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Double Taxation Agreement
20 June 1974
as amended by the Protocol of 2 April 1980
Article 1
Personal scope
This Convention shall apply to persons who are residents
of one or both of the Contracting States.
Article 2
Taxes covered
1) The taxes which are the subject of this Convention
are:
a) in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and
Northern Ireland: i. the income tax; and ii. the corporation tax;
b) in Cyprus: the income tax.
2) This Convention shall also apply to any identical or substantially
similar taxes which are imposed by either Contracting State after the date
of signature of this Convention in addition to, or in place of, the existing
taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify
to each other any changes which are made in their respective taxation laws.
Article 3
General definitions
1) In this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
a) the term "Cyprus" means the Republic of Cyprus,
and includes any area adjacent to the territorial waters of Cyprus which
in accordance with international law has been or may hereafter be designated,
under the laws of Cyprus concerning the Continental Shelf, as an area within
which the rights of Cyprus with respect to the sea bed and subsoil and
their natural resources may be exercised;
b) the term "United Kingdom" means Great Britain and
Northern Ireland, including any area outside the territorial sea of the
United Kingdom which in accordance with international law has been or may
hereafter be designated, under the laws of the United Kingdom concerning
the Continental Shelf, as an area within which the rights of the United
Kingdom with respect to the sea bed and subsoil and their natural resources
may be exercised;
c) the terms "one of the Contracting States" and "the
other Contracting State" mean the United Kingdom or Cyprus, as the context
requires;
d) the term "United Kingdom tax" means tax imposed by
the United Kingdom, being tax to which this Convention applies by virtue
of the provisions of Article 2; the term "Cyprus tax" means tax imposed
by Cyprus, being tax to which this Convention applies by virtue of the
provisions of Article 2;
e) the term "tax" means United Kingdom tax or Cyprus
tax, as the context requires;
f) the term "company" means any body corporate or any
entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes;
g) the term "individual" means a natural person;
h) the term "person" includes an individual, a company
and a body of persons, but does not include a partnership;
i) the terms "enterprise of one of the Contracting States"
and "enterprise of the other Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise
carried on by a resident of one of the Contracting States and an enterprise
carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State;
j) the term "national" means:
i. in relation to Cyprus: aa) any individual
possessing the citizenship of Cyprus; bb) any legal person, partnership,
association or other entity deriving its status as such from the law in
force in Cyprus;
ii. in relation to the United Kingdom: aa) any citizen
of the United Kingdom and Colonies who derives his status as such from
his connection with the United Kingdom; bb) any legal person, partnership,
association or other entity deriving its status as such from the law of
the United Kingdom;
(k) the term "competent authority" means, in the case of
the United Kingdom, the Commissioners of Inland Revenue or their authorised
representative; and in the case of Cyprus, the Commissioner of Income Tax
or his authorised representative.
2) In the application of this Convention by one of the Contracting
States, any term not otherwise defined shall, unless the context otherwise
requires, have the meaning which it has under the laws of that Contracting
State relating to the taxes which are the subject of this Convention.
Article 4
Fiscal domicile
1) For the purposes of this Convention, the term "resident
of a Contracting State" means any person who, under the law of that State,
is liable to taxation therein by reason of his domicile, residence, place
of management or any other criterion of a similar nature.
2) Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph (1)
of this Aide an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then
his status shall be determined in accordance with the following rules :
a) He shall be deemed to be a resident 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 of the Contracting State with which his
personal and economic relations are closer.
b) If the Contracting State with which his personal and
economic relations are closer 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 of the Contracting State in which he has an habitual
abode.
c) If he has an habitual abode in both Contracting States
or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the Contracting
State of which he is a national.
d) If he is a national of both Contracting States or
of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States
shall determine the question by mutual agreement.
3) Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph (1) of
this Article a person other than an individual is a resident of both Contracting
States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident of the Contracting State
in which its place of effective management is situated.
