We had a busy start to 2020 in the area of UK tax policy, including important and positive developments for the UK double taxation treaty network. The year 2019 ended with the conclusion by the United Kingdom of a double taxation agreement with Colombia, the entry into force of the Israeli agreement and the publication of the summary texts of the multilateral agreement on the implementation of measures related to tax agreements to prevent profit reduction and profit shifting – the Multilateral Instrument (ILI) – with leading lawyers, including Canada, India and Luxembourg. In 2020, we have developments with Belgium, the Netherlands and Ukraine. On 17 January 2020, HMRC announced that the Protocol annexed to the contract between the United Kingdom and Ukraine, signed on 9 October 2017, had entered into force on 5 December 2019. The protocol introduces several changes, including a withholding tax rate of 5 per cent on interest instead of the current rate of 10 per cent, a TPP, and the settlement procedure to settle contractual disputes through arbitration. The provisions of the Protocol will enter into force on 1 January 2020 for withholding taxes, on 6 April 2020 for income tax and capital gains tax in the United Kingdom and on 1 April 2020 for corporation tax in the United Kingdom. The new DTT contains specific provisions that generally aim to avoid both double taxation and non-taxation of so-called “transparent” companies. It contains stricter provisions for the settlement of mutual agreement procedures in the event of double taxation and new provisions on appropriate adaptations to combat the misuse of transfer pricing, in order to allow tax authorities to adjust transfer pricing in order to achieve subcontracting results. On 26 September 2008, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom signed a new double taxation convention (`DTT`) and a new protocol to replace the current DTT. The new DTT will come into force if it has successfully followed the parliamentary authorization procedures in both countries. Once ratified, the DBA applies: the updated agreement between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom contains a new preamble according to which the DBA is not intended to create opportunities for non-taxation or reduction of taxation through evasion, avoidance or purchase of contracts, and attempts at abuse are thwarted by the provisions of the Treaty. The Double Taxation Convention and Protocol entered into force on 22 December 2016 and will enter into force in the Netherlands on 1 January 2011. Our specialized tax databases allow us to provide current and historical tax rates, comparative tables and country surveys.
We have recent summaries of the most important facts, as well as detailed analyses of the tax system in countries around the world that cover corporate taxation, individual taxation, companies and investments. On 6 January 2020, the Government of the United Kingdom published the consolidated text of the 2008 Double Taxation Convention between the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, as amended by the BEPS Multilateral Instrument. In cases where the same income, profits or profits are presumed to be realized by a person in both States, the Agreement does not preclude taxation in both States. This could apply to entities considered opaque in one Member State and transparent in the other. In addition, the new TNT also introduces new measures, in particular for Dutch real estate investment institutions (taking into account a Dutch dividend obligation of 15% WHT and a possible significant Dutch savings tax on capital gains realized by UK shareholders), which may affect cross-border transactions and are therefore likely to jeopardise one of the objectives of the new DT. The United Kingdom and the Netherlands will continue to improve their relations between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands. .
