FOREWORD A country's tax regime is always a key factor for any business considering moving into new markets. What is the corporate tax rate? Are there any incentives for overseas businesses? Are there double tax treaties in place? How will foreign source income be taxed? Since 1994, the PKF network of independent member firms, administered by PKF International Limited, has produced the PKF Worldwide Tax Guide (WWTG) to provide international businesses with the answers to these key tax questions. As you will appreciate, the production of the WWTG is a huge team effort and we would like to thank all tax experts within PKF member firms who gave up their time to contribute the vital information on their country's taxes that forms the heart of this publication. The PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 (WWTG) is an annual publication that provides an overview of the taxation and business regulation regimes of the world's most significant trading countries. In compiling this publication, member firms of the PKF network have based their summaries on information current on 1 January 2014, while also noting imminent changes where necessary. On a country-by-country basis, each summary such as this one, addresses the major taxes applicable to business; how taxable income is determined; sundry other related taxation and business issues; and the country's personal tax regime. The final section of each country summary sets out the Double Tax Treaty and Non-Treaty rates of tax withholding relating to the payment of dividends, interest, royalties and other related payments. While the WWTG should not to be regarded as offering a complete explanation of the taxation issues in each country, we hope readers will use the publication as their first point of reference and then use the services of their local PKF member firm to provide specific information and advice. Services provided by member firms include: Assurance & Advisory; Financial Planning / Wealth Management; Corporate Finance; Management Consultancy; IT Consultancy; Insolvency - Corporate and Personal; Taxation; Forensic Accounting; and, Hotel Consultancy. In addition to the printed version of the WWTG, individual country taxation guides such as this are available in PDF format which can be downloaded from the PKF website at www.pkf.com PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 1
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER This publication should not be regarded as offering a complete explanation of the taxation matters that are contained within this publication. This publication has been sold or distributed on the express terms and understanding that the publishers and the authors are not responsible for the results of any actions which are undertaken on the basis of the information which is contained within this publication, nor for any error in, or omission from, this publication. The publishers and the authors expressly disclaim all and any liability and responsibility to any person, entity or corporation who acts or fails to act as a consequence of any reliance upon the whole or any part of the contents of this publication. Accordingly no person, entity or corporation should act or rely upon any matter or information as contained or implied within this publication without first obtaining advice from an appropriately qualified professional person or firm of advisors, and ensuring that such advice specifically relates to their particular circumstances. PKF International is a network of legally independent member firms administered by PKF International Limited (PKFI). Neither PKFI nor the member firms of the network generally accept any responsibility or liability for the actions or inactions on the part of any individual member firm or firms. PKF INTERNATIONAL LIMITED JUNE 2014 PKF INTERNATIONAL LIMITED All RIGHTS RESERVED USE APPROVED WITH ATTRIBUTION PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 2
STRUCTURE OF COUNTRY DESCRIPTIONS A. TAXES PAYABLE FEDERAL TAXES AND LEVIES COMPANY TAX CAPITAL GAINS TAX BRANCH PROFITS TAX VALUE ADDED TAX (VAT) FRINGE BENEFITS TAX (FBT) LOCAL TAXES OTHER TAXES B. DETERMINATION OF TAXABLE INCOME DEPRECIATION STOCK / INVENTORY CAPITAL GAINS AND LOSSES DIVIDENDS INTEREST DEDUCTIONS LOSSES FOREIGN SOURCED INCOME INCENTIVES C. FOREIGN TAX RELIEF D. CORPORATE GROUPS E. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS F. WITHHOLDING TAX G. EXCHANGE CONTROL H. PERSONAL TAX PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 3
MEMBER FIRM Please email Oliver Grosse-Brauckmann, PKFI EMEI Regional Director at oliver.grosse-brauckmann@pkf.com for details of Finnish tax contacts. BASIC FACTS Full name: Republic of Finland Capital: Helsinki Main language: Finnish Other languages: Swedish, Sami Population: 5.47 million (2014 estimate) Major religion: Christianity Monetary unit: Euro (EUR) Internet domain:.fi Int. dialling code: +358 KEY TAX POINTS Finnish resident companies are liable to corporate income tax on worldwide income. Nonresident companies are taxed on their Finnish-sourced income only. Capital gains are normally taxed as ordinary income. In specific circumstances, capital gains arising on the disposal of shares in a subsidiary are exempt. In principle, all sales of goods and services are subject to value added tax, subject to reduced rates and exemptions. A local real estate tax is levied on properties owned by companies. The transfer of immovable property attracts a transfer tax. A controlled foreign company system applies. Under tax treaties, foreign tax is most frequently relieved by way of exemption or credit. Where there is no relevant tax treaty, Finnish domestic tax law grants a credit for foreign tax paid once that foreign tax is final. Dividends and royalties paid to non-resident companies are subject to withholding taxes. Finnish resident individuals are subject to tax in respect of their worldwide income. Nonresidents are taxed on their income derived from Finland. Individuals are taxed separately on earned income and investment income. PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 4