Article 5
Permanent establishment
1) For the purposes of this Convention, the term "permanent
establishment" means a fixed place of business in which the business of
the enterprise is wholly or partly carried on.
2) The term "permanent establishment" shall include especially:
a) a place of management;
b) a branch;
c) an office;
d) a factory;
e) a workshop;
f) a mine, oil well, quarry or other place of extraction
of natural resources;
g) a building site or construction, installation or assembly
project which exists for more than six months;
h) a farm or plantation;
i) a place of extraction of timber or forest produce.
3) The term "permanent establishment" shall not be deemed
to include:
a) the use of facilities solely for the purpose
of storage, display or delivery of goods or merchandise belonging to the
enterprise;
b) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise
belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage, display
or delivery;
c) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise
belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another
enterprise;
d) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely
for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise, or for collecting information,
for the enterprise;
e) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely
for the purpose of advertising, for the supply of information, for scientific
research or for similar activities which have a preparatory or auxiliary
character, for the enterprise.
4) An enterprise of one of the Contracting States shall be
deemed to have a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State
if:
a) it carries on supervisory activities in that
other Contracting State for more than six months in connection with a construction,
installation or assembly project which is being undertaken in that other
Contracting State;
b) it carries on a business which consists of providing
the services of public entertainers of the kind referred to in Article
17 in that other Contracting State.
5) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (6) of this Article,
a person acting in one of the Contracting States on behalf of an enterprise
of the other Contracting State shall be deemed to be a permanent establishment
in the first-mentioned Contracting State if:
a) he has, and habitually exercises in that first-mentioned
Contracting State, an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the
enterprise, unless his activities are limited to the purchase of goods
or merchandise for the enterprise; or
b) he maintains in the first-mentioned Contracting State
a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise from which
he regularly fills orders on behalf of the enterprise.
6) An enterprise of one of the Contracting States shall not
be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State
merely because it carries on business in that other Contracting State through
a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent
status, where such persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business.
7) The fact that a company which is a resident of one
of the Contracting States 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.
Article 6
Limitation of relief
Where under any provision of this Convention income is
relieved from tax in one of the Contracting States and, under the law in
force in the other Contracting State, a person, in respect of the said
income, is subject to tax by reference to the amount thereof which is remitted
to or received in that other Contracting State and not by reference to
the full amount thereof, then the relief to be allowed under this Convention
in the first-mentioned Contracting State shall apply only to so much of
the income as is remitted to or received in the other Contracting State.
Article 7
Immovable property
1) Income from immovable property may be taxed in the
Contracting State in which property is situated.
2)
a) The term "immovable property" shall subject to the
provisions of subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, be defined in accordance
with the law of the Contracting State in which the property in question
is situated.
b) 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, boats and
aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property.
3) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article 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) of this Article
shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise
and to income from immovable property used for the performance of professional
services.
Article 8
Business profits
1) The profits of an enterprise of one of the Contracting
States 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, tax may be imposed in that other Contracting State on the profits
of the enterprise but only on so much thereof as is attributable to that
permanent establishment.
2) Where an enterprise of one of the Contracting States
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 at arm's length 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 all expenses, including executive
and general administrative expenses, which would be deductible if the permanent
establishment were an independent enterprise, insofar as they are reasonably
allocable to the permanent establishment, whether incurred in the Contracting
State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere.
4) Insofar as it has been customary in a Contracting State
to determine the profits to be attributed to a permanent establishment
on the basis of an apportionment of the total profits of the enterprise
to its various parts, nothing in paragraph (2) of this Article shall preclude
that Contracting State from determining the profits to be taxed by such
an apportionment as may be customary; the method of apportionment adopted
shall, however, be such that the result shall be in accordance with the
principles laid down in this Article.
5) 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.
6) Where profits include any item which is dealt with
separately in another Article of this Convention, the provisions of that
other Article shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article.
