By ROSI DOVIVERATA
The Attorney-General and Minister for Industry and Trade, Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, has raised concerns over our Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement with Australia.
He described the agreement as being “very much one-sided” when compared with the agreement signed with India recently.
“The withholding tax for example – a non-resident dividend withholding tax, with India its 15 per cent and with Australia it’s 20 per cent,” he said.
“If you look at the withholding tax the Australians have agreed to with other countries, bigger countries in other jurisdictions, it is also 15 per cent but with Fiji its specifically 20 per cent.”
Mr Sayed-Khaiyum pointed out that back in 1995, the tax paring provisions also dropped out.
“The Australians have refused to have the tax pairing provisions,” he said.
“Basically what the tax pairing provision means, say for example you have an Australian investor who comes to Fiji and takes advantage of some of our tax free zone or reduced tax rates.
“They don’t pay tax to us, but the Australians don’t recognise this.
“So when they go back to Australia, they have to pay tax on that income that’s derived from the income that Fiji has foregone.
“That is grossly unfair and I think that some of these fundamental issues need to be addressed.”