A. TAXES PAYABLE FEDERAL TAXES AND LEVIES COMPANY TAX Finnish resident companies are liable to corporate income tax on their worldwide income. Nonresident companies are taxed on their Finnish-sourced income only. Corporate residence is not defined in the tax legislation but residency is usually associated with registration. Corporate income tax rate is 20% of the taxable income. The tax year consists of the financial period (or periods) that end during the calendar year. The final tax assessment for the tax year is determined based on the tax return. Corporate bodies must file the tax return within four months of the end of their accounting period. Tax returns are processed within ten months of the end of the accounting period. CAPITAL GAINS TAX Capital gains are normally taxed as ordinary income. Where shares or land have been held for business purposes, the disposal is subject to normal income tax. In specific circumstances, capital gains from the disposal of shares of a subsidiary are tax exempt. The shares need to be owned for at least one year prior to disposal and the seller has to have owned at least 10% of the company whose shares are being disposed of. BRANCH PROFITS TAX There is no specific branch profits tax in Finland. The taxable income for branches of foreign companies in Finland is calculated on the same basis as for Finnish resident companies. VALUE ADDED TAX (VAT) VAT is paid on the sale of goods and services, on the importation of goods, on intra-community acquisitions and on the removal of the goods from a fiscal warehousing arrangement when the removal takes place in Finland. In principle, all sales of goods and services are subject to VAT. However, there are some supplies of goods and services which are exempt under the conditions defined in the VAT Act. The general VAT rate is 24%. Other applicable rates are as follows: 14% for individuals' food and animal feed; 10% for medicines, books, cultural events, passenger transportation, hotel accommodation and other services; Exports outside the European Union are zero rated. FRINGE BENEFITS TAX (FBT) There is no specific fringe benefits tax in Finland. However, the employer has a legal responsibility to withhold income taxes and social security contributions from salaries and benefits paid to their employees. PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 5
LOCAL TAXES Basically, there are no local taxes imposed on companies. However, municipal real estate tax is levied on properties owned by companies. It is normally 0.32% to 0.75% (residential buildings) and 0.6% to 1.35% (other buildings) of the taxation value of the immovable property, depending on the municipality where the property is situated, and is deductible, up to certain limits, for income tax purposes. OTHER TAXES Employers must make social security contributions to cover the costs of health insurance at the rate of 2.14% on gross remuneration paid to employees between 16 and 68 years of age. Pension insurance contributions are also payable at 17.75% (on average), unemployment contributions (0.75% on the first EUR 1,990,500 and 2.95% on the excess) and accidental injury insurance contribution of approximately 1% of annual gross wages and salaries. B. DETERMINATION OF TAXABLE INCOME Taxable income is determined based on financial accounting income adjusted for non-taxable and non-deductible items. In practice, the determination of taxable income is closely connected to the determination of net income for financial statement purposes. Generally, all expenses incurred in acquiring or maintaining business income are deductible (however, e.g. entertainment expenses are not deductible). DEPRECIATION Buildings and other constructions are depreciated using the declining balance method. Depreciation for each building is calculated separately, with the maximum percentage varying from 4% to 20%, depending on the type of the construction. Depreciation of machinery and equipment is calculated using the declining balance method with a maximum rate of 25%. Patents and other intangible rights, such as goodwill, are amortised on a straight-line basis for ten years for tax purposes, unless the taxpayer demonstrates that the asset has a shorter useful life. Assets with a useful life of less than three years may be written off using the free depreciation method, i.e. deduct up to 100% of the costs of assets in a single tax year where the value for each item is less than EUR 850 and the total value of such assets is no more than EUR 2,500 per tax year. The allowable annual rates of depreciation are doubled for the tax years 2013 2014 for the following: New industrial buildings and workshops used for production activities (increase from 7% to 14%); New machinery and equipment used for production activities, as specified in the act (increase from 25% to 50%). PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 6
