On 14 January 2013, a new Protocol was signed, amending the income tax treaty between Spain and the US (that had been in force since 1990). On signing the new Protocol, the two governments also agreed to the provisions of a Memorandum of Understanding to the treaty that incorporates some important modifications and definitions. Taxand Spain and Taxand US summarise some of the key provisions of the new Protocol, and what companies should be thinking about in light of this new development.  

On 17 December 2012 the Maltese and Mexican governments signed a Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income (the "Convention"). The Convention will enter into force once the legal formalities of each country take place, as well as the corresponding exchange of notes. The Convention assigns taxing rights to each country depending on the type of income, for example business profits, interest, royalties and capital gains. Likewise, the Convention provides the mechanism by which double taxation will be avoided and an exchange of information provision. Taxand Malta and Taxand Mexico investigate the main features of this Convention and its likely impact on businesses worldwide. 

Recent provisions have been introduced to implement a tax on transfers of shares, the so-called "Tobin Tax". Starting from 1 March 2013, the Tobin Tax will be applied to the transfers of shares issued by Italian companies. This tax will also be applied on transfers of securities that are representative of shares or financial instruments independently by the residence of the issuer. Taxand Italy details the changes, and the impact that the Tobin Tax could have on businesses operating within the jurisdiction.

Vodafone's controversy with the Indian Revenue is well known. To recap, the Indian Revenue had sought to tax the gains derived from an offshore Hutch entity on the sale of shares of a Cayman company that was indirectly holding a substantial stake in an Indian telecom operating business. Taxand India discusses the matter and how this could affect similar cases moving forward.

On 14 December 2012, a new anti-abuse bill with the purpose of tightening the Danish tax legislation was adopted. The bill introduces Danish withholding tax on certain intra-group sale of shares and effectively imposes a beneficial ownership requirement on other countries. The bill was made effective as of 20 December 2012.Taxand Denmark investigates the withholding tax rules and their impact on PE funds and multinationals with Danish holding companies.