CONVENTION
BETWEEN
AUSTRIA AND BELIZE WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME AND ON CAPITAL
Austria and Belize, desiring
to conclude a Convention with respect to taxes on income and on capital,
Have agreed as follows:
Article 1
PERSONS
COVERED
This
Convention shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the
Contracting States.
Article 2
TAXES
COVERED
(1) This
Convention shall apply to taxes on income and on capital imposed on behalf of a
Contracting State or of its political subdivisions or local authorities, irrespective
of the manner in which they are levied.
(2) There shall
be regarded as taxes on income and on capital all taxes imposed on total
income, on total capital, or on elements of income or of capital, including
taxes on gains from the alienation of movable or immovable property, taxes on
the total amounts of wages or salaries paid by enterprises, as well as taxes on
capital appreciation.
(3) The
existing taxes to which the Convention shall apply are in particular:
a) in Austria:
i. the income tax (die Einkommensteuer);
ii. the corporation tax (die Körperschaftsteuer);
iii. the land tax (die Grundsteuer);
iv. the tax on agricultural and forestry enterprises (die Abgabe von land- und forstwirtschaftlichen Betrieben);
v. the tax on the value of vacant plots (die Abgabe vom Bodenwert bei unbebauten Grundstücken);
b) in Belize:
i.
the income tax;
ii.
the business tax;
iii. the land tax;
iv. the property tax.
(4) The
Convention shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes that
are imposed after the date of signature of the Convention in addition to, or in
place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting
States shall notify each other of any significant changes that have been made
in their taxation laws.
Article 3
GENERAL
DEFINITIONS
(1) For the
purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
a) the term „person“ includes an individual, a
company and any other body of
persons, whether corporated or unincorporated;
b) the term „company“ means any body corporate or
any entity that is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes;
c)
the
term „enterprise“ applies to the carrying on of any business;
d) the terms „enterprise of a Contracting State“
and „enterprise of the other Contracting State“ mean respectively an enterprise
carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by
a resident of the other Contracting State;
e) the term „international traffic“ means any
transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise that has its place of
effective management in a Contracting State, except when the ship or aircraft
is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State;
f)
the
term „competent authority“ means:
i. in Austria: the Federal Minister of Finance or
his authorised representative;
ii. in Belize: the Minister of Finance or his
authorised representative;
g) the term „national“ means:
i. any individual possessing the
nationality of a Contracting State;
ii. any legal person, partnership
or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a
Contracting State;
h) the term „business“ includes the performance of
professional services and of other activities of an independent character.
(2) As regards
the application of the Convention at any time by a Contracting State,
any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have
the meaning that it has at that time under the law of that State for the
purposes of the taxes to which the Convention applies, any meaning under the
applicable tax laws of that State prevailing over a meaning given to the term
under other laws of that State.
Article 4
RESIDENT
(1) For the
purposes of this Convention, the term „resident of a Contracting State“ means
any person who, under the laws of that State, is liable to tax therein by
reason of his domicile, residence,
place of management or any other criterion of a similar nature, and also
includes that State and any political subdivision or local authority thereof.
This term, however, does not include any person who is liable to tax in that
State in respect only of income from sources in that State or capital situated
therein.
(2) Where by
reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both
Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows:
a) he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the
State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent
home available to him in both States, he shall be deemed to be a resident only
of the State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre
of vital interests);
b) if the State in which he has his centre of
vital interests cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home
available to him in either State, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of
the State in which he has an habitual abode;
c) if he has an habitual abode in both States or
in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State of
which he is a national;
d) if he is a national of both States or of
neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall
endeavour to settle the question by mutual agreement.
(3) Where by
reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual is a
resident of both Contracting States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident
only of the 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 through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or
partly carried on.
(2) The term
„permanent establishment“ includes especially:
a) a place of management;
b) a branch;
c) an office;
d) a factory;
e) a workshop, and
f) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any
other place of extraction of natural resources.
