CONVENTIONBETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA AND JAPAN FOR THE ELIMINATION OF DOUBLE TAXATION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME AND THE PREVENTION OF TAX EVASION AND AVOIDANCE THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA AND JAPAN("Off. Herald of RS - Treaties", No. 8/2020) |
Desiring to further develop their economic relationship and to enhance their co-operation in tax matters,
Intending to conclude a Convention for the elimination of double taxation with respect to taxes on income without creating opportunities for non-taxation or reduced taxation through tax evasion or avoidance (including through treaty-shopping arrangements aimed at obtaining reliefs provided in this Convention for the indirect benefit of residents of third jurisdictions),
Have agreed as follows:
ARTICLE 1
1. This Convention shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting States.
2. This Convention shall not affect the taxation, by a Contracting State, of its residents except with respect to the benefits granted under paragraph 2 of Article 9 and Articles 19, 20, 23, 24, 25 and 27.
ARTICLE 2
1. This Convention shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or of its political subdivisions or local authorities, irrespective of the manner in which they are levied.
2. There shall be regarded as taxes on income all taxes imposed on total income or on elements of income, including taxes on gains from the alienation of any property, taxes on the total amounts of wages or salaries paid by enterprises, as well as taxes on capital appreciation.
3. The existing taxes to which this Convention shall apply are:
(1) in Japan:
(I) the income tax;
(II) the corporation tax;
(III) the special income tax for reconstruction;
(IV) the local corporation tax; and
(V) the local inhabitant taxes
(hereinafter referred to as "Japanese tax"); and
(2) in Serbia:
(I) the corporate income tax; and
(II) the personal income tax
(hereinafter referred to as "Serbian tax").
4. This Convention shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes that are imposed after the date of signature of the Convention in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any significant changes that have been made in their taxation laws.
ARTICLE 3
1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
(1) the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean Japan or Serbia, as the context requires;
(2) the term "Japan", when used in a geographical sense, means all the territory of Japan, including its territorial sea, in which the laws relating to Japanese tax are in force, and all the area beyond its territorial sea, including the seabed and subsoil thereof, over which Japan has sovereign rights in accordance with international law and in which the laws relating to Japanese tax are in force;
(3) the term "Serbia" means the Republic of Serbia and, when used in a geographical sense, means the territory of the Republic of Serbia;
(4) the term "person" includes an individual, a company and any other body of persons;
(5) the term "company" means any body corporate or any entity that is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes;
(6) the terms "enterprise of a Contracting State" and "enterprise of the other Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State;
(7) the term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft except when the ship or aircraft is operated solely between places in a Contracting State and the enterprise that operates the ship or aircraft is not an enterprise of that Contracting State;
(8) the term "competent authority" means:
(I) in Japan, the Minister of Finance or his authorised representative; and
(II) in Serbia, the Ministry of Finance or its authorised representative;
(9) the term "national", in relation to a Contracting State, means:
(I) any individual possessing the nationality of that Contracting State; and
(II) any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in that Contracting State;
(10) the term "recognised pension fund" of a Contracting State means an entity or arrangement established under the law of that Contracting State that is treated as a separate person under the taxation laws of that Contracting State and:
(I) that is established and operated exclusively or almost exclusively to administer or provide retirement benefits and ancillary or incidental benefits or other similar remuneration to individuals and that is regulated as such by that Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local authorities; or
(II) that is established and operated exclusively or almost exclusively to invest funds for the benefit of other recognised pension funds of that Contracting State.
Where an entity or arrangement established under the law of a Contracting State would constitute a recognised pension fund under clause (I) or (II) if it were treated as a separate person under the taxation laws of that Contracting State, it shall be considered, for the purposes of the Convention, as a separate person treated as such under the taxation laws of that Contracting State and all the assets and income of the entity or arrangement shall be treated as assets held and income derived by that separate person and not by another person.
2. As regards the application of this Convention at any time by a Contracting State, any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires or the competent authorities agree to a different meaning pursuant to the provisions of Article 25, have the meaning that it has at that time under the law of that Contracting State for the purposes of the taxes to which the Convention applies, any meaning under the applicable tax laws of that Contracting State prevailing over a meaning given to the term under other laws of that Contracting State.
ARTICLE 4
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "resident of a Contracting State" means any person who, under the laws of that Contracting State, is liable to tax therein by reason of his domicile, residence, place of head or main office, place of management or any other criterion of a similar nature, and also includes that Contracting State and any political subdivision or local authority thereof as well as a recognised pension fund of that Contracting State. This term, however, does not include any person who is liable to tax in that Contracting State in respect only of income from sources in that Contracting State.
