November 2021

- Released on the sidelines of the 12th World Chambers Congress in Dubai, the latest Dubai Innovation Index Report analyses innovation output across 39 global cities - Dubai ranked ahead of Beijing, Shanghai and Sao Paulo, as the emirate scores high in the categories of infrastructure, government and society

Dubai leads the Arab world in the latest edition of the Dubai Innovation Index, maintaining its 20th position globally in 2020, Dubai Chamber announced today as it released the Index at the 12th World Chambers Congress in Dubai.

The Index report, bearing the theme The Road to Recovery Through Resilience and Innovation, analysed a total of 39 cities. Seven new cities were added to the latest edition of the Index, which was developed by Dubai Chamber in collaboration with PwC.

HE Hamad  Buamim, President and CEO,  Dubai Chamber, said Dubai’s performance in the latest edition of the Index reflects its ability to deliver innovation-driven development in line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to transform the emirate into a global innovation hub. “By providing a supportive environment, a robust regulatory and legislative framework and highly developed infrastructure, and comprehensively addressing various vital enabling drivers, Dubai is on track to achieve its aspirations under the follow-up and guidance of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai  and Chairman of The Executive Council. By embracing new ideas to raise excellence and rapidly implementing dynamic creative solutions, Dubai is raising the performance of sectors across its economy,” he added.

Under the first pillar of the Index, Agile Government, Dubai ranked 19th, scoring high marks for its e-Government services. Among the specific initiatives highlighted are the Dubai Paperless Strategy, which aims to achieve a paperless government by the end of 2021. As part of the transformation, 41 government entities have already halved their paper consumption and are moving towards 100% digitalisation. Also supporting Dubai’s performance on the Index is the Dubai Blockchain Strategy, which has facilitated the city’s adoption of blockchain records in 24 applications in various industries.

Under the Infrastructure category, Dubai was recognised for its academic institutions, including universities, boosting innovation by sharing their resources with startups and entrepreneurs. Also mentioned was the city’s attraction of foreign investment into its education sectors, with examples including the University of London’s Bayes Business School and the University of Birmingham setting up Campuses in the emirate. The Index also acknowledged Dubai’s Future District, with its research centre, incubators, accelerators and innovation space for future economy pioneers.

With regards to funding, Dubai performed well in the area of venture capital (VC), due to government-led incentives and support of global VCs looking to enter the market and those already invested in the market. Incentivisation approaches used include: tax incentives for VC funds, public-sector matching of investments and government support for early and mid-stage startups through additional services

The report highlighted positive change within Dubai’s funding landscape and a wider availability of funding channels in their ecosystems through ensuring a diversity of offerings that accompany the VC funding opportunities, with its offerings ranging from government-backed guarantee schemes like the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund to venture capital deals, angel investments, peer-to-peer lending and crowd funding. The Dubai Next platform, launched by the Dubai government in 2021, is expected to further enhance financial access for the city’s innovators.

Under the Society category, Dubai ranked 16th as the city embraces immigration, with expats drawn to its wealth of opportunities and tolerant cultural and religious environment. Further attracting expatriates to the emirate are its long-term visa schemes, which reward them for their contribution to the city.

The Index highlights how innovation is part of Dubai’s DNA, with its leadership strongly recognising the pivotal role that it plays in the country’s sustainable development. It also highlights the impact of the National Innovation Strategy launched in 2014 by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, which has played a major role in prioritising innovation across all sectors and as a vital pillar of the economy.

Singapore and Hong Kong maintained their first and second places on the Index respectively, with Stockholm climbing three places to replace London in third position, with the UK capital dropping five places to eighth position this year. Toronto makes the biggest jump of all the 39 cities on the Index, rising seven places to reach 10th place from its 17th position in 2019.

Examining the state of innovation in cities around the world during a time of unprecedented turmoil and change, the latest edition of the Dubai Innovation Index states that at the start of a new era, the global exchange of knowledge and learning is more important than ever.

Key takeaways from this year’s Index are that digitalisation underpins the transformation and success of the most innovative cities; governments in top innovative cities do more to promote innovation than just set policies, oversee regulations and provide incentives; and the collaboration that has resulted from the pandemic has accelerated innovation by offering innovators enhanced opportunities for knowledge sharing, market access and funding.

Another significant finding was that while Europe and North America remained the leading regions for innovative cities, metropolises in other regions - notably Asia-Pacific - have been closing the gap.

The report also highlights that 2014 saw the launch of the first Dubai Innovation Index, which was the first-of-its-kind city level assessment of innovation which has influenced a raft of new measures, including strategies policies and procedures introduced in areas that include public private partnerships, robotics, blockchain, artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things and 3D printing, all of which have placed Dubai firmly on the innovation map.

The assessment categories on the Dubai Innovation Index include Agile Government, Infrastructure, Funding, Business Environment, and Society, with Dubai scoring highly across a number of key metrics.

Hamdan bin Mohammed: Dubai will continue to create new opportunities for professionals and talented individuals across the world to grow and thrive

As Dubai continues to drive global travel recovery and growth, the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA) - Dubai in cooperation with Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) has launched a Five-Year Multi-Entry Visa for employees of multinational companies, to further accelerate momentum across tourism and all other business sectors.

HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of The Executive Council of Dubai said: “The new Five-Year Multi-Entry Visa is the latest in a series of initiatives launched by Dubai to create new opportunities for professionals and talented individuals across the world to grow and thrive. The city has been steadily rising in status among the world’s biggest metropolises as a hub for travel, business, investment and talent, offering visitors an experience that is not only productive for work and business, but also enriching in terms of lifestyle and culture. Dubai seeks to dynamically adapt to evolving global conditions, embrace change and develop innovative initiatives to deliver future growth and offer new avenues for development and transformation, while remaining one of the world’s safest and most secure cities.”

In line with the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the best city in the world to live, work and visit, the Five-Year Multi-Entry Visa has been introduced to further simplify visa application procedures, provide ease-of-access to the city and extend the duration of stay of international visitors. The Five-Year Multi-Entry Visa is especially beneficial to employees of foreign-owned firms as it enables them to participate in events, conferences, training courses, exhibitions and similar activities hosted in Dubai by these companies.

