SRO 707(I)/2011 Dated, 09-07-2011.
SRO 707(I)/2011Amendments to earlier SROs
SRO 707(I)/2011 is an Income Tax SRO dated 9 July 2011, listed by FBR as "SRO 707(I)/2011 Dated, 09-07-2011.".
The text below was extracted automatically from the text layer of the official PDF. Line breaks and table layout may differ from the original, and where FBR scanned the paper and added a machine-read text layer, that layer can contain misread characters. Check the official PDF before relying on any wording or figure.
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(TO BE PUBLISHED IN THE GAZETTE OF PAKISTAN - EXTRAORDINARY PART.I)
GOVERNMENT OF PAKISTAN
REVENUE DIVISION
FEDERAL BOARD OF REVENUE
Islamabad, the 9th July, 2011
N O T I F I C A T I O N
(Income Tax)
S.R.O 707(I)/2011.- WHEREAS the Government of the Islamic Republic of
Pakistan and the Government of the Republic of Serbia have executed a Convention for
the Avoidance of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income on 21st day of May,
2010, as set out in the Annexure to this Notification;
NOW, THEREFORE, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 107 of the
Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 [XLIX of 2001], the Federal Government is pleased to
direct that the Agreement shall enter into force with effect from 30th September 2010 and
its provisions shall have effect,-
(a) in the case of Pakistan:
(i) with regard to taxes withheld at source, in respect of amounts paid
or credited on or after the first day of July next following the date
upon which the Convention enters into force; and
(ii) with regard to other taxes, in respect of taxable years beginning on
or after the first day of July next following the date upon which the
Convention enters into force; and
(b) in the case of Serbia, in respect of the taxes on income derived in each
fiscal year beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar
year next following the year in which the Convention enters into force.
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Annexure
C O N V E N T I O N
BETWEEN
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN
AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA
FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION
WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME
PREAMBLE
The Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Government of Republic of
Serbia desiring to conclude a Convention for the avoidance of double taxation with
respect to taxes on income,
Have agreed as follows:
CHAPTER I
SCOPE OF THE CONVENTION
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 imposed on behalf of a
Contracting State or of its political subdivisions or local authorities, irrespective of the
manner in which they are levied.
2. There shall be regarded as taxes on income all taxes imposed on total income, or
on elements of income, including taxes on gains from the alienation of 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:
1) in the case of Pakistan, the income tax
(hereinafter referred to as ''Pakistan tax'');
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2) in the case of Serbia:
- the corporate income tax;
- personal income tax.
(hereinafter referred to as '' the Serbia 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.
CHAPTER II
DEFINITIONS
Article 3
GENERAL DEFINITIONS
1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
1) the terms ''a Contracting State'' and ''the other Contracting State'' mean
Pakistan or Serbia, as the context requires;
2) the term '' Pakistan'' when used in a geographical sense means Pakistan as
defined in the constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and
includes any area outside the territorial waters of Pakistan which under the
laws of Pakistan and international law is an area within which Pakistan
exercises sovereign rights and exclusive jurisdiction with respect to the
natural resources of the seabed and subsoil and superjacent waters;
3) the term “Serbia” means the Republic of Serbia, and when used in a
geographical sense it means the territory of the Republic of Serbia;
4) the term ''national'' means:
- any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;
- any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as
such from the laws in force in a Contracting State.
5) the term ''person'' includes an individual, a company and any other body of
persons;
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6) the term ''company'' means any body corporate or any entity that is treated
as a body corporate for tax purposes;
7) 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;
8) 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;
9) the term ''tax'' means Pakistan tax or the Serbia tax as the context requires;
10) the term ''competent authority'' means:
- in the case of Pakistan, the Federal Board of Revenue or its
authorized representative;
- in the case of Serbia, the Ministry or its authorized representative.
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.
2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of
both Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows:
1) he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the 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
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with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital
interests);
2) 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;
3) 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;
4) if he is a national of both 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
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:
1) a place of management;
2) a branch;
3) an office;
4) a factory;
5) a workshop;
6) a warehouse or premises used as sales outlet; and
7) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of
natural resources.
3. A building site, a construction, assembly or installation project, or supervisory
activities in connection therewith constitutes a permanent establishment only if it lasts
more than 9 months.