2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows:
(1) he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both Contracting States, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests);
(2) if the Contracting State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home available to him in either Contracting State, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State in which he has an habitual abode;
(3) if he has an habitual abode in both Contracting States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State of which he is a national;
(4) if he is a national of both Contracting States or of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual agreement.
3. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to determine by mutual agreement the Contracting State of which such person shall be deemed to be a resident for the purposes of this Convention, having regard to its place of head or main office, its place of effective management, the place where it is incorporated or otherwise constituted and any other relevant factors. In the absence of such agreement, such person shall not be entitled to any relief or exemption from tax provided by the Convention.
ARTICLE 5
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "permanent establishment" means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on.
2. The term "permanent establishment" includes especially:
(1) a place of management;
(2) a branch;
(3) an office;
(4) a factory;
(5) a workshop; and
(6) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of natural resources.
3. A building site or construction or installation project constitutes a permanent establishment only if it lasts more than twelve months.
4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term "permanent establishment" shall be deemed not to include:
(1) the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage or display of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise;
(2) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage or display;
(3) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;
(4) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the enterprise;
(5) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of carrying on, for the enterprise, any activity not listed in subparagraphs (1) to (4), provided that this activity has a preparatory or auxiliary character; or
(6) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in subparagraphs (1) to (5), provided that the overall activity of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a preparatory or auxiliary character.
5. Paragraph 4 shall not apply to a fixed place of business that is used or maintained by an enterprise if the same enterprise or a closely related enterprise carries on business activities at the same place or at another place in the same Contracting State and:
(1) that place or other place constitutes a permanent establishment for the enterprise or the closely related enterprise under the provisions of this Article; or
(2) the overall activity resulting from the combination of the activities carried on by the two enterprises at the same place, or by the same enterprise or closely related enterprises at the two places, is not of a preparatory or auxiliary character,
provided that the business activities carried on by the two enterprises at the same place, or by the same enterprise or closely related enterprises at the two places, constitute complementary functions that are part of a cohesive business operation.
6. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 but subject to the provisions of paragraph 7, where a person is acting in a Contracting State on behalf of an enterprise and, in doing so, habitually concludes contracts, or habitually plays the principal role leading to the conclusion of contracts that are routinely concluded without material modification by the enterprise, and these contracts are:
(1) in the name of the enterprise; or
(2) for the transfer of the ownership of, or for the granting of the right to use, property owned by that enterprise or that the enterprise has the right to use; or
(3) for the provision of services by that enterprise,
that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in that Contracting State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise, unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business (other than a fixed place of business to which paragraph 5 would apply), would not make this fixed place of business a permanent establishment under the provisions of paragraph 4.
7. Paragraph 6 shall not apply where the person acting in a Contracting State on behalf of an enterprise of the other Contracting State carries on business in the first-mentioned Contracting State as an independent agent and acts for the enterprise in the ordinary course of that business. Where, however, a person acts exclusively or almost exclusively on behalf of one or more enterprises to which it is closely related, that person shall not be considered to be an independent agent within the meaning of this paragraph with respect to any such enterprise.
8. The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in that other Contracting State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise), shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the other.
9. For the purposes of this Article, a person or enterprise is closely related to an enterprise if, based on all the relevant facts and circumstances, one has control of the other or both are under the control of the same persons or enterprises. In any case, a person or enterprise shall be considered to be closely related to an enterprise if one possesses directly or indirectly more than 50 per cent of the beneficial interest in the other (or, in the case of a company, more than 50 per cent of the aggregate vote and value of the company’s shares or of the beneficial equity interest in the company) or if another person or enterprise possesses directly or indirectly more than 50 per cent of the beneficial interest (or, in the case of a company, more than 50 per cent of the aggregate vote and value of the company’s shares or of the beneficial equity interest in the company) in the person and the enterprise or in the two enterprises.
ARTICLE 6
Income from immovable property
1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property (including income from agriculture or forestry) situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. The term "immovable property" shall have the meaning which it has under the law of the Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall in any case include property accessory to immovable property, livestock and equipment used in agriculture and forestry, rights to which the provisions of general law respecting landed property apply, usufruct of immovable property and rights to variable or fixed payments as consideration for the working of, or the right to work, mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or use in any other form of immovable property.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to income from immovable property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal services.
