Ukraine
55B. Agreement for Avoidance of
Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Ukraine
Whereas the
annexed Convention between the Government of Republic of India and the
Government of Ukraine for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention
of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital shall, enter
into force, on the 31st October, 2001, on the date of the later of
notifications by each of the Contracting States to each other, of the
completion of the procedures required under their respective laws, as required
by Article 30 of the said Convention;
Now,
therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 90 of the Income-tax
Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), the Central Government hereby directs that all the
provisions of the said Convention shall be given effect to in the Union of
India.
Notification : GSR 24(E), dated 11-1-2002.
Annexure
Convention between the Government of the
Republic of India and The Government of Ukraine for the avoidance of double
taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income
and on capital
The Government
of the Republic of India and the Government of Ukraine desiring to conclude a
Convention for the avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal
evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital and confirming their
aspiration for the development and strengthening of bilateral relations have
agreed as follows :
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. This Convention
shall apply to taxes on income and on capital imposed on behalf of a
Contracting State or of its political sub-divisions 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 and taxes on the total amounts of wages or
salaries paid by enterprises, as well as taxes on capital appreciation.
3. The existing taxes to which this Convention
shall apply are in particular :
(a) In Ukraine :
(i) the profits tax of enterprise;
(ii) the individual income-tax;
(iii) tax on property of enterprises;
(iv) tax on immovable property of citizens
(hereinafter referred to
as “Ukrainian tax”)
(b) In India :
(i) the income-tax, including any surcharge
thereon;
(ii) the wealth-tax
(hereinafter referred to
as “Indian tax”).
4. 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 each other of any substantial changes which are
made in their respective taxation laws.
ARTICLE 3 : General definitions - 1. For the
purpose of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires :
(a) the term “Ukraine” means the territory of Ukraine, its continental
shelf and its exclusive economic (maritime) zone, including any territory
outside the territorial sea of Ukraine which, according to international law,
is specified or may be specified, in line with the Ukrainian law, as the
territory within which the rights of Ukraine relating to seabed and natural
resources are effective;
(b) the term “India” means the territory of India and includes the
territorial sea and airspace above it, as well as any other maritime zone in
which India has sovereign rights, other rights and jurisdictions, according to
the Indian law and in accordance with international law/U.N. Convention on the
law of the sea;
(c) the terms “a Contracting State” and “the
other Contracting State” mean Ukraine or India as the context requires;
(d) the term “tax” means Ukrainian or Indian tax, as the context
requires, but shall not include any amount which is payable in relation to the
taxes to which this Convention applies or which represents a penalty imposed
relating to those taxes;
(e) the term “person” includes an individual, a
company and any other entity which is treated as a taxable unit under the
taxation laws in force in the respective Contracting State;
(f) the term “company” means any body corporate
or any entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes under the
taxation laws in force in the respective Contracting States;
(g) 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;
(h) the term “competent authority” means in the case of Ukraine - The
State Tax Administration of Ukraine or its authorised representative; and in
the case of India - The Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) or its
authorised representative;
(i) the term “national” means :
(a) any individual possessing the citizenship of a Contracting State;
(b) any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status
as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State;
(j) the term “international traffic” means any
transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise which 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;
(k) the term “fiscal year” means :
(i) in the case of Ukraine, calendar year from
1st of January to 31st of December of the year under review;
(ii) in the case of India, the “previous year” as
defined under section 3 of the Income-tax Act, 1961.
2. As regards the application of the Convention
by a Contracting State any term not defined therein shall, unless the context
otherwise requires, have the meaning which it has under the law of that State
concerning the taxes to which the Convention applies.
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, place of registration or any other
criterion of a similar nature. But this term does not include any person who is
liable to tax in that State in respect only of income from sources or capital
situated in the Contracting State.
2. Where by reason of the provisions of
paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then his
status shall be determined as follows :
(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 State with which his personal and economic relations are closer
(centre of vital interests);
(b) if the Contracting State in which he has his centre of vital
interests cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home available to
him in other 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 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 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 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;
(f) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any
other place of extraction of natural resources;
(g) a warehouse in relation to a person providing storage facilities
for others;
(h) a premises or warehouse used as a sales outlet or for receiving or
soliciting orders;
(i) an installation or structure used for the
exploration or exploitation of natural resources;
(j) a building site or construction, installation
or assembly project or supervisory activities in connection therewith, where such
site, project or activities (together with other such sites, projects or
activities, if any) continue for a period of more than six months.