Article 9
Associated enterprises
Where:
a) an enterprise of one of the Contracting States participates
directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise
of the other Contracting State; or
b) the same persons participate directly or indirectly
in the management, control of capital of an enterprise of one of the Contracting
States and of 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.
Article 10
Shipping and air transport
1) A resident of one of the Contracting States shall be
exempt from tax in the other Contracting State on profits from the operation
of ships or aircraft in international traffic.
2) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article shall
likewise apply in respect of participation in pools, in a joint business
or in an international operations agency of any kind by enterprises engaged
in the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic.
Article 11
Dividends
1)
a) Dividends derived from a company which is a resident
of the United Kingdom by a resident of Cyprus may be taxed in Cyprus.
b) Where a resident of Cyprus is entitled to a tax credit
in respect of such a dividend under paragraph (2) of this Article tax may
also be charged in the United Kingdom and according to the laws of the
United Kingdom, on the aggregate of the amount or value of that dividend
and the amount of that tax credit at a rate not exceeding 15 per cent.
c) Except as aforesaid dividends derived from a company
which is a resident of the United Kingdom and which are beneficially owned
by a resident of Cyprus shall be exempt from any tax in the United Kingdom
which is chargeable on dividends.
2) A resident of Cyprus who receives dividends from a
company which is a resident of the United Kingdom shall, subject to the
provisions of paragraph (3) of this Article and provided he is the beneficial
owner of the dividends, be entitled to the tax credit in respect thereof
to which an individual resident in the United Kingdom would have been entitled
had he received those dividends, and to the payment of any excess of that
tax credit over his liability to United Kingdom tax.
3) Paragraph (2) of this Article shall not apply where
the beneficial owner of the dividend is a company which either alone or
together with one or more associated companies controls directly or indirectly
at least 10 per cent of the voting power in the company paying the dividend.
For the purposes of this paragraph two companies shall be deemed to be
associated if one is controlled directly or indirectly by the other, or
both are controlled directly or indirectly by a third company.
4) Dividends derived from a company which is a resident
of Cyprus and which are beneficially owned by a resident of the United
Kingdom shall be exempt from any tax in Cyprus which is chargeable on dividends
in addition to the tax chargeable in respect of the profits or income of
the company.
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 corporate rights assimilated to
income from shares by the taxation law of the Contracting State of which
the company making the distribution is a resident and also includes any
other item (other than interest relieved from tax under the provisions
of Article 12 of this Convention) which under the law of the Contracting
State of which the company paying the dividend is a resident, is treated
as a dividend or distribution of a company.
6) If the beneficial owner of the dividends, being a resident
of one of the Contracting States, owns 10 per cent or more of the class
of shares in respect of which the dividends are paid then paragraphs (1)
and (2) or, as the case may be, paragraph (4) of this Article shall not
apply to the dividends to the extent that they can have been paid only
out of profits which the company paying the dividends earned or other income
which is received in a period ending 12 months or more before the relevant
date. For the purposes of this paragraph the term "relevant date" means
the date on which the beneficial owner of the dividends became the owner
of 10 per cent or more of the class of shares in question. Provided that
this paragraph shall apply only if the shares were acquired primarily for
the purpose of securing the benefit of this Article and not for bona fide
commercial reasons.
7) The provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) or, as the
case may be, paragraph (4) of this Article shall not apply where a resident
of one of the Contracting States has in the other Contracting State a permanent
establishment and the holding by virtue of which the dividends are paid
is effectively connected with a business carried on through that permanent
establishment.
8) Where a company which is a resident of one of the Contracting
States 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 to persons who are not residents of that other Contracting
State, or subject the company's undistributed profits to a tax on 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.
9) If the system of taxation applicable in either Contracting
State to the profits or distributions of companies is altered the competent
authorities of both Contracting States may consult each other in order
to determine whether it is necessary for this reason to amend the provisions
of this Article.