ARTICLE 7
1. The profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that Contracting State unless the enterprise carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein. If the enterprise carries on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in that other Contracting State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent establishment.
2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, there shall in each Contracting State be attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it might be expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing wholly independently with the enterprise of which it is a permanent establishment.
3. In determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the permanent establishment, including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred, whether in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere.
4. No profits shall be attributed to a permanent establishment by reason of the mere purchase by that permanent establishment of goods or merchandise for the enterprise.
5. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs of this Article, the profits to be attributed to the permanent establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year unless there is good and sufficient reason to the contrary.
6. Where profits include items of income which are dealt with separately in other Articles of this Convention, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article.
ARTICLE 8
1. Profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 2, an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be exempt in respect of its carrying on the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic from, in the case of an enterprise of Serbia, the enterprise tax of Japan and, in the case of an enterprise of Japan, any tax similar to the enterprise tax of Japan which is imposed after the date of signature of this Convention in Serbia.
3. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall also apply to profits from the participation in a pool, a joint business or an international operating agency.
ARTICLE 9
1. Where
(1) an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, or
(2) the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise of the other Contracting State,
and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be made between independent enterprises, then any profits which would, but for those conditions, have accrued to one of the enterprises, but, by reason of those conditions, have not so accrued, may be included in the profits of that enterprise and taxed accordingly.
2. Where a Contracting State includes in the profits of an enterprise of that Contracting State - and taxes accordingly - profits on which an enterprise of the other Contracting State has been charged to tax in that other Contracting State and the profits so included are profits which would have accrued to the enterprise of the first-mentioned Contracting State if the conditions made between the two enterprises had been those which would have been made between independent enterprises, then that other Contracting State shall make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax charged therein on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of this Convention and the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall if necessary consult each other.
ARTICLE 10
1. Dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. However, dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State may also be taxed in that Contracting State according to the laws of that Contracting State, but if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(1) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner is a company which holds directly, throughout a 365 day period that includes the date on which entitlement to the dividends is determined (for the purpose of computing that period, no account shall be taken of changes of ownership that would directly result from a corporate reorganisation, such as a merger or divisive reorganisation, of the company that holds the shares of the company paying the dividends or that pays the dividends), at least 25 per cent of:
(I) in the case where the company paying the dividends is a resident of Japan, the voting power of that company;
(II) in the case where the company paying the dividends is a resident of Serbia, the capital of that company;
(2) 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends in all other cases.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, dividends which are deductible in computing the taxable income of the company paying the dividends in the Contracting State of which that company is a resident may be taxed in that Contracting State according to the laws of that Contracting State, but if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 shall not affect the taxation of the company in respect of the profits out of which the dividends are paid.
5. The term "dividends" as used in this Article means income from shares or other rights, not being debt-claims, participating in profits, as well as income from other rights which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from shares by the laws of the Contracting State of which the company making the distribution is a resident.
6. The provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other Contracting State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
7. Where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income from the other Contracting State, that other Contracting State may not impose any tax on the dividends paid by the company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to a resident of that other Contracting State or insofar as the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent establishment or a fixed base situated in that other Contracting State, nor subject the company’s undistributed profits to a tax on the company’s undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other Contracting State.
ARTICLE 11
1. Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. However, interest arising in a Contracting State may also be taxed in that Contracting State according to the laws of that Contracting State, but if the beneficial owner of the interest is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest arising in a Contracting State shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if:
(1) the interest is beneficially owned by that other Contracting State, a political subdivision or local authority thereof, the central bank of that other Contracting State or any institution wholly owned by that other Contracting State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof; or
(2) the interest is beneficially owned by a resident of that other Contracting State with respect to debt-claims guaranteed, insured or indirectly financed by that other Contracting State, a political subdivision or local authority thereof, the central bank of that other Contracting State or any institution wholly owned by that other Contracting State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof.
4. The term "interest" as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate in the debtor’s profits, and in particular, income from government securities and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such securities, bonds or debentures as well as other income that is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from money lent by the laws of the Contracting State in which the income arises. Income dealt with in Article 10 and penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purposes of this Article.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other Contracting State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
6. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that Contracting State. Where, however, the person paying the interest, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred, and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
7. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest, having regard to the debt-claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.
ARTICLE 12
1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. However, royalties arising in a Contracting State may also be taxed in that Contracting State according to the laws of that Contracting State, but if the beneficial owner of the royalties is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(1) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work including cinematograph films;
(2) 10 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties for the use of, or the right to use, any patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, or secret formula or process, for the use of, or the right to use, industrial, commercial or scientific equipment, or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience.
