馬耳他將全球最低企業稅規定推遲兩年實行

來源：Todd Buell

編譯：思邁特財稅國際稅收服務團隊

目前，有137個國家陸續加入到全球最低企業稅的行列中，全球最低企業稅率的形成對營造良好的國際貿易新環境、維護國際稅收秩序以及重塑稅收管轄權規則等都具有重要的歷史和現實意義。然而對于馬耳他這樣的避稅天堂，其法定企業稅率為35%，但實際上可低至5%，在傳統稅制下依靠稅率優惠吸引跨國資本投資，但全球最低企業稅率15%的規定抹殺了馬耳他的優勢。因此，根據馬耳他時報報道，該國正在與外國投資者進行談判，以了解在稅制改變后如何留住他們。該新聞網站稱，政府正在考慮降低其他稅收或提供新的財政激勵措施，以降低經營成本?；诖耍R耳他表示將全球最低稅的引入至少推遲兩年，以便該國有時間改變其制度，其財政部長暗示了國內的阻力，并補充說：“我必須對我的人民負責?！?/span>

馬耳他盡管不反對全球最低企業稅的規定，但對于這項規定的實施時間提出了反對，匈牙利、波蘭和愛沙尼亞等其他國家的官員也表達了強烈反對意見，包括在某些情況下認為202年的實施日期為時過早。愛沙尼亞財政部高級官員海倫·帕哈皮爾周一告訴Law360：“我們一直指出，我們不可能從2023年開始執行該指令。”，并且補充說到她的國家“最早”要到2024年才能實施這項法律。華盛頓特區智庫稅務基金會的稅務政策分析師丹尼爾·邦恩（Daniel Bunn）告訴 Law360：雖然全球最低企業稅的規定投入了大量的技術工作，但這項規定的實施速度感覺就像他們在制造飛機的同時試圖駕駛它。不僅上述國家對這項規定的實施速度提出了質疑，外部觀察人士也質疑實施速度。

了解詳情，請查閱以下NEWS

NEWS：Malta Seeks Two-Year Delay Of Minimum Tax

Source：By Todd Buell · Feb 7, 2022, 11:24 AM EST ·        Author：Roy LeBlanc. 

    Malta is seeking to delay the introduction of a global minimum tax by at least two years to allow the country time to change its system, a local media report said Monday, adding that other countries also want a delay.

    The country is holding talks with foreign investors to see how it can keep them after the tax regime is changed, according to the Times of Malta. The news site said the government is considering lowering other taxes or offering new financial incentives to keep down the cost of doing business.

    Malta has a 35% statutory corporate tax rate, but in effective terms it can be as low as 5%, well below the 15% minimum rate agreed to by nearly 140 jurisdictions in October after negotiations led by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. The European Commission, the European Union's executive arm, put forward a draft law on the measure in December that would come into force next year if approved by all member states.

    Though Malta agreed to the text, the newspaper said the country is still trying to negotiate carveouts at the EU level.

    When EU finance ministers discussed the measure publicly last month, Malta's representative expressed reservations about the bill, saying "serious issues" remained concerning "fairness and practicality" in implementation. While saying it was too early to withdraw support, the finance minister hinted at domestic pushback, adding, "I have to answer to my people."

    Officials from other countries, such as Hungary, Poland and Estonia, also aired serious objections, including in some cases that the 2023 implementation date is too soon.

    "We keep pointing it out that we could not possibly implement the directive from 2023," Helen Pahapill, a senior official in Estonia's finance ministry, told Law360 on Monday. Her country won't be able to implement the law until 2024 at "the earliest," she said.

    Officials from Hungary and Poland didn't respond to requests for comment.

    Outside observers also have questioned the speed of implementation.

    "There's certainly been a lot of technical work put in, but it still feels like they're building the plane while trying to fly it," Daniel Bunn, a tax policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, a Washington, D.C., think tank, told Law360. 

    The Maltese finance ministry didn't have an immediate response to a request for comment.

    For a reprint of this article, please contact reprints@law360.com.