Article 12
Interest
1) Interest derived from one of the Contracting States
by a resident of the other Contracting State who is the beneficial owner
thereof may be taxed in the first-mentioned Contracting State at a rate
not exceeding 10 per cent of the gross amount thereof.
2) The term "interest" as used in this Article means income
from Government securities, bonds or debentures, whether or not secured
by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate in profits,
and other debt-claims of every kind as well as all other income assimilated
to income from money lent by the taxation law of the State in which the
income arises.
3) Interest shall be deemed to be derived from a Contracting
State when the payer is that State itself, a political subdivision or a
local authority thereof or a resident of that 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 in connection
with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred,
and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment, then such interest
shall be deemed to be derived from the Contracting State in which the permanent
establishment is situated.
4) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article shall
not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of
one of the Contracting States, has in the other Contracting State from
which the interest is derived a permanent establishment with which the
indebtedness from which the interest arises is effectively connected. In
such a case the provisions of Article 8 shall apply.
5) Where owing to a special relationship between the payer
and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person,
the amount of the interest paid, having regard to the indebtedness 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 a case, the excess part of the payment shall remain taxable according
to the law of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other
provisions of this Convention.
6) The provisions of this Article shall not apply if the
loan or other indebtedness in respect of which the interest is paid was
created or assigned mainly for the purpose of taking advantage of this
Article and not for bona fide commercial reasons.
Article 13
Royalties
1) Royalties derived from a Contracting State by a resident
of the other Contracting State who is the beneficial owner thereof shall
be taxable only in that other State.
2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of
this Article royalties received as consideration for the use of, or the
right to use, cinematograph films including films and video tapes for television
may be taxed in, and according to the law of, the Contracting State from
which they are derived, but the tax so charged shall not exceed 5 per cent
of the gross amount of such royalties.
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 tapes for television or broadcasting, any patent,
trade mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process, or 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) of this Article
shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties, being a resident
of one of the Contracting States, has in the other Contracting State from
which the royalties are derived a permanent establishment with which the
fight or property giving rise to the royalties is effectively connected.
In such a case the provisions of Article 8 shall apply.
5) Where owing to a special relationship between the payer
and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person,
the amount of the royalties paid, 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 a case, the excess part of the payment shall remain taxable according
to the law of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other
provisions of this Convention.
Article 14
Independent personal services
1) Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State
in respect of professional services or other independent activities of
a similar character shall be taxable only in that 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 the 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
Dependent personal services
1) Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18, 19, 20
and 21, 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 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 State.
2) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph (1) of
this Article, 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 State if:
a) the recipient is present in the other State
for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in the
fiscal year concerned, and
b) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer
who is not a resident of the other State, and
c) the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment
or a fixed base which the employer has in the other State.
3) Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article,
remuneration in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft
in international traffic, may be taxed in the Contracting State in which
the enterprise is resident.
Article 16
Directors' fees
Directors' fees and similar payments derived by a resident
of a Contracting State in his capacity as a member of the board of directors
of a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State may be
taxed in that other State.
Article 17
Public entertainers and athletes
1) Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15,
income derived by public entertainers, such as theatre, motion picture,
radio or television artistes, and musicians and by athletes, from their
personal activities as such may be taxed in the Contracting State in which
these activities are exercised.
2) Where the services mentioned in paragraph (1) of this
Article are provided in one of the Contracting States by an enterprise
of the other Contracting State, then the income derived from providing
those services by such enterprise shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned
Contracting State, if the enterprise is directly or indirectly supported,
wholly or substantially, from the public funds of the Government of that
other Contracting State in connection with the provision of such services.
Article 18
Governmental functions
1) Remuneration (other than pensions) paid out of public
funds of the United Kingdom or Northern Ireland or of the funds of any
local authority in the United Kingdom to any individual in respect of services
rendered to the Government of the United Kingdom or Northern Ireland or
a local authority in the United Kingdom in the discharge of functions of
a governmental nature, shall be taxable only in the United Kingdom unless
the individual is a Cyprus national without also being a United Kingdom
national.