(3) A building
site or construction or installation project constitutes a permanent
establishment only if it lasts more than twelve months.
(4)
Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term „permanent establishment“ shall be
deemed not to include:
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 of collecting
information, for the enterprise;
e) the maintenance of a fixed place of business
solely for the purpose of carrying on, for the enterprise, any other activity
of a preparatory or auxiliary character;
f)
the
maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of
activities mentioned in subparagraphs a) to e), provided that the overall activity
of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a
preparatory or auxiliary character.
(5)
Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person ‑ other
than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies ‑ is
acting on behalf of an enterprise and has, and habitually exercises, in a
Contracting State an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the
enterprise, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment
in that State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the
enterprise, unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned
in paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business, would not
make this fixed place of business a permanent establishment under the
provisions of that paragraph.
(6) An enterprise shall not be deemed to have
a permanent establishment in a Contracting State merely because it carries on
business in that State through a broker, general commission agent or any other
agent of an independent status, provided that such persons are acting in the
ordinary course of their business.
(7) The fact
that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is
controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in
that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise),
shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the
other.
Article 6
INCOME
FROM IMMOVABLE PROPERTY
(1) Income
derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property (including income from agriculture or
forestry) situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other
State.
(2) The term
„immovable property“ shall have the meaning which it has under the law of the
Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall
in any case include property accessory to immovable property, livestock and
equipment used in agriculture and forestry, rights to which the provisions of
general law respecting landed property
apply, usufruct of immovable property and rights to variable or fixed
payments as consideration for the working of, or the right to work, mineral deposits,
sources and other natural resources; ships and aircraft shall not be regarded
as immovable property.
(3) The
provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use,
letting, or use in any other form of immovable property.
(4) The
provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable
property of an enterprise.
Article 7
BUSINESS
PROFITS
(1) The profits
of an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State
unless the enterprise carries on business in the other Contracting State
through a permanent establishment situated therein. If the enterprise carries
on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in the
other State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent
establishment.
(2) Subject to
the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State
carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent
establishment situated therein, there shall in each Contracting State be
attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it might be
expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the
same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing
wholly independently with the enterprise of which it is a permanent
establishment.
(3) In
determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as
deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the permanent
establishment, including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred,
whether in the 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
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 contained 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) For the
purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the profits to be attributed to the
permanent establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year
unless there is good and sufficient reason to the contrary.
(7) Where
profits include items of income which are dealt with separately in other
Articles of this Convention, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be
affected by the provisions of this Article.
Article 8
SHIPPING
AND AIR TRANSPORT
(1) Profits
from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be
taxable only in the Contracting State in which the place of effective
management of the enterprise is situated.
(2) If the
place of effective management of a shipping enterprise is aboard a ship, then
it shall be deemed to be situated in the Contracting State in which the home
harbour of the ship is situated, or, if there is no such home harbour, in the
Contracting State of which the operator of the ship is a resident.
(3) The
provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to profits from the participation in
a pool, a joint business or an international operating agency.
Article 9
ASSOCIATED
ENTERPRISES
(1) Where
a) an enterprise of a Contracting State
participates directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an
enterprise of the other Contracting State, or
b) the same persons participate directly or
indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of a
Contracting State and an enterprise of the other Contracting State,
and
in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in
their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be
made between independent enterprises, then any profits which would, but for
those conditions, have accrued to one of the enterprises, but, by reason of
those conditions, have not so accrued, may be included in the profits of that
enterprise and taxed accordingly.
(2) Where a
Contracting State includes in the profits of an enterprise of that State ‑ and
taxes accordingly ‑ profits on which an enterprise of the other Contracting
State has been charged to tax in that other State and the profits so included
are profits which would have accrued to the enterprise of the first‑mentioned
State if the conditions made between the two enterprises had been those which
would have been made between independent enterprises, then that other State
shall make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax charged therein
on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to
the other provisions of this Convention and the competent authorities of the
Contracting States shall if necessary consult each other.