4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term ''permanent
establishment'' shall be deemed not to include:
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1) the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage or display or
occasional delivery of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise
and deriving no profits, provided that these facilities are not used as sales
outlets in the Contracting State where these facilities are situated;
2) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the
enterprise solely for the purpose of storage, display or occasional delivery
deriving no profits, provided that these goods or merchandise are not sold
in the Contracting State where the stock is situated;
3) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the
enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;
4) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of
purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the
enterprise;
5) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of
carrying on, for the enterprise, any other activity of a preparatory or
auxiliary character;
6) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of
activities mentioned in sub-paragraphs 1) to 5), provided that the overall
activity of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of
a preparatory or auxiliary character.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than
an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 7 applies - is acting in a
Contracting State on behalf of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, that enterprise
shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the first-mentioned Contracting
State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise, if such a
person:
1) has and habitually exercises in that State an authority to conclude
contracts in the name of 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; or
2) 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.
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6. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, an insurance enterprise
of a Contracting State shall, except in regard to re-insurance, be deemed to have a
permanent establishment in the other Contracting State if it collects premiums in the
territory of that other State or insures risks situated therein through a person other than an
agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 7 applies.
7. 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. However, when the activities
of such an agent are devoted wholly or almost wholly on behalf of that enterprise, and
conditions are made or imposed between that enterprise and the agent in their commercial
and financial relations which differ from those which would have been made between
independent enterprises, he will not be considered an agent of an independent status
within the meaning of this paragraph.
8. The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is
controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which
carries on business in that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or
otherwise) shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the
other.
CHAPTER III
TAXATION OF INCOME
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.
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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 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 the determination of 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. However, no such deduction shall be allowed in respect of amounts, if any,
paid (otherwise than towards reimbursement of actual expenses) by the permanent
establishment to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other offices, by way of
royalties, fees, or other similar payments in return for the use of patents or other rights, or
by way of commission, for specific services performed or for management, or, except in
the case of a banking enterprise, by way of interest on moneys lent to the permanent
establishment. Likewise, no account shall be taken, in the determination of the profits of
a permanent establishment, for amounts charged (otherwise than towards reimbursement
of actual expenses), by the permanent establishment to the head office of the enterprise or
any of its other offices, by way of royalties, fees or other similar payments in return for
the use of patents or other rights, or by way of commission for specific services
performed or for management, or, except in the case of a banking enterprise, by way of
interest on moneys lent to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other offices.
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
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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
INTERNATIONAL TRAFFIC
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:
1) an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the
management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting
State, or
2) the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management,
control or capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise
of the other Contracting State,
and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in
their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be
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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 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends.
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 15, as the case may be, shall
apply.
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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 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 beneficial owner of the interest is
a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent
of the gross amount of the interest.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest arising in a Contracting
State and paid to the Government or to the Central Bank of the other Contracting State
shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned Contracting State.
4. The term ''interest'' as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of
every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to
participate in the debtor's profits, and in particular, income from government securities
and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such
securities, bonds or debentures. Penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as
interest for the purpose of this Article.
5. 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 15, as the case may be, shall apply.
6. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a
resident of that 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
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or fixed base, then such interest 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 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 paid to a resident of the other
Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
2. However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they
arise and according to the laws of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the royalties is
a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent
of the gross amount of the royalties.
3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received
as a consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or
scientific work including cinematograph films or films or tapes used for radio or
television broadcasting or broadcasting by satellite, cables, optical fibres or similar
technology used for public broadcasting, magnetic tapes, discs or laser discs (software),
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 (know-how).
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of
the royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other
Contracting State in which the royalties arise, through a permanent establishment situated
therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base
situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is
effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the
provisions of Article 7 or Article 15, as the case may be, shall apply.
5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a
resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a
resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent
establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the liability to pay the royalties
was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed
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base, then such royalties 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 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
FEES FOR TECHNICAL SERVICES
1. 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 fees for technical services may also be taxed in the Contracting
State in which they arise and according to the laws of that State, but if the beneficial
owner of the fees for technical services is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax
so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the fees for technical
services.