2) Remuneration (other than pensions) paid by, or out
of funds created by, Cyprus or a local authority thereof to any individual
in respect of services rendered to the Government of Cyprus or a local
authority thereof, in the discharge of functions of a governmental nature,
shall be taxable only in Cyprus unless the individual is a United Kingdom
national without also being a Cyprus national.
3) The provisions of paragraphs (1) and (2) of this Article
shall not apply to remuneration in respect of services rendered in connection
with any trade or business.
Article 19
Pensions
1) Any pension and any annuity derived from sources within
one of the Contracting States by an individual who is a resident of the
other Contracting State and subject to tax in that other State in respect
thereof shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned Contracting State.
2) The term "annuity" means a stated sum payable periodically
at stated times, during life or during a specified or ascertainable period
of time, under an obligation to make the payments in return for adequate
and full consideration in money or money's worth.
Article 20
Teachers
An individual who, at the invitation of a university,
college, school or other similar recognised educational institution in
one of the Contracting States, visits that Contracting State for a period
not exceeding two years solely for the purpose of teaching at such educational
institution and who is, or was immediately before that visit, a resident
of the other Contracting State shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned
Contracting State or any remuneration for such teaching in respect of which
he is subject to tax in the other Contracting State.
Article 21
Students and trainees
1) An individual who is or was a resident of one of the
Contracting States immediately before making a visit to the other Contracting
State and is temporarily present in that other Contracting State solely
as a student at a university, college, school or other similar recognised
educational institution in that other Contracting State or as a business
or technical apprentice therein, shall be exempt from tax in that other
Contracting State on:
a) all remittances from the first-mentioned Contracting
State for the purposes of his maintenance, education or claiming; and
b) any income not exceeding the sum of £600 sterling
in the case of the United Kingdom or the equivalent in Cyprus pounds in
the case of Cyprus during any year of assessment, which is derived from
the other Contracting State in respect of services rendered in that other
Contracting State (other than any rendered by a business or technical apprentice
to the person or partnership to whom he is apprenticed), with a view to
supplementing the resources available to him for such purposes. Where the
income exceeds that sum the excess shall be taxable in accordance with
the law of that other State.
2) An individual who is or was a resident of one of the Contacting
States immediately before making a visit to the other Contracting State
and is temporarily present in that other Contracting State for the purposes
of study, research or training solely as a recipient of a grant, allowance
or award from the Government of either of the Contracting States or from
a scientific, educational, religious or charitable organisation or under
a technical assistance programme entered into by the Government of either
of the Contracting States shall, for a period not exceeding four years
from the date of his first arrival in that other Contracting State in connection
with that visit, be exempt from tax in that other Contracting State on:
a) the amount of such grant, allowance or award;
and
b) any income derived from that other Contracting State
in respect of services in that other Contracting State if the services
are performed in connection with his study, research, daining or are incidental
thereto.
3) An individual who is or was a resident of one of the Contracting
States immediately before making a visit to the other Contracting State
and is temporarily present in that other Contracting State solely as an
employee of, or under contract with, the Government or an enterprise of
the first-mentioned Contracting State for the purpose of acquiring technical,
professional or business experience for a period not exceeding two years
from the date of his first arrival in that other Contracting State in connection
with that visit shall be exempt in that other Contracting State on:
a) all remittances from the first-mentioned Contracting
State for the purposes of his maintenance, education or training; and
b) any remuneration, not exceeding 1,200 pounds sterling
or the equivalent in Cyprus pounds, as the case may be, for personal services
rendered in that other Contracting State, provided such services are in
connection with his studies or training or are incidental thereto. Where
the remuneration exceeds that sum the excess shall be taxable in accordance
with the law of that other State.
4) In this Article, references to a Government shall include
references to a statutory body established in a contracting State in order
to carry on a public utility undertaking under national control.