GDRFA-Dubai has now fully activated this visa process and has started issuing it to employees of multinational companies, allowing them to visit and stay in the UAE for 90 days, with the option of extending their stay for another 90 days. The Five-Year Multi-Entry-Visa joins other new categories of visas and programmes launched by Dubai including the Golden Visa for entrepreneurs and property and business investors, as well as the Retire in Dubai and Virtual Working programmes, which provide more flexibility and options for talent looking to work and reside in Dubai. These have led to a significant increase in entry visas issued recently, with visitors looking to take advantage of Dubai’s world-class infrastructure, modern lifestyle, high vaccination rates and commitment to ensuring the highest standards of health and safety for residents and visitors, in line with international practices.

His Excellency Major General Mohammed Ahmed Al Marri, Director General, GDRFA -Dubai, said: “This new step of providing a Five-Year Multi-Entry-Visa for major companies will bolster Dubai’s reputation as a global business and tourism hub. Dubai is committed to simplifying the procedures for issuing entry visas to all nationalities to help realise the vision and directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the preferred destination for international visitors.

“Dubai has always been top-of-mind among international business and leisure travellers and providing these multinational companies the opportunity to obtain five-year multiple entry visas for their employees will contribute towards increasing visitors to Dubai, particularly those who travel in groups, reflecting positively on all economic sectors, including tourism.”

His Excellency Helal Saeed Almarri, Director General of Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), said: “This significant initiative is a testament to the strategies inspired by the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to remain agile in the wake of the global pandemic and to drive business growth and lead the recovery of the tourism sector. From a governmental perspective, we have been focusing on initiatives designed to make the city even more attractive to people around the world and easing barriers to entry for business and leisure travellers. By making Dubai more accessible to employees of global corporations, we will be able to increase visitation and attract new talent, and pave the way for the continued and sustainable diversification of our economy.

“Dubai is the preferred destination for multinational companies to host their corporate events and activities, conferences and meetings. All this will have a positive impact across many business sectors and provide an additional incentive for travel to Dubai, building on our unique opportunity to drive growth in this landmark year featuring Expo 2020 Dubai and the UAE Golden Jubilee, and beyond. We look forward to hosting more international corporate events, and we will extend our full support to these companies and their employees through the provision of this Five-Year Multi-Entry Visa to allow them to enjoy a quick and hassle-free entry process and a memorable stay.

“It is imperative for us to further enhance the partnership and high level of cooperation between the public and private sectors to promote Dubai’s extensive and diverse destination proposition to business and leisure travellers and further strengthen Dubai’s international standing as the safe destination of choice for global travellers.”

The concerted efforts by the tourism authorities, supported by stakeholders and partners, have helped restore momentum in the travel sector; between January and September 2021, Dubai received around 3.85 million international visitors. There are 726 hotel establishments with a total of 123,868 rooms that are open in Dubai, with the overall 61 per cent occupancy being among the highest worldwide.

In September, the World Bank awarded Dubai a certificate for the quality of services that it provides to investors, and described it as a world-class logistics hub. The bank said in a report titled "At Your Service? The Promise of Service-Led Development" that Dubai is one of the most prominent models in the world for service centres, especially for logistics and financial services. Dubai also ranked first regionally and 11th globally among 25 global cities in the "Best Business Cities in Granting Residency Visas to Investors" index maintained by the British company Henley & Partners, which specialises in residency and citizenship advice.

Media Office - Government of Dubai

Further green investment is in sight for China as the country gradually shifts toward a more institutionalized phase of decarbonization, according to a research report by Morgan Stanley.

"We expect policymakers to step up support for green investments from 2022 -- such as renewables, smart grid, power storage equipment, and manufacturing equipment upgrades," said Robin Xing, Morgan Stanley's chief China economist, in the co-authored report.

The green push is expected to inject new impetus into the Chinese economy. The investment bank forecast a recovery in infrastructure driven by green investment, saying it expects infrastructure investment growth to rebound to 4 percent next year.

Manufacturing investment demand is also predicted to rise as manufacturers upgrade their equipment to improve energy efficiency, according to the report.

The projections came amid China's continuous efforts to decarbonize to fight for blue skies and mitigate the impact of climate change.

China in October unveiled an overarching guideline to achieve its carbon peak and carbon neutrality goals, as well as an action plan to peak carbon dioxide emissions before 2030. The guideline and action plan constitute the top-level policy design for decarbonization, and specify targets and measures for the coming decades.

The People's Bank of China, the country's central bank, also rolled out a new lending tool for carbon reduction earlier this month, which aims to provide low-cost loans for financial institutions so as to strengthen financial support for the reduction of carbon emissions.

The high-level carbon peak guidance has called for the leveraging of a combination of tax policies, green financing and carbon pricing to foster development in green industries, the report noted.

Further policy support for green industries is expected next year in tax and fee cuts and the wider allocation of local government special bond quotas for green investment, it said.

Source: XINHUANET

China will inject more efforts in the intellectual property rights (IPR) sector to better serve the growth of new fields and new business forms during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), said the IPR authorities.

According to the plan, the National Intellectual Property Administration (NIPA) will carry out in-depth study and practice in the Internet, big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and other new fields and new business forms.

China will put diverse efforts on patent examination, data IPR protection, Internet-related IPR protection and IPR international cooperation in the 14th Five-Year Plan period.

The NIPA will give full play to the bidirectional promotion function of patent examination in promoting innovation and application. It will improve the examination rules in the emerging fields to boost breakthroughs in core technologies and their industrial application.

It will promote the implementation of the data IPR protection project, push forward the legislative research and establish rules in the sector, targeting to effectively protect and use data to ensure personal privacy and national security.

The Chinese IPR authorities will also strengthen the IPR protection in the Internet field and facilitate the sector's online and offline integrated development to meet the new challenges from the information era.

According to the NIPA, China will also promote international IPR cooperation in new fields and business forms, as well as international rulemaking in big data, AI and other emerging new fields.