3. An enterprise shall be deemed to have a
permanent establishment in a State and to carry on business through that
permanent establishment if it provides services or facilities in connection
with or supplies plant and machinery on hire used or to be used in, the
prospecting for, extraction or production of mineral oils or in connection with
such extraction or production of mineral oils in the State.
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 unloading 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 or display;
(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 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 advertising, for the supply of information, for
scientific research or for similar activities which have a preparatory or
auxiliary character, for the enterprise;
However, the
provisions of sub-paragraphs (a) to (e) shall not be applicable
where the enterprise maintains any other fixed place of business in the other
Contracting State for any purposes other than the purposes specified in the
said sub-paragraphs.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs
1 and 2, where a person being a resident of a Contracting State - other than,
an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies, is acting on
behalf of an enterprise of the other Contracting State that enterprise shall be
deemed to have a permanent establishment in the first-mentioned State, if
(a) he has and habitually exercises in that State an authority to
conclude contracts on behalf of the enterprise, unless the activities of such
person are limited to the purchase of goods or merchandise for the enterprise;
(b) he has no such authority, but habitually maintains in the
first-mentioned State a stock of goods or merchandise from which he regularly
delivers goods or merchandise on behalf of the enterprise;
(c) he habitually secures orders in the first-mentioned
State, wholly or almost wholly for the enterprise itself or for the enterprise
and other enterprises controlling, controlled by, or subject to the same common
control, as that enterprise; or
(d) in so acting, he manufactures or processes in that State for the
enterprise goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise.
6. An enterprise of a Contracting State shall
not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the other 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. However, when
the activities of such an agent are devoted wholly or almost wholly on behalf
of that enterprise itself or on behalf of the enterprise and other enterprises
controlling, controlled by, or subject to the same common control, as that of
the enterprise, he will not be considered an agent of an independent status
within the meaning of this paragraph.
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, boats and aircraft shall
not be regarded as immovable property.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also 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 and to income
from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal
services.
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 directly or indirectly to that
permanent establishment.
The words
“directly or indirectly” mean, for the purposes of this Article, that where a
permanent establishment takes an active part in negotiating, concluding or
fulfilling contracts entered into by the enterprise, then notwithstanding that other
parts of the enterprise have also participated in those transactions, there
shall be attributed to the permanent establishment that proportion of profits
of the enterprise arising out of those contracts as the contribution of the
permanent establishment to those transactions bears to that of the enterprise
as a whole.
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 business 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 in accordance
with the provisions of and subject to the limitations of the tax laws of that
State.
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 the 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 derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from operation of
aircraft or ships in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also
apply to profits from the participation in a pool, a joint business or an
international operating agency engaged in the operation of aircraft or ships.
3. For the purposes of this Article, interest on
amounts connected with the operation of aircraft or ships in international
traffic shall be regarded as profits derived from the operation of such aircraft
or ships; and the provisions of Article 11 (Interest) shall not apply in
relations to such interest.
4. For the purposes of this Article, profits
from the operation of aircraft or ships in international traffic shall mean
profits derived by an enterprise from transportation by air or sea respectively
of passengers, mail, livestock, goods or cargoes of every description carried
on by the owners or lessees or charterers of aircraft or ships. This will also
include profit from :
(a) the sale of tickets for such transportation on behalf of other
enterprises;
(b) the rental on a bareboat ship or aircraft;
(c) the use, maintenance or rental of containers
(including trailers and related equipment for the transport of containers) in
connection with the transport of goods or merchandises in international
traffic.
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.
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 recipient is the beneficial
owner of the dividends the tax so charged shall not exceed :
(a) 10 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 share capital of the company paying the dividends;
(b) 15 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends in all other
cases.
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 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, or performs in that other State independent
personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the holding in
respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such
permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7
or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
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
so far as the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively
connected with a permanent establishment or a fixed base situated in that other
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 in that other State.
2. However, such interest may also be taxed in
the Contracting State in which it arises and according to the laws of that
State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the interest the tax so
charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest. The
competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement
settle the mode of application of this limitation.