Article 22
Government income
1) The Government of one of the Contracting States shall
be exempt from tax in the other Contracting State in respect of any income
derived by such Government from that other Contracting State.
2) For the purposes of paragraph (1) of this Article,
the term "Government":
a) in the case of Cyprus means the Government
of Cyprus and shall include: i. the local authorities; ii. the Central
Bank of Cyprus; iii. such institutions, the capital of which is wholly
owned by the Government of Cyprus or the local authorities, as may be agreed
from time to time between the Governments of the two Contracting States;
b) in the case of the United Kingdom means the Government
of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and shall include:
i. the local authorities; ii. the Bank of England; iii. such institutions,
the capital of which is wholly owned by the Government of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland or the local authorities, as may
be agreed from time to time between the Governments of the two Contracting
States.
Article 23
Income not expressly mentioned
Items of income of a resident of a Contracting State which
are not expressly mentioned in the foregoing Articles of this Convention
shall be taxable only in that State. This provision shall not apply to
income paid out of trusts.
Article 24
Elimination of double taxation
1) The laws of each of the Contracting States shall continue
to govern the taxation of income whether derived from the Contracting State
or elsewhere except where express provisions to the contrary are made in
this Convention. Where income derived from one of the Contracting States
is subject to tax in both Contracting States, relief from tax chargeable
on such income shall be given in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs
(2) and (3) of this Article.
2) Subject to the provisions of the law of Cyprus regarding
the allowance as a credit against Cyprus tax of tax payable in a territory
outside Cyprus (which shall not affect the general principle hereof) -
a) United Kingdom tax payable under the laws
of the United Kingdom and in accordance with this Convention, whether directly
or by deduction, on profits or income from sources within the United Kingdom
shall be allowed as a credit against any Cyprus tax computed by reference
to the same profits or income by reference to which the United Kingdom
tax is computed. Provided that in the case of a dividend the credit shall
only take into account such tax in respect thereof as is additional to
any tax payable by the company on the profits out of which the dividend
is paid and is ultimately borne by the recipient without reference to any
tax so payable.
b) Where a company which is a resident of the United
Kingdom pays a dividend to a company resident in Cyprus which controls
directly or indirectly at least l0 per cent of the voting power of the
first-mentioned company, the credit shall take into account (in addition
to any United Kingdom tax for which credit may be allowed under the provisions
of sub-paragraph (a) of this paragraph) the United Kingdom tax payable
by that first-mentioned company in respect of the profits out of which
such dividend is paid.
3) Subject to the provisions of the law of the United Kingdom
regarding the allowance as a credit against United Kingdom tax of tax payable
in a territory outside the United Kingdom (which shall not affect the general
principle hereof):
a) Cyprus tax payable under the laws of Cyprus
and in accordance with this Convention, whether directly or by deduction,
on profits or income from sources within Cyprus shall be allowed as a credit
against any United Kingdom tax computed by reference to the same profits
or income by reference to which the Cyprus tax is computed. Provided that
in the case of a dividend the credit shall only take into account such
tax in respect thereof as is additional to any tax payable by the company
on the profits out of which the dividend is paid and is ultimately borne
by the recipient without reference to any tax so payable.
b) Where a company which is a resident of Cyprus pays
a dividend to a company resident in the United Kingdom which controls directly
or indirectly at least 10 per cent of the voting power in the first-mentioned
company, the credit shall take into account (in addition to any Cyprus
tax for which credit may be allowed under the provisions of sub-paragraph
(a) of this paragraph) the Cyprus tax payable by the first-mentioned company
in respect of the profits out of which such dividend is paid.
4) For the purpose of paragraphs (2) and (3) of this Article
profits and income derived by a resident of one of the Contracting States
which may be taxed in the other Contracting State in accordance with this
Convention shall be deemed to be derived from the other Contracting State.