Source: XINHUANET

Four authorities led by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the People's Bank of China have jointly released the Guiding Opinions on Strengthening the Industry-Finance Cooperation to Promote Green Industrial Development, requiring establishing and improving the standard system for carbon accounting and green finance, improving the information sharing mechanism for green industrial development, and increasing the support for green financing.

In terms of innovative green financial products and services, the document supports testing of real estate investment trusts in the field of infrastructure (infrastructure REITs) in green and low-carbon parks in a prudent and steadily manner. It encourages financial institutions to develop climate-friendly financial products, supporting the Guangzhou Futures Exchange to build a carbon futures market for the standardized development of carbon financial services.

The State Taxation Administration and the Ministry of Finance jointly released on October 29, 2021 the Announcement on Matters concerning Deferred Payment of Some Fourth Quarter Taxes by Micro, Small and Medium-sized Firms in Manufacturing, to be implemented from November 1, 2021.

According to the document, the said enterprises may defer payment of part of their taxes and fees for the fourth quarter of 2021, including enterprise income tax, personal income tax (excluding withholding), domestic value-added tax, domestic consumption tax and additional urban construction tax, education fee and local education surcharge. Specifically, a medium-sized manufacturing enterprise, which is defined as having annual sales between 20 million yuan and 400 million yuan, can defer payment of 50% of all its taxes and fees, while a micro or small enterprise, which is defined as having annual sales of below 20 million yuan, can defer payment of all its taxes and fees.

For the purpose of this Announcement, the annual sales of micro, small and medium-sized manufacturing enterprises shall be determined according to the following methods:

For enterprises that have been established for one year or more by September 30, 2021, the annual sales shall be determined based on the sales for the period from October 2020 to September 2021;

For enterprises that have been established for less than one year by September 30, 2021, the annual sales shall be determined based on the sales for the period until September 30, 2021/actual months of operation × 12 months' sales;

For enterprises established on or after October 1, 2021, the annual sales shall be determined based on the sales for the first filing period/actual months of operation × 12 months' sales.

1. The epidemic has had a great impact on the production and operation of enterprises and related transactions within the group. In this case, how to carry out transfer pricing investigation by tax authorities?

STA: The impact of the epidemic on enterprises in different industries varies greatly, bringing great impact to some enterprises in different industries and new development opportunities to others. When conducting transfer pricing investigations, tax authorities will follow the principle of independent transactions and, on this basis, consider the impact of the epidemic on related transactions of enterprises, on a case-by-case basis.

2. How should tax authorities consider losses caused by the epidemic in their transfer pricing investigations?

STA: Tax authorities will take into account the impact of the epidemic on enterprises in the transfer pricing investigation, taking into account such factors as enterprise functional risk, related party transaction characteristics, industry characteristics and comparable enterprise conditions. For enterprises' additional expenditures due to epidemic prevention and control or increased operating expenses due to the impact of the epidemic, tax authorities will adjust the differences as appropriate in the comparability analysis based on full consideration of the distribution of related costs and expenses among independent third parties. It is suggested that enterprises clearly divide and quantify relevant costs and expenses, and keep relevant evidence for future reference.

3. What should an enterprise pay attention to when preparing local documents for the same period if the profit level in 2020 changes significantly due to the epidemic?

STA: According to the state administration of taxation on perfecting the same period and related personal data management related matters of announcement no. 42 (2016) the first item (4) of article 14 of the relevant provisions of enterprise in local document preparation, shall specify outbreak the specific impact of related party transactions, the value chain, the comparable analysis, comparable object data for the same year, region, industry, product and functional risks can be focused to reflect the impact of the epidemic on industry profit levels.

4. Does the government's assistance policy affecting the price adjustment of related party transactions?

STA: During the epidemic, the Chinese government has introduced a series of assistance policies in areas such as rent, taxes and financing. The influence of government aid policies on transfer pricing arrangements may be mainly reflected in comparability analysis. If enterprises believe that government assistance has an impact on transfer pricing arrangements, they should provide relevant information in their transfer pricing documentation to support transfer pricing analysis. Tax authorities will follow the principle of independent transactions to identify comparable factors and ensure the fairness and consistency of comparable analysis results.

5. How to implement signed reservation pricing arrangements if they are affected by COVID-19?

STA: If it is true that the epidemic has affected the implementation of the reservation pricing arrangement, the enterprise may report to the competent tax authority in written form, explaining in detail the impact of the epidemic on the implementation of the reservation pricing arrangement, and attach relevant materials.

Competent tax authorities should analyze and assess the extent to which material changes brought about by the epidemic will affect reservation pricing arrangements. For unilateral reservation pricing arrangement, negotiate with the enterprise to revise or terminate the reservation pricing arrangement; The arrangement of double-sided (multi-sided) reservation pricing shall be reported to the State Administration of Taxation for coordination at different levels and shall be settled by the State Administration of Taxation and the competent tax authorities of the other contracting party through negotiation.

The Ministry of Finance, the State Taxation Administration, the National Development and Reform Commission and the China Securities Regulatory Commission have jointly released the Circular on Piloting Corporate Income Tax Policy on Corporate Venture Capital Enterprises in Specific Area of Shanghai Pudong New Area, with retroactively effect from January 1, 2021.

According to the circular, for a corporate venture capital enterprise in specific area of Shanghai Pudong New Area, if its income from transfer of shares held for over three years represents more than 50% of its total income from the annual share transfer, its corporate income tax for the current year shall be levied by halving the shareholding of individual shareholders at the end of the year; and If its income from transfer of shares held for more than five years represents more than 50% of its total annual income from the annual share transfer, its corporate income tax for the current year shall be exempted by the shareholding of individual shareholders at the end of the year. It also specifies that individual shareholders shall pay personal income tax for their dividends derived from a corporate venture capital enterprise.

The State Taxation Administration recently released the Announcement of the State Taxation Administration on the Evaluation and Repair of Tax-pay Credit (STA Announcement (2021) No. 31), to be implemented from January 1, 2022.