3. 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.
4. 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, or
performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base
situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is paid
is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In
such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall
apply.
5. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a
Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a political
sub-division, a local authority 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 or a fixed base in
connection with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was
incurred, and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment or fixed
base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the
permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
6. Where, by reason of a special relationship
between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some
other person, the amount of the 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.
7. The provisions of this Article shall not
apply if its main purpose or one of the main purposes of any persons concerned
with the creation or assignment of the debt-claim in respect of which the
interest is paid to take advantage of this Article by means of that creation or
assignment.
8. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph
2,—
(a) interest arising in a Contracting State shall be exempt from tax
in that State provided it is derived and beneficially owned by :
- the Government, a political sub-division or a local authority of
the other Contracting State; or
- the Central Bank of the other Contracting State;
(b) interest arising in a Contracting State shall be exempt from tax
in that Contracting State if it is derived and beneficially owned by any person
[other than a person referred to in sub-paragraph (a)] who is a resident
of the other Contracting State provided that the transaction giving rise to the
debt-claim has been approved in this regard by the Government of the
first-mentioned Contracting State.
ARTICLE 12 : Royalties and fees for technical services
- 1. Royalties and fees for technical services arising in a Contracting
State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in
that other State.
2. However, such royalties and fees may also be
taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the laws of
that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the royalties and
fees for technical services the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of
the gross amount of the royalties or fees for technical services.
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 films or tapes used for radio or television
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 term “fees for technical services” as
used in this Article means payment of any amount to any person other than
payments to an employee of a person making payments, in consideration for the
services of a managerial, technical or consultative nature including, the
provision of services of technical or other personnel.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall
not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties or fees for technical
services, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the
other Contracting State in which the royalties or fees for technical services
arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that
other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein,
and the right, property or contract in respect of which the royalties or fees
for technical-services are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment
or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the
case may be, shall apply.
6. Royalties and fees for technical services
shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is the State
itself, political sub-division, a local authority or a resident of that State.
Where, however, the person paying royalties or fees for technical services,
whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting
State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the
liability to pay the royalties or fees for technical services was incurred, and
such royalties or fees for technical services are borne by such permanent
establishment or fixed base, then such royalties or fees for technical services
shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or
fixed base is situated.
7. Where, by reason of a special relationship
between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some
other person, the amount of royalties or fees for technical services paid
exceeds the amount which would have been paid 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.
8. The provisions of this Article shall not
apply if it is the main purposes or one of the main purposes of person concerned
with the creation or transfer of the rights or rendering of services in respect
of which the royalties or fees are paid to take advantage of this Article by
means of that creation or assignment.
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 or of
movable property pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a
Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing
independent personal services, including such gains from the alienation of such
a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such fixed
base, may be taxed in that other State.
3. Gains from the alienation of ships or
aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting
State or movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships or
aircraft, shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
4. Gains from the alienation of shares of the capital
stock of a company the property of which consists directly or indirectly of
immovable property and of an interest in a partnership assets of which consist
principally of immovable property situated in a Contracting State may be taxed
in that State.
5. Gains from the alienation of shares of a
company and an interest in a partnership other than those mentioned in
paragraph 4, may be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company or
partnership is resident.
6. Gains from the alienation of any property
other than that mentioned in paragraphs 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, shall be taxable only
in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a resident provided that
those gains are subject to tax in that Contracting State.
ARTICLE 14 : Independent personal services - 1.
Income derived by an individual who is a resident of a Contracting State from
the performance of professional services or other independent activities of a
similar character shall be taxable only in that State except in the following
circumstances when such income may also be taxed in the other Contracting State
:
(a) if he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other
Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities, in that case,
only so much of the income as is attributable to that fixed base may be taxed
in that other State;
(b) if his stay in the other Contracting State is for a period or
periods amounting to or exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in the relevant fiscal
year, only so much of the income as is derived from his activities performed in
that other State may be taxed in that other State.
2. The term “professional services” includes
especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching
activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, surgeons,
lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
ARTICLE 15 : Dependent personal services - 1.
Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18, 19 and 20, 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 any twelve month period
commencing or ending 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 derived in respect of an employment exercised aboard
a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic, or aboard a boat engaged
in inland waterways transport, may be taxed in the Contracting State of which
the enterprise operating the ship or aircraft is a resident.
