Today’s global economy requires business travelers, international assignments and remote workers to navigate complex tax filings, withholding obligations and audit risks for both themselves and their employers. New reporting requirements such as the OECD Country-by-Country Reporting Standards or Mandatory Disclosure Regimes ensure it is imperative that business leaders comprehend how their decisions may have an effect on their global tax footprint.
Multinational Corporations
Global enterprises must comply with international tax laws and regulations, which can vary depending on which country you operate in and can change quickly, necessitating companies to constantly reevaluate their repatriation strategies to account for evolving tax codes.
Many tax avoidance schemes use transfer pricing to move income between higher- and lower-tax jurisdictions, via transfer pricing schemes. The OECD and G20 are working together to address this issue through greater transparency, information sharing, and initiatives like country-by-country reporting.
Multinational companies must also abide by residency rules that determine their taxation status across multiple jurisdictions, transfer pricing rules that prevent profit shifting and CFC regulations that prohibit profit shifting. As companies expand internationally, it is critical for them to understand how taxes will be impacted in each country where they operate as they develop an efficient global tax strategy that can capture opportunities while mitigating risks while remaining compliant with relevant laws.
Tax Treaties
As companies expand into new markets, they must consider their tax obligations in every country where they operate. Although global tax rules can be complex, businesses can benefit from taking steps that mitigate compliance risk while furthering their growth objectives.
Tax treaties are bilateral or multilateral agreements that aim to eliminate double taxation, provide assurance and stability to taxpayers, facilitate cross-border investment and trade activity, prevent tax evasion/avoidance practices and encourage cross-border trade/investment opportunities. Many governments use the OECD model treaty as a basis for creating their own treaties.
Tax planning strategies that employ aggressive tax planning strategies have brought international tax reform into focus, with governments responding with new measures like country-by-country reporting requirements and transfer pricing regulations to limit profit shifting to low tax jurisdictions. Unfortunately, changes may increase compliance costs and add complexity to business operations – so keeping abreast of developments in this area is vitally important for success.
Transfer Pricing
Multinational companies face various tax regulations that can significantly impact their bottom lines, one being transfer pricing. Transfer pricing involves the establishment of fair and equitable values for transactions between entities affiliated with one multinational enterprise in terms of goods, services and intellectual property transactions between entities belonging to this multi-national. This method ensures each jurisdiction receives their fair share of profits tax-wise.
Companies need to comply with transfer pricing guidelines in order to reduce the risks of lengthy audits, adjustment to taxable income, double taxation and penalties. That means selecting appropriate valuation methods such as comparable uncontrolled price, resale price or cost-plus and documenting decisions made accordingly.
Many countries require companies to file comprehensive transfer pricing documentation with tax authorities, and by employing best practices in this complex field CPAs can help their clients to avoid compliance risks while improving tax efficiency.
Residency Rules
Global businesses must comply with numerous tax regulations, and many companies struggle with adhering to them. Gaining a better understanding of these rules can help your business avoid making costly errors that negatively affect its bottom line.
Understanding residency rules can be confusing when sending employees overseas for work. For instance, US residency rules stipulate that an individual must spend substantially all of a calendar year present in another country in order to qualify as a resident – but what exactly is “substantially all?” and can auditors ask you about weekends and holidays when making this determination? Auditors will likely ask questions regarding your activities that make this complicated matter all the more perplexing.
Mobility Tax Specialists can assist your company in devising a plan designed to mitigate tax risks associated with sending employees abroad. Such plans should include policies and processes tailored specifically for meeting local statutory and regulatory requirements for both your employees’ Home countries as well as Host countries.