According to the document, there are five circumstances under which a taxpayer with serious dishonest behavior or undergoing bankrupt reorganization may apply with the competent tax authorities for the repair of its tax-pay credit after it corrected the dishonest behavior, performed the tax legal liability, is waived from the release of its major tax violating information, and recorded no dishonest tax-pay behavior for six or 12 months. After completing the repair, the taxpayer would not be subject to the restriction of being rated as D for two years if its rating is no longer D, and it would apply the corresponding tax policies and management services based on the repaired tax credit, with the previous policies and services not subject to retroactive adjustment.

Switzerland is attractive to employers, as it has some of the most liberal labor legislation in the world.

The labor market is very flexible due to Switzerland’s liberal legislation, making it easy for companies to employ or dismiss staff at short notice in accordance with their financial requirements. The incidental wage costs are low compared with other countries and strikes have been far more infrequent in Switzerland than in any other European country over the last ten years.

Switzerland is also ideal for highly qualified employees, as the quality of life is very high and salaries are substantial. This also applies to skilled international workers and executives. Switzerland remains one of the most popular expat destinations, and frequently received top marks in various rankings. The attractive and moderate income tax rate for natural persons also plays a part in the attraction and is something that skilled foreign workers also benefit from.

You can down the publication prepared by S-GE on the Swiss Job Market here

Source: Switzerland - Global Enterprise

According to a press release of 1 November 2021, published by the Swiss Federal Social Insurance Office, the Switzerland - United Kingdom Social Security Coordination Agreement (2021) applies provisionally from 1 November 2021. The agreement will enter into force after all necessary domestic ratification procedures for the entry into force have been met in both contracting states. For more information on the provisional application, see article 73 of the Switzerland - United Kingdom Social Security Coordination Agreement (2021).

The new agreement coordinates the social security systems of the two states as the European Union - Switzerland Free Movement of Persons Agreement (1999) is no longer applicable in relations between Switzerland and the United Kingdom following Brexit.

The Federal Council has enacted the Federal Act on the Implementation of International Tax Agreements (ITAIA) and the associated Ordinance with effect from 1 January 2022 in order to align the existing legal framework with developments in international tax law.

Before, domestic legislation on certain issues regarding the implementation and application of tax treaties was governed by the Federal Act of 22 June 1951 on the Implementation of International Federal Conventions on the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the ordinances based thereon. The ITAIA supplements the existing legal provisions as necessary and introduces new areas of regulation. The revision of the law also stipulates how mutual agreement procedures are to be carried out at domestic level, provided the applicable agreement does not contain any deviating provisions. Moreover, it contains the key points for withholding tax relief based on international agreements, as well as criminal provisions in connection with relief from withholding taxes on investment income.

The entry into force of the ITAIA requires certain existing ordinances to be amended. Further, 2 ordinances and a federal decree will be repealed, as they will be superseded with the entry into force of the ITAIA. The Federal Council enacted the ITAIA in its meeting on 10 November 2021.

• Working with the Jordanian government to open up British food exports worth £32 million, by changing labelling rules that will help our producers to increase sales to a country that imports £2.5bn worth of food annually
• Unlocking access to finance in Hong Kong to enable UK education providers to build new schools there from early next year
• Cooperating with Indian counterparts to enable more investment in India’s £4bn insurance market- 74% foreign ownership now allowed, up from 49% - a sector in which the UK has world-class strengths
• In Colombia, helping British asset managers enter a green investment market worth £835m per year
• In Bulgaria, supporting UK business to access products to develop cutting-edge technology that will extend the life of vaccines, helping overcome logistical and distribution challenges from the pandemic.

International Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said:

Minister for International Trade Ranil Jayawardena said:

The Finance Bill 2021-22 was published today (4 November 2021), legislating for tax changes announced by the Chancellor at last week’s Budget

• The Finance Bill 2021-22 was published today legislating for tax changes announced at the Budget
• The Bill supports the Budget which will deliver a stronger economy for the British people through driving growth, securing public finances and levelling up employment opportunities
• Changes taking effect also crack down on tax avoidance and deliver a simpler tax system

It will extend tax reliefs for museums, galleries, theatres and orchestras, implement the new residential property developer tax, and introduce reforms to tonnage tax, among other changes.

Many changes will come into effect for the next tax year starting in April 2022.

Financial Secretary to the Treasury Lucy Frazer said:

This year’s Finance Bill will help us to continue on our mission to deliver a stronger economy for the British people – through stronger growth, jobs and public finances.

The Finance Bill 2021-22 brings forward a number of tax measures from last week’s Budget. The Bill helps support a stronger economy for the British people by helping to deliver stronger public finances, tackling tax avoidance and evasion, and contributing towards a simpler and more sustainable tax system.

It does this through:

• Reforming the UK’s Tonnage Tax regime to bring more shipping firms to the UK
• Extending tax reliefs for museums, galleries, theatres and orchestras to 31 March 2024
• Extending the £1 million Annual Investment Allowance cap by a further 15 months to 31 March 2023, to bring forward investment
• Implementing the 4% Residential Property Developer Tax on the largest most-profitable residential developers to support building safety remediation
• Simplifying Basis Period Rules to make it easier for the self-employed and small businesses to claim tax reliefs they are entitled to but often do not take advantage of due to confusing current rules. This, as the OBR concludes, has no effect on the amount of profits taxed.
• Clamping down on promoters of tax avoidance by reducing the scope for promoters to market tax avoidance schemes, disrupting their activities and supporting people more to steer clear of and leave tax avoidance arrangements
• Increasing the Normal Minimum Pension Age from 55 to 57, effective from 6 April 2028

The Overview of Tax Legislation and Rates (OOTLAR) document, published at Autumn Budget 2021, confirmed the measures going forward in the Bill.

The Finance Bill 2021-22 had its First Reading in Parliament on Tuesday 2 November and will now follow the normal passage through Parliament.

Further information

• Read the full contents of the Finance Bill 2021-22
• Also read the Bill’s explanatory notes which includes details of the measures including on their implementation dates

On 9 November 2021, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) updated its tax policy to reflect its latest position on support schemes and policy changes as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as its principles on tax collection, benefits payments, compliance checks and debt activity. Further details are summarized below.