ARTICLE 16 : 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 17 : Artistes and sportspersons - 1.
Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a
resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture,
radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsperson, from the
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 sportsperson in his capacity as
such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson himself but to another
person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and
15, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the
entertainer or sportsperson are exercised.
3. Notwithstanding provisions of the paragraphs
1 and 2, income mentioned in this Article, will be exempt from taxation in the
State in which the activity of actor or sportsperson is financed from the public
funds of this and other State, or if such activity is carried out according to
the agreement on cultural cooperation concluded between the Contracting States.
4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2
and Articles 7, 14 and 15, where income in respect of personal activities
exercised by an actor or sportsperson in his capacity as such in a Contracting
State accrues not to the actor or sportsperson himself but to another person,
that income shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State, if that other
person is supported wholly or substantially from the public funds of that other
State, including any of its political sub-divisions or local authorities.
ARTICLE 18 : Remuneration and pensions in respect of
Government service - 1. (a) Remuneration, other than a pension, paid
by a Contracting State or a political sub-division or a local authority thereof
to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or sub-division
or authority shall be taxable only in that State.
(b)
However, such 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. The provisions of Articles 15 and 16 shall
apply to remuneration and pensions in respect of services rendered in
connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or political
sub-division or local authority thereof.
ARTICLE 19 : Non-Government pensions and annuities -
1. Any pension, other than a pension referred to in Article 19, or any
annuity derived by a resident of a Contracting State from sources within the
other Contracting State may be taxed only in the first mentioned Contracting
State.
2. The term “pension” means a periodic payment
made in consideration of past services or by way of compensation for injuries
received in the course of performance of services.
3. The term “annuity” means a stated sum payable
periodically at stated time 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’s worth.
ARTICLE 20 : Payments received by students and
apprentices - 1. A student or business apprentice who is or was a resident
of a Contracting State immediately before visiting the other Contracting State
and who is present in that other Contracting State solely for the purpose of
his education or training shall be exempt from tax in that other State on :
(a) payments made to him by persons residing outside that other State
for the purposes of his maintenance, education or training; and
(b) remuneration from employment in that other State in an amount not
exceeding US $ 500 or its equivalent amount in Ukrainian and Indian currency
during any fiscal year, as the case may be, provided that such employment is
directly related to his studies or is undertaken for the purpose of his
maintenance.
2. The benefits of this Article shall extend
only for such period of time as may be reasonable or customarily required to
complete the education or training undertaken, but in no event shall any
individual have the benefits of this Article for more than five consecutive
years from the date of his first arrival in that other Contracting State.
ARTICLE 21 : Payments received by professors, teachers
and research scholars - 1. A professor or teacher who is or was a resident
of the Contracting State immediately before visiting the other Contracting
State for the purpose of teaching or engaging in research, or both, at a
university, college, school or other approved institution in that other
Contracting State shall be exempt from tax in that other State on any
remuneration for such teaching or research for a period not exceeding two years
from the date of his arrival in that other State.
2. This Article shall not apply to income from
research, if such research is undertaken primarily for the private benefit of a
specific person or persons.
3. For the purposes of this Article and Article
20, an individual shall be deemed to be a resident of a Contracting State if he
is resident in that State in the fiscal year in which he visits the other
Contracting State or in the immediately preceding fiscal year.
4. For the purposes of paragraph 1 “approved
institution” means an institution which has been approved in this regard by the
competent authority of the concerned Contracting State.
ARTICLE 22 : Other income - 1. Subject to the
provisions of paragraph 2, items of income of a resident of a Contracting
State, wherever arising, which are not expressly dealt with in the foregoing
Articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply
to income, other than income from immovable property as defined in paragraph 2
of Article 6, if the 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, or performs in that other State independent
personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right of property
in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such
permanent establishment or fixed base. In such a case the provisions of Article
7 or Article 15, as the case may be, shall apply.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs
1 and 2, items of income of a resident of a Contracting State not dealt within
the foregoing articles of this Convention, and arising in the other Contracting
State may also be taxed in that other Contracting State.
ARTICLE 23 : 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 or by
movable property pertaining to the fixed base available to a resident of a
Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing
independent personal services may be taxed in that other State.