Article 10
DIVIDENDS
(1) Dividends
paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of
the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
(2) However, such
dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company
paying the dividends is a resident and according to the laws of that State, but
if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting
State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends
if the beneficial owner is a company (other than a partnership) which holds
directly at least 25 per cent of the capital of the company paying the
dividends;
b) 15 per cent of the gross amount of the
dividends in all other cases.
The
competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement
settle the mode of application of these limitations.
This paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the
company in respect of the profits out of which the dividends are paid.
(3) The term
„dividends“ as used in this Article means income from shares, „jouissance“
shares or „jouissance“ rights, mining shares, founders' shares or other rights,
not being debt‑claims, participating in profits, as well as income from other
corporate rights which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income
from shares by the laws of the State of which the company making the
distribution is a resident.
(4) The
provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the
dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the
other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident
through a permanent establishment situated therein and the holding in respect
of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such permanent
establishment. In such case the provisions of Article 7 shall apply.
(5) Where a
company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income
from the other Contracting State, that other State may not impose any tax on
the dividends paid by the company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to
a resident of that other State or insofar as the holding in respect of which
the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent establishment
situated in that other State, nor subject the company's undistributed profits
to a tax on the company's undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or
the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising
in such other State.
Article 11
INTEREST
(1) Interest
arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting
State may be taxed only in that other State.
(2) The term
„interest“ as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind,
whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to
participate in the debtor's profits, and in particular, income from government
securities and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes
attaching to such securities, bonds or debentures. Penalty charges for late
payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purpose of this Article.
(3) The
provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the
interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the
other Contracting State in which the interest arises through a permanent
establishment situated therein and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest
is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment. In such
case the provisions of Article 7 shall apply.
(4) Where, by
reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or
between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest, having
regard to the debt-claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would
have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of
such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last‑mentioned
amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable
according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the
other provisions of this Convention.
Article 12
ROYALTIES
(1) Royalties
arising in a Contracting State and beneficially owned by a resident of the
other Contracting State shall be taxable only in that other State.
(2) 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, any patent, trade
mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process, or for information
concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience.
(3) The
provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the
royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the
other Contracting State in which the royalties arise through a permanent
establishment situated therein and the right or property in respect of which
the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent
establishment. In such case the provisions of Article 7 shall apply.
(4) Where, by
reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or
between both of them and some other person, the amount of the royalties, having
regard to the use, right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the
amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner
in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply
only to the last‑mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the
payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State,
due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.
Article 13
CAPITAL
GAINS
(1) Gains
derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable
property referred to in Article 6 and situated in the other Contracting State
may be taxed in that other State.
(2) Gains from
the alienation of movable property forming part of the business property of a
permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the
other Contracting State, including such gains from the alienation of such a
permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise), may be taxed in
that other State.
(3) Gains from
the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic, or
movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft, shall
be taxable only in the Contracting State in which the place of effective
management of the enterprise is situated.
(4) Gains from
the alienation of any property other than that referred to in paragraphs 1, 2
and 3, shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is
a resident.
Article 14
INCOME
FROM EMPLOYMENT
(1) Subject to
the provisions of Articles 15, 17, 18, and 19, salaries, wages and other
similar remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of
an employment shall be taxable only in that 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, 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 calendar
(basis) 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 which the employer has in the other State.
(3)
Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived
in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in
international traffic may be taxed in the Contracting State in which the place
of effective management of the enterprise is situated.
Article 15
DIRECTORS'
FEES
Directors'
fees and other similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State in
his capacity as a member of the board of directors of a company which is a
resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
Article 16
ARTISTES
AND SPORTSMEN
(1)
Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7 and 14, income derived by a
resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion
picture, radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsman, from
his personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State, may
be taxed in that other State.
(2) Where
income in respect of personal activities exercised by an entertainer or a
sportsman in his capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsman
himself but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions
of Articles 7 and 14, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities
of the entertainer or sportsman are exercised.
