Floor Building No 5 define and implement new legislation covering all manner of Tower A indirect taxes. He is a member of the Advisory Group on DLF Cyber City Indirect Taxes constituted by the Indian Ministry of Finance. DLF Phase III Gurgaon 122 002 Rajeev has worked extensively with several multinational cor - India porations in setting up green field projects in India and to struc - Tel: +91 124 339 5050 ture national and international procurement and distribution Email: models. [email protected] He is a regular speaker at various national and international Website: www.bmradvisors.com forums and has been recognized as a leading indirect tax practi - tioner in India in several independent surveys. Rajeev is a graduate in Commerce from the University of Delhi and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1988.
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Pratik Jain
Background Pratik, a recognized indirect tax specialist, is a partner with KPMG in India and leads the firm’s indirect tax practice in the northern and eastern part of the country. He has over 14 years of experience in advising clients on indirect taxes specifically, on service tax, VAT and GST. Prior to joining KPMG in 2006, Pratik has worked with Arthur Andersen / Ernst and Young in India. KPMG in India
Professional and industry experience DLF Building No 10 8th Floor, Tower B • He has been involved with several Indian and multinational DLF Cyber City, Phase2 corporations and advises them on indirect tax planning, Gurgaon 122 002 management, dispute resolution and policy related issues India • Has been involved in several greenfield projects in identifica - Direct: +91 124 334 5002 tion of planning opportunities including possible strategies Cell: +91 98111 41868 Fax: +91 124 254 9101 for building up an effective supply chain model from an indi - Email: [email protected] rect tax perspective. He has advised large manufacturing Website: www.kpmg.com companies in areas relating to project specific tax incentives sought from central / state governments. • Pratik was involved in VAT implementation of two Indian states, which included drafting the legislation, conceptualiz - ing the overall administrative framework and post implemen - tation training to the VAT officials • Pratik is actively engaged in tax advocacy and frequently interacts with Indian tax regulators. He also plays an active role in formulation of the GST policy and is actively involved / consulted by industry and industry associations. • He leads the GST initiatives of KPMG in India and is helping several large companies in assessing the impact of the proposed GST reform on their business and transitioning into the new regime • Pratik is one of KPMG India’s spokespeople and frequently interacts with media (print as well as electronic) . He regularly contributes in public debates / discussions on indirect tax issues and is member of tax committees of leading trade bodies
Description of client industries • Pratik works with clients across sectors and has significant experience in infrastructure, retail and consumer market segments
Education, licenses and certifications Chartered Accountant (year of passing- 1998); Bachelor of Commerce
Languages English, Hindi
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MS Mani
M.S. Mani has over 24 years of post-qualification experience, of which 14 years were in industry and 10 years have been in indi - rect tax consulting. He deals with indirect tax issues across a variety of sectors such as financial services, infrastructure, tech - nology, manufacturing and consumer business. He has experi - ence in handling both VAT/GST and customs/global trade matters. Deloitte India He is based out of Mumbai and is a key member of Deloitte’s Asia Pacific Indirect Tax team, a group comprised of India Bulls Finance Centre Tower 3, 27th – 32nd Floor the indirect tax teams of Deloitte member firms in Asia-Pacific Senapati Bapat Marg and a highly specialized, experienced, and integrated group Elphinstone Road (West) bringing global and Asia Pacific expertise to clients. Mumbai 400 013 Maharashtra India He has assisted several multinational entities in their indirect tax planning and structuring in India from the inception stage. Tel: +91 22 61854210 Mobile: +91 9820101974 He handles compliance, advisory and litigation matters on an Email: [email protected] ongoing basis and interacts with tax authorities on a regular Website: www.deloitte.com basis. He has also worked on various tax technology projects including ERP implementation projects and Sabrix/Vertex tools. Mani has been recognized by International Tax Review as one of India’s leading indirect tax advisers. He is a regular speaker at seminars and workshops and is actively involved with various training and knowledge management initiatives. In addition, Mani has contributed to several publications on indirect tax matters. Mani has a Master’s degree in Commerce and is a Company Secretary(CS) and Cost and Management Accountant(CMA).
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Sachin Menon
Sachin Menon is a highly acknowledged indirect tax expert with over 31 years of experience in areas of Indian Corporate Indirect Tax Law which include 16 years with various MNCs / local corporate in management roles and 15 years with global consulting majors. Sachin is the Partner and National Head – Indirect Tax prac - tice of KPMG, and is based in Mumbai. He is a law graduate KPMG in India from the University of Mumbai. He is also a postgraduate in Business Management. In the past, he was the head of the Lodha Excelus, 5th floor Apollo Mills Compound Indirect Tax Practice of E&Y and PwC, Western Region. N M Joshi Marg, Mahalaxmi Mumbai – 400 011 Specialization: India Sachin advises various MNC clients on tax planning, tax effi - Tel: +91 22 3090 2682 cient entry strategy, incentives for new investments, handling Cell: +91 98 202 89197 Email: [email protected] legal matters, EPC contract restructuring, formulation of cor - Website: www.kpmg.com porate tax policies, designing indirect tax system and processes and handling of indirect tax litigation. He has led various suc - cessful representations before the Ministry of Finance on behalf of the industry/clients. Sachin’s areas of expertise include VAT, customs, service tax, excise and foreign trade policies. He is spe - cialised in oil & gas, EPC, automobile, FMCG, telecom, and infrastructure industries. Sachin was leading VAT thought leadership initiatives during the introduction of VAT in India. He plays an active role in formulation of the Indian GST policy and co-chairs the “GST Task Force” of “Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry” Sachin was ex-co-chair of Indirect Tax Committee of Bombay Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Ex-Member of Central Tax Committee and National Economic Affairs Committee of “Confederation of Indian Industry”. Sachin is regularly writing in leading financial dailies such as the Economic Times , Financial Express , DNA Money and Business Standard on various indirect issues and also a panelist in various panel discussions in BBC, CNBC and UTV Bloomberg. He has also addressed numerous national and international tax seminars.