Firstly, in its attempt to guarantee that funds from support schemes, including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, reach those in need, while abuse, fraudulent behaviour and mistakes are minimized, HMRC plans to commit more than 1,200 people to recovering money paid out to incorrect and fraudulent claims. Existing measures and practices will be reviewed and will either be retained or removed. Also, HMRC will open more than 30,000 one-to-one enquiries into COVID-19 support scheme claims. These actions are expected to allow the Taxpayer Protection Taskforce to recover GBP 1 billion over the next 2 years.

Secondly, HMRC will strive to make sure taxpayers are supported, while the tax system is protected. This will include recognizing the needs and challenges that businesses and individuals face, providing certainty, interacting with fairness and professionalism with the customers and using administrative arrangements to deliver long-term sustainable solutions.

Thirdly, HMRC will continue to conduct compliance checks informed by taxpayers' individual circumstances, particularly if they are still severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This means that people will not be penalized for any delay as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, although interest will still apply on any unpaid tax. In addition, taxpayers should prepare now to meet their future tax obligations.

Lastly, HMRC will continue to provide support to taxpayers with tax debts and those who are concerned about their ability to meet their tax obligations, by offering them affordable and sustainable payment plans called time-to-pay arrangements. Nevertheless, HMRC is restarting its debt collection work, including insolvency actions against companies, which are now permitted after the moratorium on company winding-up petitions has been partly lifted.

US President Joe Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R.3684) (the Act) on 15 November 2021. The Act, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Legislation, will allow for a new federal investment of USD 550 billion in US infrastructure.

The White House issued a Statement, dated 15 November 2021, to announce the signing of the Act. The White House also issued related Remarks by President Biden.

The Act aims to finance the infrastructure investment by, among other measures, strengthening tax enforcement related to cryptocurrency. Specifically, the Act will require a party facilitating the transfer of cryptocurrency to file an information return as a broker with the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Brokers (mainly exchanges) will have to send IRS Form 1099-B (Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions) to both the IRS and their customer to report their sale and basis.

The Act will also require businesses that receive cryptocurrency worth more than USD 10,000 in a single transaction to report the transaction to the IRS. For this purpose, any person engaging in a trade or business that receives more than USD 10,000 in cryptocurrency will be required to file IRS Form 8300 (Report of Cash Payments Over $10,000 Received In a Trade or Business).

The provisions related to cryptocurrency reporting will go into effect after 31 December 2023. The Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) estimates that the information reporting requirements will raise USD 28 billion over 10 years.

The Act also eliminates the employee retention credit (ERC) for the fourth quarter of 2021.

In addition, the Act renews the excise taxes on 42 chemicals under section 4661(c) of the US Internal Revenue Code, with modified tax amounts, from 1 July 2022 through 31 December 2031.

Further, the Act extends various highway-related excise taxes (under IRC sections 4041, 4051, 4071, 4081 and 4481), together with related exemptions (under IRC sections 4221 and 4483), for 6 years.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) of the US Library of Congress has issued a report with an overview of the main federal tax benefits for small firms.

The CRS report is entitled "Small Business Tax Benefits: Current Law" (RL32254-Version 22, 10 November 2021).

The CRS report summarizes tax preferences available only to small firms in a wide range of industries. As such, the CRS report does not include tax benefits targeted at small firms in specific industries. Nor does the CRS report address tax benefits that are available to firms of all sizes.

The small business tax benefits examined in the CRS report include:

• expensing allowance for machinery and equipment under section 179 of the US Internal Revenue Code (IRC);
• cash-basis accounting under IRC section 446;
• tax credit for the start-up costs incurred by small firms in establishing qualified employee retirement plans under IRC section 45E;
• tax credit for employers who offer or start a 401(k) plan or a Savings Incentive Match Plan for Employees (SIMPLE) that add automatic enrolment under IRC section 45T;
• tax credit for the costs incurred by small firms in complying with the Americans with Disabilities Act under IRC section 44;
• full exclusion from the capital gains tax on the sale or exchange of qualified small business stock under IRC section 1202;
• exemption from the limitation on the deduction for business interest expenses under IRC section 163;
• tax credit for small firms that offer qualified health insurance coverage to employees under IRC section 45R;
• simplified dollar-value last-in-first-out accounting under IRC section 474;
• deduction and amortization of business start-up expenses under IRC section 195;
• ordinary income treatment of losses on the sale of eligible small business stock under IRC section 1244;
• ordinary loss treatment for losses on the sale of Small Business Investment Company stock under IRC section 1242;
• exemption from the uniform capitalization rule under IRC section 263A; and
• use of excess research tax credit to reduce the payroll tax liability of qualified small firms under IRC section 41.

Note: The CRS is an agency within the US Library of Congress and serves the US Congress throughout the legislative process by providing legislative research and analysis for an informed national legislature.

US Interest rates on tax overpayments (i.e. tax refunds) and tax underpayments (i.e. tax assessments and late tax payments) will remain the same for the first calendar quarter of 2022 (i.e. 1 January 2021 through 31 March 2022).

The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Revenue Ruling 2021-24 to announce the interest rates for the new quarter, together with an accompanying News Release (IR-2021-234), dated 23 November 2021.

The interest rates for the first quarter of 2022 are as follows:

• 3% for non-corporate overpayments;
• 2% for corporate overpayments up to USD 10,000;
• 0.5% for the portion of corporate overpayments in excess of USD 10,000;
• 3% for non-corporate and corporate underpayments (other than large corporate underpayments); and
• 5% for large corporate underpayments (i.e. underpayments in excess of USD 100,000).

Revenue Ruling 2021-24 also includes:

• interest factors for daily compound interest for an annual rate of 0.5% (Appendix A); and
• tables including overpayment and underpayment interest rates for prior periods.

Revenue Ruling 2021-24 will be included in the Internal Revenue Bulletin (IRB) 2021-50, dated 13 December 2021.

On 24 November 2021, the United States and India reached an agreement on the treatment of India's digital services tax (DST) during the interim period prior to full implementation of Pillar One of the OECD-G20 agreement.

The US Treasury Department issued a related Press Release dated 24 November 2021. The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) also issued a related Press Release of the same date.

The US-India agreement applies the same terms of the agreements that the United States reached with Austria, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom on 21 October 2021 and with Turkey on 22 November 2021.