5) For the purposes of paragraph (3) of this Article,
the term "Cyprus tax payable" shall be deemed to include:
a) any amount which would have been payable as
Cyprus tax for any year but for an exemption or reduction of tax granted
for that year or any part thereof under Section 10 of the Income Tax Laws
1961 to 1969 of Cyprus (so far as it was in force on, and has not been
modified since, the date of signature of this Convention, or has been modified
only in minor respects so as not to affect its general character), in any
case where the interest in question is certified by the competent authority
of Cyprus as being payable in respect of a loan made for the purposes of
promoting development in Cyprus; or
b) in the case of any approved capital expenditure, any
amount which would have been payable as Cyprus tax but for an investment
deduction allowed under Section 12(2) (b) or (c) of the Cyprus Income Tax
Laws 1961 to 1969 (so far as they were in force on, and have not been modified
since, the date of signature of this Convention or have been modified only
in minor respects so as not to affect their general character). For the
purposes of this sub-paragraph the term "approved capital expenditure"
means capital expenditure which is incurred, on or after the date of signature
of this Convention and not later than 5 years after the commencement of
the trade or business in question, by an enterprise wholly or mainly engaged
in the hotel business or in activities falling within one of the following
classes:
i) manufacturing, assembling or processing;
ii) construction, civil engineering or shipbuilding;
or
iii) electricity, hydraulic power, gas or water supply;
and which is certified by the competent authority of Cyprus as incurred
for the purposes of promoting development in Cyprus; or
c) any amount which would have been payable as Cyprus tax
for any year but for an exemption or reduction of tax granted for that
year or any part thereof under any other provision which may be made after
the date of signature of this Convention granting an exemption or reduction
of tax which is agreed by the competent authorities of the Contracting
States to be of a substantially similar character, if it has not been modified
thereafter or has been modified only in minor respects so as not to affect
its general character.
Article 24A
Excluded persons
1) The provisions of paragraphs (1)(b) and (c) and (2)
of Article 11, paragraph (1) of Article 12 and paragraphs (1) and (2) of
Article 13 shall not apply to persons entitled to any special tax benefit
under any of the Sections listed below of the Cyprus Income Tax Laws 1961
to 1977:
a) Section 5(2)(c)(1) in so far as the tax charged
is at a rate less than the rate prescribed for individuals in paragraph
1 of the Second Schedule to the Cyprus Income Tax Laws 1961 to 1977 or
which may hereafter otherwise be prescribed for individuals generally;
b) Section 8 (w) ;
c) Section 28A.
Provided that where an individual is entitled to a special
tax benefit under Section 5(2) (c) (1) of the Cyprus Income Tax Laws 1961
to 1977 this Article shall not apply in relation to the first £1,500
sterling of the income arising in the United Kingdom in a year of assessment,
and otherwise subject to tax in accordance with United Kingdom law, in
respect of which that benefit is enjoyed.
2) This Article shall apply also to any provision of Cyprus
law enacted after 1 January 1978 which is of an identical or substantially
similar character to the provisions mentioned in paragraph (1) of this
Article.
Article 25
Non-discrimination
1) The nationals of one of the Contracting States 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 are or may be subjected.
2) The taxation on a permanent establishment which an
enterprise of one of the Contracting States has in the other Contracting
State shall not be less favourably levied in that other Contracting State
than the taxation levied on an enterprise of that other Contracting State
carrying on the same activities.
3) Enterprises of one of the Contracting States, 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 that first-mentioned
Contracting State are or may be subjected.
4) Nothing contained in this Article shall be construed
as obliging either Contracting State to grant to individuals not resident
in that Contracting State any of the personal allowances, reliefs and reductions
for tax purposes which are granted to individuals so resident.
5) In this Article the term "taxation" means taxes which
are the subject of this Convention.
Article 26
Exchange of information
1) The competent authorities of the Contracting States
shall exchange such information as is necessary for carrying out the provisions
of this Convention or for the prevention of fiscal evasion or for the administration
of statutory provisions against tax avoidance in relation to the taxes
which are the subject of this Convention. Any information so exchanged
shall be treated as secret and shall not be disclosed to any persons or
authorities other than those, including a court or administrative body,
concerned with assessment, collection, enforcement or prosecution in respect
of those taxes or the determination of appeals in relation thereto.