3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as a consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work including cinematograph films, or any patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, or secret formula or process, for the use of, or the right to use, industrial, commercial or scientific equipment, or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other Contracting State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that Contracting State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the liability to pay the royalties was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
6. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the royalties, having regard to the use, right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.
ARTICLE 13
1. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable property referred to in Article 6 and situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. Gains from the alienation of any property, other than immovable property referred to in Article 6, forming part of the business property of a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State or of any property, other than immovable property referred to in Article 6, pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent personal services, including such gains from the alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such fixed base, may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
3. Gains that an enterprise of a Contracting State that operates ships or aircraft in international traffic derives from the alienation of such ships or aircraft, or of any property, other than immovable property referred to in Article 6, pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft, shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
4. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of shares of a company or comparable interests, such as interests in a partnership or trust, may be taxed in the other Contracting State if, at any time during the 365 days preceding the alienation, these shares or comparable interests derived at least 50 per cent of their value directly or indirectly from immovable property, as defined in Article 6, situated in that other Contracting State, unless such shares or comparable interests are traded on a recognised stock exchange and the resident and persons related to that resident own in the aggregate 5 per cent or less of the class of such shares or comparable interests.
5. Gains from the alienation of any property, other than that referred to in paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4, shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a resident.
ARTICLE 14
1. Income derived by an individual who is a resident of a Contracting State in respect of professional services or other activities of an independent character shall be taxable only in that Contracting State unless he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities. If he has such a fixed base, the income may be taxed in that other Contracting State but only so much of it as is attributable to that fixed base.
2. The term "professional services" includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
ARTICLE 15
1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, salaries, wages and other similar remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment shall be taxable only in that Contracting State unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is derived therefrom may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment exercised in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned Contracting State if:
(1) the recipient is present in the other Contracting State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any twelve month period commencing or ending in the taxable or fiscal year concerned, and
(2) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of the other Contracting State, and
(3) the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the employer has in the other Contracting State.
3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment, as a member of the regular complement of a ship or aircraft, that is exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic, other than aboard a ship or aircraft operated solely within the other Contracting State, shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned Contracting State.
ARTICLE 16
Directors’ fees and other similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State in his capacity as a member of the board of directors, or of a similar organ, of a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
ARTICLE 17
Entertainers and sportspersons
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture, radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsperson, from that resident’s personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other Contracting State.
2. Where income in respect of personal activities exercised by an entertainer or a sportsperson acting as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsperson are exercised.
ARTICLE 18
Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 19, pensions and other similar remuneration beneficially owned by a resident of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
ARTICLE 19
1. (1) Salaries, wages and other similar remuneration paid by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that Contracting State or political subdivision or local authority shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
(2) However, such salaries, wages and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that other Contracting State and the individual is a resident of that other Contracting State who:
(I) is a national of that other Contracting State; or
(II) did not become a resident of that other Contracting State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.
2. (1) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, pensions and other similar remuneration paid by, or out of funds which are created by or to which contributions are made by, a Contracting State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that Contracting State or political subdivision or local authority shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
(2) However, such pensions and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that other Contracting State.
3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16, 17 and 18 shall apply to salaries, wages, pensions, and other similar remuneration in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof.
ARTICLE 20
Payments which a student or business apprentice who is or was immediately before visiting a Contracting State a resident of the other Contracting State and who is present in the first-mentioned Contracting State solely for the purpose of his education or training receives for the purpose of his maintenance, education or training shall not be taxed in that Contracting State, provided that such payments arise from sources outside that Contracting State. In the case of a business apprentice, the exemption provided by this Article shall apply only for a period not exceeding one year from the date on which he first begins his training in that Contracting State.
ARTICLE 21
Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Convention, income derived by a silent partner who is a resident of a Contracting State in respect of a silent partnership (in Japan, Tokumei Kumiai) contract or another similar contract may be taxed in the other Contracting State according to the laws of that other Contracting State, provided that such income arises in that other Contracting State and is deductible in computing the taxable income of the payer in that other Contracting State.
ARTICLE 22
1. Items of income beneficially owned by a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to income, other than income from immovable property as defined in paragraph 2 of Article 6, if the beneficial owner of such income, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other Contracting State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
3. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the income referred to in paragraph 1 exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the income shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.