Article 17
PENSIONS
Subject
to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 18, pensions and other similar
remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State in consideration of past
employment shall be taxable only in that State.
Article 18
GOVERNMENT
SERVICE
(1) a) Salaries,
wages and other similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a
Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an
individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or
authority shall be taxable only in that State.
b) However,
such salaries, wages and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in
the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the
individual is a resident of that State who:
i. is a national of that State; or
ii. did not become a resident of
that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.
(2)
a) Any pension paid by, or out of funds
created by, a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority
thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or
subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State.
b) However,
such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the
individual is a resident of, and a national of, that State.
(3) The
provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall likewise apply in respect of remuneration
paid to the Austrian Foreign Trade Commissioner in Belize and to the members of
the staff of that Austrian Foreign Trade Commissioner.
(4) The
provisions of Articles 14, 15, 16, and 17 shall apply to salaries, wages and
other similar remuneration, and to pensions, in respect of services rendered in
connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or a political
subdivision or a local authority thereof.
Article 19
STUDENTS
(1) Payments
which a student or business apprentice who is or was immediately before visiting a Contracting State a
resident of the other Contracting State and who is present in the first‑mentioned
State solely for the purpose of his education or training receives for the
purpose of his maintenance, education or training shall not be taxed in that
State, provided that such payments arise from sources outside that State.
(2)
Remuneration which a student or business apprentice who is or was formerly a
resident of a Contracting State derives from an employment which he exercises
in the other Contracting State for a period or periods not exceeding in the
aggregate 183 days in the fiscal year concerned shall not be taxed in that
other State if the employment is directly related to his studies or
apprenticeship carried out in the first‑mentioned State.
Article 20
OTHER
INCOME
(1) Items of
income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with
in the foregoing Articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that
State.
(2) The
provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to income, other than income from
immovable property as defined in paragraph 2 of Article 6, if the recipient of
such income, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in
the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein
and the right or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively
connected with such permanent establishment. In such case the provisions of
Article 7 shall apply.
(3) Income
derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the other Contracting State
under a legal claim to maintenance may not be taxed in the first-mentioned
State if such income would be exempt from tax according to the laws of the
other Contracting State.
Article 21
CAPITAL
(1) Capital
represented by immovable property referred to in Article 6, owned by a resident
of a Contracting State and situated in the other Contracting State, may be
taxed in that other State.
(2) Capital
represented by movable property forming part of the business property of a
permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the
other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
(3) Capital
represented by ships and aircraft operated in international traffic, and by
movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships and aircraft, shall
be taxable only in the Contracting State in which the place of effective
management of the enterprise is situated.
(4) All other
elements of capital of a resident of a Contracting State shall be taxable only
in that State.
Article 22
ELIMINATION
OF DOUBLE TAXATION
Double
taxation shall be eliminated as follows:
(1) In Austria:
a) Where a resident of Austria derives income or
owns capital which, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, may
be taxed in Belize, Austria shall allow:
i.
as a deduction from the
tax on the income of that resident, an amount equal to the income tax paid in
Belize.
ii.
as a deduction from the
tax on the capital of that resident, an amount equal to the capital tax paid in
Belize.
Such
deduction in either case shall not, however, exceed that part of the income tax
or capital tax, as computed before the deduction is given, which is attributable,
as the case may be, to the income or the capital which may be taxed in Belize.
b) Where in accordance with any provision of the
Convention income derived or capital owned by a resident of Austria is exempt
from tax in Austria, Austria may nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax
on the remaining income or capital of such resident, take into account the
exempted income or capital.
(2) In Belize:
Where a resident of Belize derives income or owns capital which, in
accordance with the provisions of this Convention, may be taxed in Austria,
Belize shall exempt such income or capital from tax.
Article 23
NON‑DISCRIMINATION
(1) Nationals
of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State to
any taxation or any requirement connected therewith, which is other or more
burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of
that other State in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to
residence, are or may be subjected. This provision shall, notwithstanding the
provisions of Article 1, also apply to persons who are not residents of one or
both of the Contracting States.