2) In no case shall the provisions of paragraph (1) of
this Article be construed so as to impose on one of the Contracting States
the obligation:
a) to carry out administrative measures at variance
with the laws or the administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting
State;
b) to supply particulars which are not obtainable under
the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the
other Contracting State;
c) 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.
Article 27
Mutual agreement procedure
1) Where a resident of one of the Contracting States considers
that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will
result for him in taxation not in accordance with this Convention, he may,
notwithstanding the remedies provided by the taxation laws in force in
the Contracting States, present his case to the competent authority of
the Contracting State of which he is a resident.
2) The competent authority of the first-mentioned Contracting
State shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and
if it is not itself able to arrive at an appropriate solution, to resolve
that 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 this Convention.
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.
4) The competent authorities of the Contracting States
may communicate with each other directly for the purposes of giving effect
to the provisions of this Convention.
Article 28
Territorial extension
1) This Convention may be extended, either in its entirety
or with modifications, to any territory for whose international relations
the United Kingdom is responsible and which imposes taxes substantially
similar in character to those which are the subject of this Convention,
and any such extension shall take effect from such date and subject to
such modifications and conditions (including conditions as to termination)
as may be specified and agreed between the Governments of the Contracting
States in Notes to be exchanged for this purpose.
2) The termination in respect of the United Kingdom or
Cyprus of this Convention under Article 30 shall, unless otherwise expressly
agreed by the Governments of both Contracting States, terminate the application
of this Convention to any territory to which this Convention has been extended
under this Article.
Article 29
Entry into force
1) This Convention shall enter into force when the last
of all such things shall have been done in the United Kingdom and Cyprus
as are necessary to give the Convention the force of law in the United
Kingdom and Cyprus respectively, and shall thereupon have effect:
a) in the United Kingdom: i. as respects income
tax, for any year of assessment beginning on or after 6 April 1973 ; and
ii. as respects corporation tax, for any financial year beginning on or
after 1 April 1973 ;
b) in Cyprus: as respects Cyprus tax for any year of
assessment beginning on or after 1 January 1973.
2) Subject to the provisions of paragraph (3) of this Article
the existing Arrangement shall cease to have effect as respects taxes to
which this Convention in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (1)
of this Article applies.
3) Where any provision of the existing Arrangement would
have afforded any greater relief from tax, any such provision as aforesaid
shall continue to have effect for any year of assessment or financial year
beginning before the entry into force of this Convention.
4) The existing Arrangement between the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and Cyprus shall terminate on the
last date on which it has effect in accordance with the foregoing provisions
of this Article.
5) In this Article the term "the existing Arrangement"
means the Arrangement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention
of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income which was in force between
Her Majesty's Government and the Government of Cyprus immediately before
16 August 1960, when the independent sovereign Republic of Cyprus was established,
and which has continued in force since that date between the Government
of the United Kingdom and the Government of the Republic of Cyprus, as
amended by the Agreement signed at Nicosia on 7 March 1968 and by the Supplementary
Agreement signed at London on 18 May 1973.
Article 30
Termination
This Convention shall remain in force indefinitely but
the Government of either Contracting State may, on or before the thirtieth
day of June in any Calendar year give notice of termination to the Government
of the other Contracting State and, in such event, the Convention shall
cease to be effective:
a) in Cyprus: as respects Cyprus tax for the
year of assessment next following that in which such notice is given and
subsequent years of assessment;
b) in the United Kingdom: i. as respects income tax for
any year of assessment beginning on or after 6 April in the calendar year
next following that in which such notice is given. ii. as respects corporation
tax, for any financial year beginning on or after 1 April in the calendar
year next following that in which such notice is given.
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