Accordingly, in defined circumstances, the liability from India's equalization levy on e-commerce supply of services that US companies accrue in India during the interim period will be creditable against future taxes accrued under Pillar One. The period during which the credit accrues will, however, be from 1 April 2022 until either the implementation of Pillar One or 31 March 2024 (whichever is earlier).

In return, the United States will terminate the currently suspended additional tariffs on goods of India that had been adopted in response to India's equalization levy.

In January 2021, the USTR issued a report concluding that India's equalization levy is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts US commerce. On 2 June 2021, based on the findings, the USTR determined to impose additional tariffs on certain goods of India, while suspending the implementation of the tariffs for 180 days (ending on 29 November 2021).

With this agreement with India, the United States has now reached agreement regarding the treatment of DSTs during the interim period with all seven jurisdictions that the USTR concluded had adopted unreasonable or discriminatory DSTs (i.e. Austria, France, India, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom).

Bulgaria has announced the new Intrastat thresholds for the year 2022. The thresholds for Intrastat reporting purposes are summarized as follows:

• for dispatches: BGN 780,000 (currently, BGN 270,000); and
• for arrivals: BGN 520,000 (currently, BGN 430,000).

The thresholds for declaring statistical value are as follows:

• for dispatches: BGN 18,600,000 (currently, BGN 14,700,000); and
• for arrivals: BGN 8,400,000 (currently, BGN 7,300,000).

The threshold for simplified reporting of single low-value transactions will remain unchanged, i.e. BGN 390.

The full text of the announcement, gazetted on 29 October 2021, is available here (in Bulgarian only).

Natural gas may rise by about 3% in December, according to Bulgargaz's calculations at the moment.

However, these levels may change, as our gas company will submit its final application to the energy regulator (EWRC) in about three weeks.

The company also announced its January forecast, which envisages the sale of fuel at prices that are close to those at the moment - a little over BGN 93 per megawatt-hour without fees and charges.

Source: Novinite

38% use a loan to cover household expenses, 30% - for home repairs, and 14% - for car supplies

46% of Bulgarians have applied for a loan online in 2021. This shows that taking loans online is still the more preferred approach. The data is from a recent online credit market survey prepared by a marketing agency and fully funded by the leading non-bank consumer credit company Cash Credit. A large circle of people from urban areas participated in the survey.

The study also shows that in 2021 the preferred loan amount is BGN 1,000 with a repayment period of 6 months. The most common reasons for withdrawing it are: household consumables (38%), home repairs (30%), car costs (14%) and medical expenses (12%). Although 72% of people plan to cut their spending if there is another lockdown, there are often costs that are difficult to avoid and are listed above.

The data also show that 48% of Bulgarians pay the most attention to the terms of the loan when it comes time to choose the company they can trust. They are interested and make comparisons where the conditions are most favorable to their financial profile and on this basis form their choice. For 30% of consumers, the leading factor is promotions, and 29% are influenced by the recognizability of the company. More than half of the participants in the survey would take a loan from the same credit institution they trusted the previous time, which is not a sure indication of loyalty. The reason is rather their caution and doubts that another company can offer a loan with "hidden fees", which inevitably increases the risks.

Relying on the survey, another conclusion is formed: for 37% of Bulgarians the main reason to change the company they initially trusted is the better interest rates. 23% of consumers will prefer a competitive company if they find better credit terms, and 21% would be repelled by poor service and unfair treatment of employees.

"Two of our core values ​​in the company, trust and transparency, serve as a compass to guide us in the direction we need to go when building our relationships with customers. The study once again showed us how important it is for our customers to know that they can rely on a reliable partner who offers them maximum comfort in service and transparent conditions. We are increasingly striving for the idea of ​​building trust with our customers and listening to their needs and requirements," said Stanislava Stratieva, Marketing Manager of Cash Credit.

The survey also shows that 2/3 of the respondents prefer to repay their loan in equal monthly installments, which indicates the client's demand for security and predictability - something completely understandable, given the 2-year life in a pandemic.

A curious fact is that compared to previous years, there is now a slight increase in interest in standard office services when taking a loan. 33% of people want to have real contact with an employee of the company, which is explained by the purely human sense of greater trust and transparency that the client seeks during a pandemic. Novinite/M3 Communications Group

Push to change existing legislation comes after government failed twice before

High time city catches up with rest of world in updating its copyright regime, minister says

“The thing that is going to help India with a quantum leap in terms of climate is the field of green hydrogen,” – Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Hydrogen has been an upcoming sector across the globe with huge industrial applications. Increasing number of companies across the globe are now exploring the green hydrogen. Green hydrogen has been labelled as one of the cleanest forms of energy in the world. It is being looked at as the ultimate solution to achieve net zero emissions. Through the process of electrolysis, all that is needed to produce hydrogen is water, a big electrolyser and electricity. The electric current then splits the water into its two components- hydrogen and oxygen. This means no release of greenhouse emissions since oxygen is the only by product of this process. Additionally, if the electricity used comes from renewable sources, it makes the process completely emission free.

In line with India’s ambitious green commitments, Prime Minister Narendra Modi aims to transform India into an energy independent nation by 2047 where green hydrogen will play an active role as an alternate fuel to petroleum/ fossil-based products.

To keep pace with global companies, National Hydrogen Mission was announced in Budget Speech of FY 2021-22 to produce the hydrogen from green energy sources. The scheme was announced putting Green Hydrogen at the heart of India’s energy security and climate change.

According to a report by TERI, in 2020, India’s hydrogen demand stood at 6 million Tons (MT) per year. However, studies have shown a tremendous opportunity for growth in this area. It is estimated that by 2030, the hydrogen costs will be down by 50 per cent. The demand for hydrogen is expected to see a 5-fold jump to 28 MT by 2050 where 80 per cent of the demand is expected to be green in nature. Many Indian companies have already started announcing their plans to dip their toes in the green energy sub-sector.

Recently, India’s largest oil and gas sector company, Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has announced its plans to go green. The company has recently announced its plans to become a net zero carbon firm by 2035. RIL has plans to invest in INR 600 billion to build a 5000-acre green energy complex in Jamnagar, Gujarat. The complex will house an electrolyser plant to produce green hydrogen.