(2) Stateless
persons who are residents of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in
either 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 the State concerned in the same
circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be subjected.
(3) The
taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting
State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in
that other State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other State carrying on the same
activities. This provision shall not be construed as obliging a Contracting
State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State any personal
allowances, reliefs and reductions for taxation purposes on account of civil
status or family responsibilities which it grants to its own residents.
(4) Except
where the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 9, paragraph 4 of Article 11, or
paragraph 4 of Article 12, apply, interest, royalties and other disbursements
paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other
Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of
such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been
paid to a resident of the first‑mentioned State. Similarly, any debts of an
enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State
shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable capital of such enterprise,
be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been contracted to a
resident of the first‑mentioned State.
(5) Enterprises
of a Contracting State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or
controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other
Contracting State, shall not be subjected in the first‑mentioned State to any
taxation or any requirement connected therewith which is other or more
burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which other similar
enterprises of the first‑mentioned State are or may be subjected.
(6) The
provisions of this Article shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 2,
apply to taxes of every kind and description.
Article 24
MUTUAL
AGREEMENT PROCEDURE
(1) Where a
person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States
result or will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions
of this Convention, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the
domestic law of those States, present his case to the competent authority of
the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under
paragraph 1 of Article 23, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a
national. The case must be presented within three years from the first
notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the
provisions of the Convention.
(2) The
competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be
justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to
resolve the case by mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other
Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation which is not in
accordance with the Convention. Any agreement reached shall be implemented
notwithstanding any time limits in the domestic law of the Contracting States.
(3) The
competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by
mutual agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or
application of the Convention. They may also consult together for the
elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Convention.
(4) The
competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other
directly, including through a joint commission consisting of themselves or
their representatives, for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of
the preceding paragraphs.
Article 25
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 of the
domestic laws concerning taxes of every kind and description imposed on behalf
of the Contracting States, or of their political subdivisions or local
authorities, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to the
Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by Articles 1 and 2.
Any information received by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in
the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that State
and shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and
administrative bodies) concerned with the assessment or collection of, the
enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in
relation to the taxes referred to in the first sentence. Such persons or
authorities shall use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose
the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions.
(2) In no case
shall the provisions of paragraph 1 be construed so as to impose on a
Contracting State the obligation:
a) to carry out administrative measures at
variance with the laws and administrative practice of that or of the other
Contracting State;
b) to supply information which is not obtainable
under the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the
other Contracting State;
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 (ordre public) or to the fundamental rights granted by a State, in
particular in the area of data protection.
Article 26
MEMBERS
OF DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS AND CONSULAR POSTS
Nothing
in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of members of diplomatic
missions or consular posts under the general rules of international law or
under the provisions of special agreements.
Article 27
ENTRY
INTO FORCE
(1) This
Convention shall be ratified and the instruments of ratification shall be
exchanged as soon as possible.
(2) The
Convention shall enter into force on the first day of the third month next
following that in which the exchange of instruments of ratification takes place
and its provisions shall have effect in respect of taxes for any fiscal year
beginning after December 31 in the calendar year in which the exchange of
instruments of ratification takes place.
Article 28
TERMINATION
This
Convention shall remain in force until terminated by a Contracting State.
Either Contracting State may terminate the Convention, through diplomatic
channels, by giving written notice of termination on or before the thirtieth
day of June in a calendar year after the fifth year from the date of entry into
force of the Convention. In such event, the Convention shall cease to have
effect in respect of the taxes for any fiscal year beginning after December 31
in the calendar year in which the notice of termination has been given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the Plenipotentiaries of the two
Contracting States, duly authorised thereto, have signed this Convention.
DONE in duplicate in Vienna on the 8th day of May, in
the German and English languages, each text being equally authentic.
For Austria: |
For Belize: |
Johann DEMEL |
Alexander PILETSKY |