ARTICLE 23
Elimination of double taxation
1. In Japan, double taxation shall be eliminated as follows:
Subject to the provisions of the laws of Japan regarding the allowance as a credit against Japanese tax of tax payable in any country other than Japan, where a resident of Japan derives income from Serbia which may be taxed in Serbia in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, the amount of Serbian tax payable in respect of that income shall be allowed as a credit against the Japanese tax imposed on that resident. The amount of credit, however, shall not exceed the amount of the Japanese tax which is appropriate to that income.
2. In Serbia, double taxation shall be eliminated as follows:
(1) Where a resident of Serbia derives income which, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, may be taxed in Japan, Serbia shall allow as a deduction from the Serbian tax on the income of that resident an amount equal to the Japanese tax paid in Japan.
Such deduction shall not, however, exceed that part of the Serbian tax as computed before the deduction is given, which is attributable to the income which may be taxed in Japan.
(2) Where in accordance with any provision of the Convention income derived by a resident of Serbia is exempt from tax in Serbia, Serbia may nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax on the remaining income of such resident, take into account the exempted income.
ARTICLE 24
1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith, which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of that other Contracting State in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be subjected. The provisions of this paragraph shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, also apply to persons who are not residents of one or both of the Contracting States.
2. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other Contracting State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other Contracting State carrying on the same activities. The provisions of this paragraph shall not be construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State any personal allowances, reliefs and reductions for taxation purposes on account of civil status or family responsibilities which it grants to its own residents.
3. Except where the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 9, paragraph 7 of Article 11, paragraph 6 of Article 12 or paragraph 3 of Article 22 apply, interest, royalties and other disbursements paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been paid to a resident of the first-mentioned Contracting State.
4. Enterprises of a Contracting State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subjected in the first-mentioned Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which other similar enterprises of the first-mentioned Contracting State are or may be subjected.
5. The provisions of this Article shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 2, apply to taxes of every kind and description imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or of its political subdivisions or local authorities.
ARTICLE 25
1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those Contracting States, present his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under paragraph 1 of Article 24, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a national. The case must be presented within three years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of the Convention.
2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation which is not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention. Any agreement reached shall be implemented notwithstanding any time limits in the domestic law of the Contracting States.
3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by mutual agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of this Convention. They may also consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Convention.
4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other directly, including through a joint commission consisting of themselves or their representatives, for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs of this Article.
ARTICLE 26
1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information as is foreseeably relevant for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or to the administration or enforcement of the domestic laws concerning taxes of every kind and description imposed on behalf of the Contracting States, or of their political subdivisions or local authorities, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to the Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by Articles 1 and 2.
2. Any information received under paragraph 1 by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that Contracting State and shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) concerned with the assessment or collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, the determination of appeals in relation to the taxes referred to in paragraph 1, or the oversight of the above. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions. Notwithstanding the foregoing, information received by a Contracting State may be used for other purposes when such information may be used for such other purposes under the laws of both Contracting States and the competent authority of the Contracting State supplying the information authorises such use.
3. In no case shall the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 be construed so as to impose on a Contracting State the obligation:
(1) to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State;
(2) to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting State;
(3) to supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information the disclosure of which would be contrary to public policy.
4. If information is requested by a Contracting State in accordance with this Article, the other Contracting State shall use its information gathering measures to obtain the requested information, even though that other Contracting State may not need such information for its own tax purposes. The obligation contained in the preceding sentence is subject to the limitations of paragraph 3 but in no case shall such limitations be construed to permit a Contracting State to decline to supply information solely because it has no domestic interest in such information.
5. In no case shall the provisions of paragraph 3 be construed to permit a Contracting State to decline to supply information solely because the information is held by a bank, other financial institution, nominee or person acting in an agency or a fiduciary capacity or because it relates to ownership interests in a person.
ARTICLE 27
Members of diplomatic missions and consular posts
Nothing in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of members of diplomatic missions or consular posts under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of special agreements.
ARTICLE 28
1. (1) Where
(I) an enterprise of a Contracting State derives income from the other Contracting State and the first-mentioned Contracting State treats such income as attributable to a permanent establishment of the enterprise situated in a third jurisdiction; and
(II) the profits attributable to that permanent establishment are exempt from tax in the first-mentioned Contracting State,
the benefits under this Convention shall not apply to any item of income on which the tax in the third jurisdiction is less than 60 per cent of the tax that would be imposed in the first-mentioned Contracting State on that item of income if that permanent establishment were situated in the first-mentioned Contracting State. In such a case, any income to which the provisions of this paragraph apply shall remain taxable according to the domestic law of the other Contracting State, notwithstanding any other provisions of the Convention.