GAIL (India), a Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) has floated a recent tender to procure an electrolyser. They are looking at locations to finalise a 10 MW plant, one of the biggest plants announced so far. GAIL has taken a step forward and has already started mixing hydrogen in natural gas on a trial basis in one of the cities. Similarly, NTPC has also shown interest to produce green hydrogen on a commercial scale. They have expressed their plans to do the same from its 4.75 GW park at the Rann of Kutch and have announced a 5 MW plant. Presently, the company is running a pilot in their Vindhyanchal unit. Further the company also has plans to set up green hydrogen fuelling station in Leh, Ladakh and will start with plying 5 hydrogen buses. They have invited Expression of Interests (EOIs) for 10 hydrogen fuel cell buses and cars.

Indian Oil Corporation Limited (IOCL) is another PSU that has announced its plans to explore the green hydrogen opportunity. They recently announced their plans to setup a green hydrogen plant at its Mathura refinery in Uttar Pradesh with a capacity of around 160,000 barrels per day. Acting firmly on their target to convert at least 10 per cent of its hydrogen consumption at the refineries to green hydrogen, they plan to convert 10 percent of the usage in their Mathura location to green sources by the year 2024. IOCL also has plans to setup a hydrogen manufacturing unit in Kochi, which is targeted to draw energy from the solar facility at the Kochi international airport. Additionally, IOCL floated a tender for 15 hydrogen PEM fuel cell electric buses.

Larsen and Tourbo (L&T) is another Indian entity looking to venture into the green hydrogen sector. According to their latest report, they have set an aim to achieve net zero emissions by 2040 and plan to spend INR 10-15 Bn on its green initiatives. In addition to exploring the possibility of manufacturing electrolysers, they are setting up a green hydrogen plant at their Hazira complex, which is scheduled to be completed withing this financial year.

Both Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) are planning to use hydrogen for its refineries. Furthermore, Solar Energy Corporation Limited (SECI), is looking to invite bids to build green hydrogen plants using renewable energy sources. The corporation recently released a Notice Inviting Tenders (NIT) for setting up a Green Hydrogen based pilot project at SNM hospital in Leh, Ladakh.

Establishing India as a global hub for green hydrogen generation, Ohmium International through its subsidiary in India has shipped its first ever unit of electrolyser to the United States. The electrolyser was manufactured in Ohmium’s Bengaluru facility which is India’s first green hydrogen electrolyser Gigafactory.

India’s journey into the green hydrogen space has been path breaking. As of now, the industry faces high cost of production but owing to increased demand, technology upgradation and strong government support, the industry will soon establish economies of scale, driving down the cost. In line with India’s Make in India initiative and its net zero emission targets, the sector provides tremendous scope for growth and investments.

This is authored by Kanika Verma, Invest India

The government has constituted a committee for the determination of RoDTEP rates for exports from special economic zones (SEZs) and export-oriented units (EOUs), as these sectors were left out in the earlier exercise, according to the DGFT. The government in August announced the rates of tax refunds under the export promotion scheme RoDTEP for 8,555 products, such as marine goods, yarn and dairy items. It has set aside Rs 12,454 crore for refunds under the Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme for the current fiscal.

SEZs and EOUs were kept out of the scheme in the list notified in August. The industry was demanding to include them in the scheme.

It said members of trade and industry may submit their representations through the export promotion councils, industry associations, to the RoDTEP committee directly.

Under the RoDTEP, various central and state duties, taxes, and levies imposed on input products, among others, will be refunded to exporters. The three-member committee is chaired by former secretary G K Pillai, former CBEC member Y G Parande and former customs member Gautam Ray. It will submit its report within eight months.

India and the United States have agreed to apply the same terms under the Joint Statement issued by the United States, Austria, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom to India's equalization levy and the corresponding trade action taken by the United States.

In a press release issued by India's Ministry of Finance, India noted that the interim period will be from 1 April 2022 until the implementation of Pillar 1 or 31 March 2024, whichever is earlier. India will remain in close contact with the United States to ensure that there is a common understanding of their commitments and that both countries will endeavour to resolve differences through constructive dialogue. The press release also noted that the final terms of the agreement will be finalized by 1 February 2022.

Negotiations for a comprehensive economic partnership agreement (CEPA) between India and the United Arab Emirates are underway. Further developments will be reported as they occur.

On 24 November 2021, the United States and India reached an agreement on the treatment of India's digital services tax (DST) during the interim period prior to full implementation of Pillar One of the OECD-G20 agreement.

The US Treasury Department issued a related Press Release dated 24 November 2021. The Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) also issued a related Press Release of the same date.

The US-India agreement applies the same terms of the agreements that the United States reached with Austria, France, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom on 21 October 2021 and with Turkey on 22 November 2021.

Accordingly, in defined circumstances, the liability from India's equalization levy on e-commerce supply of services that US companies accrue in India during the interim period will be creditable against future taxes accrued under Pillar One. The period during which the credit accrues will, however, be from 1 April 2022 until either the implementation of Pillar One or 31 March 2024 (whichever is earlier).

In return, the United States will terminate the currently suspended additional tariffs on goods of India that had been adopted in response to India's equalization levy.

In January 2021, the USTR issued a report concluding that India's equalization levy is unreasonable or discriminatory and burdens or restricts US commerce. On 2 June 2021, based on the findings, the USTR determined to impose additional tariffs on certain goods of India, while suspending the implementation of the tariffs for 180 days (ending on 29 November 2021).

With this agreement with India, the United States has now reached agreement regarding the treatment of DSTs during the interim period with all seven jurisdictions that the USTR concluded had adopted unreasonable or discriminatory DSTs (i.e. Austria, France, India, Italy, Spain, Turkey and the United Kingdom).