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Harsh Shah
Harsh Shah is a Senior Manager with Deloitte’s Indirect Tax practice in Mumbai. Harsh has over ten years of work experience in indirect tax and handles all Indian indirect taxes such as service tax, value added tax, customs and excise. Harsh is a key member of Deloitte’s Indirect Tax team, a highly specialized, experienced and integrated group bringing Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu global, regional and local expertise to clients. The Deloitte India Private Limited Indirect Tax team has a singular focus on dealing with clients’ India Bulls Finance Centre compliance, advisory and consultancy needs regardless of geog - Tower 3, 27th – 32nd Floor raphy, and has built a reputation in the marketplace for its prac - Senapati Bapat Marg tical, efficient and effective approach. Elphinstone Road (West) Mumbai 400 013 Maharashtra He specializes in providing services to clients in the financial India services and logistics sector and advices these clients on their Tel: +91 (0)22 6185 4142 indirect taxes on a regular basis. Mobile: +91 9820462123 Harsh was nominated by International Tax Review as one of Email: [email protected] the leading indirect tax advisers in the country. He has keen Website: www.deloitte.com interest in and regularly writes articles which are published in leading tax websites and newspapers.
Professional Qualifications and Affiliations • Chartered Accountant • Law Graduate • Masters in Commerce (University of Mumbai)
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Krupa Venkatesh
Krupa Venkatesh is a Deloitte India Senior Director, Indirect Tax. She is based in Bangalore and is responsible for both the Bangalore and Chennai Indirect Tax practices of Deloitte. Krupa was one of the first professionals to join the Indirect Tax team, joining in 2001. Krupa was employed by the Government of India in the Customs and Central Excise Department for 10 years before joining Deloitte. Deloitte India Krupa serves Indian and multinational clients. She has assist - ed with contract and transaction structuring, planning reviews Deloitte Center, Anchorage II, #100/2 and compliance reviews. Bangalore; Karnataka 560025 Krupa has presented at several seminars organized by various India trade bodies. She is a guest faculty member at the Indian Tel: +91 80 6627 6124 Institute of Management, Bangalore, and the Administrative Email: [email protected] College of India, Hyderabad. She is a member of the Indirect Taxes Committee and the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce. Krupa received her bachelor’s degree in commerce from Bangalore University. She is an associate member of the Institute of Cost and Management Accountants of India and a graduate of the Institute of Company Secretaries of India. She is a member of the Indirect Taxes Committee of the Bangalore Chamber of Industry and Commerce and ASSOCHAM, Southern Chapter.
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Pascal Brennan
Pascal Brennan is a Deloitte Ireland Partner and National Indirect Tax Leader. He has over thirty years’ experience, and having worked both with the Revenue Commissioners and in private practice, is uniquely placed to bring insight from both sides to any dispute. This knowledge can help to facilitate set - tlement of complex tax disputes without litigation.
Pascal also has market leading experience in tax litigation and Deloitte Ireland has brought tax disputes for clients to all levels of the Irish tax appeals system. This experience can aid in negotiations with reg - Earlsfort Terrace Dublin 2 ulators which may result in favourable out of court settlements Ireland in otherwise intractable situations at stages of the tax appeals process. Tel: +353 14172443 Email: [email protected] Pascal advises organisations doing business in all industries in Ireland including many of the world’s leading brand names.
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Niall Campbell
Background Niall has specialised in VAT for 19 years and has advised domes - tic and multinational clients in a wide range of industries includ - ing clients in aviation, distribution, financial services, healthcare, hi-tech, property, software and state sectors.
Professional and industry experience KPMG in Ireland Niall is an Indirect Tax Partner with KPMG in Ireland and Head of Innovation. Niall is also former Head of KPMG’s 1 Stokes Place St. Stephens Green Global Indirect Tax Services practice. Dublin 2 KPMG’s Global Indirect Tax practice consists of over 1,500 Ireland professionals working in VAT, GST, Trade & Customs and Tel: +353 1 410 1174 other indirect taxes, across more than 70 countries. As head of Fax: +353 1 412 1174 the Global Indirect Tax Network for five years, Niall was Email: [email protected] involved in a range of global indirect tax developments and has Website: www.kpmg.ie immediate access to our international indirect tax colleagues to deliver multi-jurisdictional assignments. Niall has extensive experience devising and negotiating VAT positions in property and infrastructure projects with revenue authorities, finance ministries, financial institutions and develop - ers, and in the implementation of cross-border VAT solutions. Niall has served on the Chartered Accountant’s Ireland Taxation Committee, the VAT practitioners / Irish Revenue Commissioners liaison committee and the Indirect Tax Committee of FEE, the pan-European accounting body. Niall is widely published in industry journals and the press on Irish and global VAT matters.
Function and specialization Niall is currently an Indirect Tax Partner with KPMG in Ireland, specialising in financial serv - ices, property, healthcare and State sectors. Niall is a member of the European Commission VAT Expert Group, which is a group that has been set up to advise the European Commission on the preparation of legislative acts and to provide insight concerning the practical implementation of legislative acts and other EU policy initiatives in the field of VAT.
Education, licenses and certifications • BA Accounting and Finance, Dublin City University • MBS Accounting, Dublin City University • FCA (Fellow Chartered Accountant, Chartered Accountants Ireland)
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Israel Avi Bibi Ernst & Young ......
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