3. Capital represented by ships, aircraft or
motor vehicle operated in international traffic and by movable property
pertaining to the operation of such ships, aircraft or motor vehicles, shall be
taxable only in the Contracting State of which the enterprise owning such
property is a resident.
4. All other elements of capital of a resident of
a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State.
ARTICLE 24 : Avoidance of double taxation - 1. The
laws in force in either of the Contracting States will continue to govern the
taxation of income and capital in the respective Contracting States except
where provisions to the contrary are made in this Convention.
2. Where a resident of India derives income or owns
capital which, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, may be
taxed in Ukraine, India shall allow as a deduction from the tax on the income
of that resident an amount equal to the income-tax paid in Ukraine, whether
directly or by deduction; and as a deduction from the tax on the capital of
that resident an amount equal to the capital tax paid in Ukraine. Such
deduction in either case shall not, however, exceed that part of income-tax or
tax on capital (as paid before the deduction is given), which is attributable
to the income or the capital which may be taxed in Ukraine.
3. Taking into account the Ukrainian law on
exemption from tax paid outside Ukraine (not being contrary to the provisions
of this Article), the Indian tax paid pursuant to the Indian law and this
Convention either directly or by deduction from profit, income, or capital,
would be allowed as credit against Ukrainian tax in respect of profit, income,
or capital imposed under Ukrainian law. In any such case, the credit shall not
exceed that part of Ukrainian tax (as was determined before the deduction)
which pertains to the profit, income, or capital which may be taxed in India.
4. The tax payable in the Contracting State
mentioned in paragraphs 2 and 3 of this Article shall be deemed to include the
tax which would have been payable but for the tax incentives granted under the
laws of the Contracting State and which are designed to promote economic
development.
5. Income which in accordance with the
provisions of this Convention, is not to be subjected to tax in a Contracting
State may be taken into account for calculating the rate of tax to be imposed
in that Contracting State.
ARTICLE 25 : Non-discrimination - 1. The 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 or
that other State in the same circumstances 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. 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 enterprise of that other State carrying on the same activities in the
same circumstances. This provision shall not be construed as preventing a
Contracting State from charging the profits of a permanent establishment which
an enterprise of the other Contracting State has in the first mentioned
Contracting State at rate higher than that imposed on the profits of a similar
enterprise of the first mentioned State, nor as being in conflict with the
provisions of paragraph 3 of Article 7 of this Agreement.
3. Nothing contained in this Article shall be
construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to persons not resident in
that State any personal allowances, reliefs, reductions and deductions for
taxation purposes which are by law available only to persons who are so
resident.
4. Enterprises of a Contracting State, the
capital of which is wholly or partly owned or controlled, directly or
indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not
be subjected in the first mentioned Contracting State to any taxation or any
requirement connected therewith which is other or more burdensome than the
taxation and connected requirements to which other similar enterprises of that
first mentioned State are or may be subjected in the same circumstances.
5. In this Article, the term “taxation” means
taxes which are the subject of this Convention.
ARTICLE 26 : Mutual agreement procedure - 1. Where
a resident of a Contracting State 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 national laws of those States, present his case to the competent
authority of the State of which he is a resident. The case must be presented
within three years from the date of receipt of the first notice 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 not in accordance with the Convention. Any agreement
reached shall be implemented notwithstanding any time limits in the national
laws of the Contracting State.
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.
4. The competent authorities of the Contracting
States may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of reaching an
agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs.
ARTICLE 27 : Exchange of information - 1. The
competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information
(including documents) as is necessary for carrying out the provisions of the
Convention or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States, concerning taxes
covered by the Convention, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary
to the Convention, in particular for the prevention of fraud or evasion of such
taxes. 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. However, if the information is originally regarded as secret in the
transmitting State, it shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities
(including courts and administrative bodies) involved in the assessment or
collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the
determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes which are the subject of the
Convention. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such
purposes but may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in
judicial decisions. The competent authorities shall, through consultation,
develop appropriate conditions, methods and techniques concerning the matters
in respect of which such exchange of information shall be made, including,
where appropriate, exchange of information regarding tax avoidance.
2. The exchange of information or documents
shall be either on a routine basis or on request with reference to particular
cases or both.