3. The term ''fees for technical services'' as used in this Article means payments of
any kind received as a consideration for the rendering of any managerial, technical or
consultancy services, but does not include:
1) consideration for any construction, assembly or installation project, or
supervisory activities in connection therewith undertaken by the recipient;
or
2) consideration which would be income of the recipient chargeable under
Article 16.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the
fees for technical services, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in
the other Contracting State in which the 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 or property in respect of
which the 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
15, as the case may be, shall apply.
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5. Fees for technical services shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when
the payer is a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the 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 fees for technical services was incurred, and such fees for technical
services are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such fees for
technical services 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 fees for technical
services, 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 14
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 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 derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of shares or
comparable interests deriving more than 50 per cent of their value directly or indirectly
from immovable property situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that
State.
5. Gains from the alienation of any property other than that referred to in paragraphs
1, 2, 3, and 4 shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a
resident.
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Article 15
INDEPENDENT PERSONAL SERVICES
1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of professional services
or other activities of an independent 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:
1) 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 Contracting State; or
2) if his stay in the other Contracting State is for a period or periods
amounting to or exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any twelve month
period commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned; in that case,
only so much of the income as is derived from his activities performed in
that other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State; or
3) if the remuneration for his activities in the other Contracting State is paid
by a resident person of that Contracting State or is borne by a permanent
establishment or a fixed base situated in that Contracting State and the
aggregate gross amount (before deduction of expenses) of the
remuneration derived by him exceeds an amount equivalent to two
thousand US Dollars.
2. The term ''professional services'' includes especially independent scientific,
literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of
physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
Article 16
DEPENDENT PERSONAL SERVICES
1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 17, 19, 20 and 21, salaries, wages and other
similar remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an
employment shall be taxable only in that State unless the employment is exercised in the
other Contracting State. If the employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is
derived therefrom may be taxed in that other State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, 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:
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1) 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
2) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a
resident of the other State, and
3) 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, may be taxed in the Contracting State in which the place of effective management
of the enterprise is situated.
Article 17
DIRECTORS' FEES AND REMUNERATION OF
TOP-LEVEL MANAGERIAL OFFICIALS
1. 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.
2. Salaries, wages and other similar remuneration derived by a resident of a
Contracting State in his capacity as an official in a top-level managerial position of a
company which is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other
State.
Article 18
ARTISTES AND SPORTSPERSONS
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 15 and 16, 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 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
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, 15
and 16, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or
sportsperson are exercised.
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3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, income derived by a
resident of a Contracting State from that person, personal activities as an entertainer or as
a sportsperson shall be taxable only in that State if the activities are wholly or mainly
supported by public funds of one or both of the Contracting States or political
subdivisions or local authorities thereof or the activities are exercised in the other
Contracting State within the framework of a cultural or sports exchange programme
arranged by both Contracting States.
Article 19
PENSIONS AND ANNUITIES
1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 20, pensions, annuities and
other similar remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State in consideration of
past employment shall be taxable only in that State.
2. The term "annuity" means a stated sum payable periodically at stated times during
life or during a specified or ascertainable period of time under an obligation to make the
payments in return for adequate and full consideration in money or money’s worth.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, pensions, annuities and other
similar remuneration arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other
Contracting State in consideration of past employment may be taxed in the first-
mentioned State to the extent that such pensions, annuities and other similar remuneration
are not subjected to tax in that other State.
4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1 pensions, annuities and other
payments made under a public scheme which is a part of the social security system of a
Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof may be taxed in
that State.
Article 20
GOVERNMENT SERVICE
1. 1) 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.
2) However, such salaries, wages and other similar remuneration shall be taxable
only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the
individual is a resident of that State who:
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- is a national of that State; or
- did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering
the services.
2. 1) 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.
2) 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 Articles 16, 17, 18 and 19 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 21
PROFESSORS, TEACHERS, RESEARCHERS AND STUDENTS
1. An individual who visits a Contracting State at the invitation of that State or of a
university, college, school, museum or other recognized educational or cultural institution
of that State or under an official programme of cultural exchange solely for the purpose
of teaching, giving lectures or carrying out research at such institution and who is, or was
immediately before that visit, a resident of the other Contracting State shall be exempt
from taxation in the first-mentioned State on his remuneration for such activity, for a
period not exceeding two years from the date of his first visit for that purpose, provided
that such remuneration arises from sources outside that State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall not apply to remuneration from
research if such research is undertaken not in the public interest but primarily for the
private benefit of a specific person or persons.