(2) The provisions of subparagraph (1) shall not apply if the income derived from the other Contracting State described in that subparagraph emanates from, or is incidental to, the active conduct of a business carried on through the permanent establishment (other than the business of making, managing or simply holding investments for the enterprise’s own account, unless these activities are banking, insurance or securities activities carried on by a bank, insurance enterprise or registered securities dealer, respectively).
(3) If the benefits under the Convention are denied pursuant to the provisions of subparagraph (1) with respect to an item of income derived by a resident of a Contracting State, the competent authority of the other Contracting State may, nevertheless, grant these benefits with respect to that item of income if, in response to a request by such resident, such competent authority determines that granting such benefits is justified in light of the reasons such resident did not satisfy the requirements of subparagraphs (1) and (2) (such as the existence of losses). The competent authority of the Contracting State to which a request has been made under the preceding sentence by a resident of the other Contracting State shall consult with the competent authority of that other Contracting State before either granting or denying the request.
2. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Convention, a benefit under the Convention shall not be granted in respect of an item of income if it is reasonable to conclude, having regard to all relevant facts and circumstances, that obtaining that benefit was one of the principal purposes of any arrangement or transaction that resulted directly or indirectly in that benefit, unless it is established that granting that benefit in these circumstances would be in accordance with the object and purpose of the relevant provisions of the Convention.
ARTICLE 29
The headings of the Articles of this Convention are inserted for convenience of reference only and shall not affect the interpretation of the Convention.
ARTICLE 30
1. This Convention shall be approved in accordance with the legal procedures of each of the Contracting States and shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the date of exchange of diplomatic notes indicating such approval.
2. This Convention shall have effect:
(1) in Japan:
(I) with respect to taxes levied on the basis of a taxable year, for taxes for any taxable years beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the Convention enters into force; and
(II) with respect to taxes levied not on the basis of a taxable year, for taxes levied on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the Convention enters into force; and
(2) in Serbia:
with respect to the taxes on income derived in each fiscal year beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the Convention enters into force.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, the provisions of Article 26 shall have effect from the date of entry into force of this Convention without regard to the date on which the taxes are levied or the taxable year to which the taxes relate.
ARTICLE 31
This Convention shall remain in force until terminated by a Contracting State.
Either Contracting State may terminate the Convention by giving written notice of termination through diplomatic channels to the other Contracting State at least six months before the end of any calendar year beginning after expiry of five years from the date of entry into force of the Convention. In such event, the Convention shall cease to have effect:
(1) in Japan:
(I) with respect to taxes levied on the basis of a taxable year, for taxes for any taxable years beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the notice is given; and
(II) with respect to taxes levied not on the basis of a taxable year, for taxes levied on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the notice is given; and
(2) in Serbia:
with respect to the taxes on income derived in each fiscal year beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the notice is given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorised thereto by their respective Governments, have signed this Convention.
DONE in duplicate at Belgrade this 21st day of July, 2020 in the English language.
FOR THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA |
|
FOR JAPAN |
At the moment of signing the Convention between the Republic of Serbia and Japan for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance (hereinafter referred to as "the Convention"), the Republic of Serbia and Japan have agreed upon the following provisions, which shall form an integral part of the Convention.
1. With reference to Articles 11 and 12 of the Convention:
If, after the date of signature of the Convention, Serbia signs a tax treaty for the avoidance of double taxation with respect to taxes on income with a third jurisdiction which contains more favourable treatment of taxation on interest (other than interest referred to in paragraph 3 of Article 11 of the Convention) or royalties referred to in Article 11 or 12, respectively, of the Convention than that provided for in the respective Article, the Contracting States shall, at the request of Japan, enter into negotiations with a view to incorporating such more favourable treatment into the Convention. The competent authority of Serbia shall notify the competent authority of Japan of such event in a timely manner after it has happened.
2. With reference to paragraph 4 of Article 13 of the Convention:
(1) It is understood that the term "comparable interests" includes interests in limited liability companies which are established under the laws of Serbia.
(2) For the purposes of that paragraph, the term "recognised stock exchange" means:
(I) any stock exchange established and regulated as such under the laws of either Contracting State; and
(II) any other stock exchange as may be agreed upon by the competent authorities of the Contracting States.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorised thereto by their respective Governments, have signed this Protocol.
DONE in duplicate at Belgrade this 21st day of July, 2020 in the English language.
FOR THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA |
|
FOR JAPAN |