3. 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 or documents 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 or documents 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 28 : Assistance in collection - 1. The
Contracting States undertake to lend assistance and support to each other, in
the collection of taxes to which this Convention relates, in the cases where
the taxes are definitely due according to the laws of the State making the
request.
2. In the case of a request for enforcement of
collection, tax claims of either of the Contracting States which have been
finally determined will be accepted for enforcement by the other Contracting
State to which the request is made and collected in that State in accordance
with the laws applicable to the enforcement and collection of its taxes.
3. In the case of Indian tax, the request will
be sent by the Central Board of Direct Taxes, Department of Revenue to the
State Tax Administration of Ukraine and will be accompanied by such certificate
as is required by the laws of India to establish that the taxes have been
finally determined and are due from the taxpayer.
4. In the case of Ukrainian tax, the request
will be sent by the State Tax Administration of Ukraine to the Central Board of
Direct Taxes, Department of Revenue, in India and will be accompanied by such
certificate as is required by the laws of Ukraine to establish that the taxes
have been finally determined and are due from the taxpayer.
5. Where the tax claim has not become final by
reason of its being subject to appeal or any other proceeding, a Contracting
State may, in order to protect its revenues, request the other Contracting
State to take such interim measures in this behalf as are lawful under the laws
of that other Contracting State.
6. A request for assistance in collection of
taxes due from a taxpayer shall be made only if adequate assets of that
taxpayer are not available for recovering the taxes from him in the Contracting
State making the request.
7. The Contracting State in which tax is
recovered in pursuance of paragraphs 1, 2 and 5 of this Article shall
immediately thereafter remit the amount so recovered to the Contracting State which
made the request but it shall be entitled to reimbursement of costs, if any,
incurred in the course of rendering such assistance to the extent mutually
agreed between the competent authorities of the two Contracting States.
ARTICLE 29 : Diplomatic and consular officials -
Nothing in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of diplomatic or
consular officials under the general rules of international law or under the
provisions of special agreements.
ARTICLE 30 : Entry into force - Each of the
Contracting States shall notify to the other the completion of the procedures
required by its law for the bringing into force of this Convention. This
Convention shall enter into force on the date of the later of these
notifications and shall thereupon have effect :
(a) in India, in respect of income arising in any previous year
beginning on or after the first day of April next following the calendar year
in which the Convention enters into force and in respect of capital which is
held at the expiry of the previous year following that in which the Convention
enters into force or subsequent years.
(b) in Ukraine:
(i) in respect of taxes on dividends, interest or
royalties for any payments effected on the 60th or after 60 days following the
day of the Convention’s coming into force;
(ii) in respect of the taxes on profits of
enterprises and tax on property of enterprises and tax on immovable property of
citizens for any taxable period starting on January 1 of the calendar year
following the year of the Convention’s coming into force;
(iii) in respect of the income-tax imposed on the
citizens for any payments effected on the 60th or after 60 days following the
day of the Convention’s coming into force.
ARTICLE 31 : Termination - This Convention shall remain
in force indefinitely but either of the Contracting States may, on or before
the thirtieth day of June in any calendar year beginning after the expiration
of a period of five years from the date of its entry into force, give the other
Contracting State through diplomatic channels, written notice of termination
and, in such event, this Convention shall cease to have effect:
(a) in India, in respect of income arising in any previous year
beginning on or after the 1st day of April next following the calendar year in
which the notice is given and in respect of capital which is held at the expiry
of any fiscal year beginning on or after 1st April next following the calendar
year in which the notice of termination is given.
(b) in Ukraine:
(i) in respect of the taxes on dividends,
interest or royalties for any payments effected 60th day or after 60 days
following the day on which notice of termination is given;
(ii) in respect of the taxes on profits of
enterprises and tax on property of enterprises and tax on immovable property of
citizens for any taxable period starting on 1st January of the calendar year
following the year in which notice of termination is given;
(iii) in respect of the income-tax imposed on the
citizens for any payments effected on the 60th or after the 60th day following
the day on which notice of termination is given.
In witness whereof the
undersigned, being duly authorised thereto, have signed the present Convention.
Done in duplicate at KYIV
on this April 7th day of one thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine in the
Hindi, Ukrainian and English languages, all the texts being equally authentic.
In case of divergence between any of the two texts, the English text shall be
the operative one.