60

Outlets are set to be opened in Kenya and Uganda by US pizza chain Papa John’s in 2022. These new outlets will be the pizza chain’s first entry into the sub-Saharan African market as it seeks to reinforce its global momentum as a brand. (Business Daily)

Secured by Senegal’s Fleeti startup, which specialises in the administration of vehicle fleets in Africa. This financing, led by early-stage investor Newfund, will go into expanding the firm's reach into new markets and speed up technological developments of its solutions. (Tech Build Africa)

Jump in profit after tax recorded by Absa Bank for the period ending in September 2021. Despite the negative effects experienced due to the ongoing pandemic, Absa’s business units remained profitable and registered growth in key lines. (CEO Business Africa)

$150 million

Funding secured by ETC Group Limited from Africa Development Bank Group to address the company’s working capital requirements and boost its food production expansion plans across 10 countries in Africa and support smallholder farmers. (East African Business Week)

Daily crushing capacity by Salima Sugar company in Malawi on the back of newly procured equipment. The figure represents a doubling of output by the company to help meet domestic demand. (Business Malawi)

New public primary and secondary schools the Zimbabwean government is planning to build by 2025. These new schools will be constructed in a span of four years and this will help prevent children walking long distances to attend class. (New Zimbabwe)

$4 billion

Equity Bank, in collaboration with 37 partners that include UN agencies and development finance institutions, has developed a plan to accelerate post-COVID-19 economic recovery in the East and Central African region through a private sector-driven $4.68 billion stimulus package. (The East African)

Africa's growth in international freight cargo volumes in September, the highest rate compared to any other region in the world, as airlines continue to recover from the impact of COVID-19, according to data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA). (Business Daily)

Capacity of Ivorian telecommunications operator VIPNET after an upgrade from MainOne raised it from 155 Mbps. The Nigerian IT firm partnered with VIPNET as its first local ISP partner in Cote d'Ivoire last year. (Proshare)

51%

Female business owners on the Jumia platform in Kenya, according to the firm's Africa E-commerce Index 2021. Women represent the same proportion of sellers in Nigeria, another of Africa's leading e-commerce markets. Jumia's CEO cited online retail as being 'inherently female-entrepreneur friendly'. (CapitalFm)

Investment planned by Orange, the French multinational telecommunications company, in Egypt in 2022. This was announced during a meeting between several Egyptian emissaries including Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and representatives of a group of the largest French companies held on Monday in Paris. (Egypt Today)

Annual capacity of Sierra Leone's first cocoa processing plant. The facility, launched by Capitol Foods, one of the country's leading agribusinesses will produce cocoa paste for export, sourcing beans from a network of over 2,800 farmers. (Food Business Africa)

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The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has issued new guidelines on the simplified compliance regime for value added tax (VAT) for non-resident suppliers (NRS). The guidelines amend, update or replace the contents of any other guidelines, circulars, notices or other publications previously issued by the FIRS. They were issued pursuant to the FIRS' powers under section 10 of the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act Cap. V1, LFN 2004 (as amended) and will take effect from 1 January 2022 with respect to the supply of services and intangibles, and from 1 January 2024 for goods.

Accordingly, the guidelines apply to supplies, through digital means, of goods, services, intangibles and other digital products made by persons not physically present, located or represented in Nigeria to businesses (business to business, B2B) or consumers (business to consumers, B2C) in Nigeria. They also apply to supplies made by natural persons, trusts, partnerships, corporations, companies and any other persons.

The guidelines further appoint NRS (that can be direct suppliers or intermediaries as the case may be) to collect VAT and remit this to the FIRS. The NRS and any intermediaries are also required to register for VAT on their behalf, issue VAT invoices, and collect and remit VAT due. In addition, resident consumers to whom supplies of taxable goods or services are made in Nigeria are expected to communicate with the NRS on the collection of VAT. However, the NRS will first be required to collect VAT.

To qualify for registration, the NRS is required if, within 12 consecutive months immediately before the coming into effect of the guidelines or any 12 consecutive months thereafter, it has made or expects to make a single supply or series of supplies to Nigeria which (in aggregate value) amount to USD 25,000 (or its equivalent in other currencies) and meet any of the following conditions:

• the supplies are made by the NRS, through digital means, to a person in Nigeria from a location outside Nigeria; and
• the supplies are delivered to, consumed or otherwise utilized in Nigeria.

Upon registration, an NRS will be required to file monthly VAT returns, even for months in which no taxable supply has been made to Nigeria, no later than 21 days after the end of the month in which the supplies were made.

The services covered under the guidelines include (but are not limited to):

• streaming, downloading or obtaining/providing?? access to digital content, including films, music, e-books, magazines, news, applications, games, library services or similar services;
• online gaming;
• online ticketing, excluding international air travels and freight charges;
• online betting services;
• online intermediation platform services, including online marketplaces, payment platforms, ride hailing platforms, travel and accommodation booking, rental services or similar services;
• online advertising services;
• subscription-based social media platforms, including video conferencing applications, instant messaging, chats, dating, image/video sharing or similar services;
• standardized online education services such as e-learning, webinars or similar services;
• cloud computing services, including cloud storage services;
• auction services;
• automated online professional and consultancy services;
• online stores; and
• e-library services.

If the NRS has failed to account for or remit VAT or comply with the guidelines, the FIRS will take all necessary steps to recover the amount due and obtain restitution. Also, the FIRS may use the mutual administrative assistance in tax collection instrument, as appropriate, to collect the tax and do all such things as may be necessary for it to enforce the tax laws and collect the taxes due.

The guidelines were issued on 11 October 2021.

On 12 November 2021, the Cabinet of Rwanda approved the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters, as amended by the 2010 protocol.

In line with the new developments relating to the recently launched Kigali International Financial Centre (KIFC) and the ease of doing business in general, the Rwandan parliament adopted the draft law amending the income tax law that has been in force since 2018. The adopted law aims to raise the employment income taxable base threshold from a monthly income of RWF 30,000 to RWF 60,000 and also introduces, among other changes:

• taxation of digital services;
• taxation of partnerships' income;
• extension of definition of permanent establishment; and
• removal of unrealized foreign exchange losses from deductible expenses and capping realized foreign exchange losses arising from related party loan transactions at 4 times of the borrower's paid-up equity.

The amendment law was adopted on 10 November 2021 and will enter into force upon its promulgation by the President of the Republic and publication in the Official Gazette.