3. 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.
Article 22
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.
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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
or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such
permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article
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 with in the foregoing Articles of this Convention
and arising in the other Contracting State may also be taxed in that other State.
CHAPTER IV
Article 23
METHOD FOR ELIMINATION OF DOUBLE TAXATION
1. Where a resident of a Contracting State derives income which, in accordance with
the provisions of this Convention, may be taxed in the other Contracting Sate, the first-
mentioned State shall allow as a deduction from the tax on the income of that resident, an
amount equal to the income tax paid in that other State. Such deduction, however, shall
not exceed that part of the income tax, as computed before the deduction is given, which
is attributable to the income which may be taxed in that other State.
2. Where in accordance with any provision of the Convention income derived by a
resident of a Contracting State is exempt from tax in that State, such State may
nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax on the remaining income of such resident,
take into account the exempted income.
3. For the purpose of allowance as a deduction in a Contracting State the tax paid in
the other Contracting State shall be deemed to include the tax which is otherwise payable
in that other State but has been reduced or waived by that State under its legal provisions
for tax incentives.
CHAPTER V
SPECIAL PROVISIONS
Article 24
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
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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 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.
3. Except where the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 9, paragraph 7 of Article
11, or paragraph 6 of Article 12 or paragraph 6 of Article 13 apply, interest, royalties,
fees for technical services 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.
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 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.
5. The provisions of this Article shall apply to the taxes referred to in Article 2.
Article 25
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 24, to that of the Contracting
State of which he is a national. The case must be presented within three years from the
first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the provisions
of the Convention.
2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be
justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by
mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a
view to the avoidance of taxation which is not in accordance with this Convention. Any
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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 26
EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION
1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such
information as is necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or 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. The exchange of information is not
restricted by Article 1. 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 covered
by the Convention. 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:
1) to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and
administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State;
2) to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the
normal course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting
State;
3) to supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial,
commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information, the
disclosure of which would be contrary to public policy (ordre public).
Article 27
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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.
CHAPTER VI
FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 28
ENTRY INTO FORCE
1. The Contracting States shall notify each other, through diplomatic channels, that
the constitutional formalities in the respective States for entry into force of this
Convention have been complied with.
2. This Convention shall enter into force on the date of the later of these
notifications and its provisions shall have effect:
1) in the case of Pakistan:
- with regard to taxes withheld at source, in respect of amounts paid
or credited on or after the first day of July next following the date
upon which the Convention enters into force; and
- with regard to other taxes, in respect of taxable years beginning on
or after the first day of July next following the date upon which the
Convention enters into force;
2) in the case of Serbia: in respect of the taxes on income derived in each
fiscal year beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar
year next following the year in which the Convention enters into force.
Article 29
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
notice of termination at least six months before the end of any calendar year starting five
years after the year in which the Convention entered into force. In such event, this
Convention shall cease to have effect:
1) in the case of Pakistan:
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- with regard to taxes withheld at source, in respect of amounts paid
or credited on or after the first day of July next following the
calendar year in which notice of termination is given; and
- with regard to other taxes, in respect of taxable years beginning on
or after the first day of July next following the calendar year in
which notice of termination is given;
2) in the case of Serbia: in respect of the taxes on income derived in each
fiscal year beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar
year next following the year in which the notice of termination has been
given.
IN WITNESS whereof the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed
this Convention.
DONE in duplicate at Belgrade this 21st day of May, 2010 in the English and Serbian
languages, both texts being equally authentic.
Sd/ Sd/
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF
ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF PAKISTAN THE REPUBLIC OF SERBIA
[C.No.2(82)Int.Taxes/60]
(Khawar Khurshid Butt)
Member (Inland Revenue)/Additional Secretary
Related Income Tax SROs on amendments to earlier sros
- SRO 977(I)201119 October 2011Amendment in Income Tax Ordinance, 2001
- SRO 929(I)/201128 September 2011SRO 929(I)/2011, Dated 28-09-2011.
- SRO 725(I)/201128 July 2011SRO725(I)/2011
- SRO 715(I)/201120 July 2011Amendment in Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.
- SRO 357(I)/20114 May 2011Amendment in Income Tax Ordinance, 2001
- SRO 927 February 2011Amendment in Income Tax Ordinance, 2001