STOCK / INVENTORY In principle, the acquisition costs of inventories are deducted when assets are sold, consumed or lost. Inventories on hand at the end of the tax year are valued at an amount not exceeding the lower of acquisition cost or market value. Acquisition cost is usually calculated on a FIFO basis. Certain overhead costs can be included in the acquisition cost of products. CAPITAL GAINS AND LOSSES As discussed above, capital gains are usually taxable as ordinary income. Broadly speaking, gains on the disposal of shares in resident companies in which the seller had at least a 10% interest throughout the year ending on the date of disposal are exempt from tax. There are more prerequisites in the relevant act for this exemption. DIVIDENDS Inter-company dividends are tax exempt in most cases, although they are partly (75%) taxable if they are distributed by a quoted company to a non-quoted company that holds less than 10% of the capital in the distributing company, or the recipient company is a financial or insurance company holding the shares as investment assets. Tax agreements may entitle non-residents either to benefit from a lower withholding tax rate or to receive an imputation credit. Dividends are exempt from withholding tax when paid to a company resident in a European Union country if the company pays national corporate tax and holds at least 10% of the share capital in the distributing company. Tax exemption does not apply if the recipient is entitled to imputation credit. Individual treaty in question must always be verified. INTEREST DEDUCTIONS Normally, interest on loans obtained for business purposes are deductible in full on an accruals basis. New thin capitalisation rules have been introduced from tax year 2014 onwards which will apply to interest paid between related parties. Broadly speaking, a company may deduct up to EUR 500,000 of interest expense per year without restriction. Similarly, if a company can demonstrate that the proportion of its net assets represented by equity is at least as high as the group's consolidated equity to net assets ratio, then the thin capitalisation rules will also not apply, as specified in more detail. Where neither of these exemptions apply, the maximum deductible amount of interest paid to related parties is 25 % of EBITDA. Any interest restricted under these rules can be carried forward to use in future years. LOSSES Losses may be carried forward and set off in the subsequent ten tax years. If more than 50% of the shares of the company are sold during a loss year or thereafter, losses from previous years cannot usually be deducted. FOREIGN SOURCED INCOME If a foreign company falls under the Finnish controlled foreign company (CFC) legislation, then the PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 7
foreign company's undistributed profits can be allocated to the taxable income of a Finnish shareholder. The preconditions for the application of the CFC legislation are as follows: One or more Finnish resident shareholders directly or indirectly own at least 50% of the capital or of the voting rights in the CFC or they are entitled to at least 50% of the yield of the net wealth of the CFC; The Finnish resident shareholder owns, directly or indirectly, at least 25% of the CFC; The effective tax rate of the CFC in its country of residence is less than three-fifths of the tax of an equivalent company resident in Finland (currently 12%). INCENTIVES Accelerated depreciation is available to small and medium-sized companies that make investments in certain development areas. The investment must be in assets that will establish or enlarge production facilities or tourist businesses in those areas. The increased rate of depreciation is available for the year of investment and the following two years. A calculative 100% added deduction is available in respect of salary costs incurred on research and development activities where those costs are between EUR 15,000 and EUR 400,000. C. FOREIGN TAX RELIEF Under tax treaties, foreign tax is most frequently relieved by a tax credit. If a tax treaty does not apply, Finnish domestic law grants a credit for foreign tax paid, as specified in more detail. The credit is granted only if the foreign tax is final. From 2010, a requirement to calculate available credits on a source country-by-country basis was removed and the ability to carry forward unused credits was extended from one year to five years. D. CORPORATE GROUPS Corporations are taxed separately in Finland. There is no concept of consolidated tax returns. However, it is possible to make group contributions if the parent company owns at least 90% of the subsidiary during the whole financial year. The payments will be tax deductible to the payer and taxable on the recipient. There are additional requirements in the relevant act. E. RELATED PARTY TRANSACTIONS Related party transactions are generally accepted if they are at arm's length. Arm's length pricing applies to transactions of all types including the purchasing of inventory and the provision of services and financial facilities. Documentation requirements apply to foreign-owned subsidiaries and branches in Finland and Finnish Groups with more than 250 employees and an annual turnover of above EUR 50 million or a balance sheet of more than EUR 43 million. F. WITHHOLDING TAX Withholding tax is not imposed on dividends paid to resident companies. Dividends paid to nonresident companies are generally subject to a withholding tax of 20% which may be reduced or eliminated under tax treaties. Non-resident shareholders are not entitled to an imputation credit PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 8
unless a tax treaty provides otherwise. Interest paid to resident companies is not subject to withholding tax. Interest paid to non-residents is generally exempt from tax. Withholding tax is not imposed on royalties paid to resident companies. Royalties paid to nonresident companies are generally subject to a withholding tax of 20% which may be reduced or eliminated under a tax treaty. Royalties are, in certain cases, exempted from withholding tax when paid to a company resident in a European Union country. In certain circumstances, tax must be withheld on payments for work carried on by non-residents. G. EXCHANGE CONTROL In principle, there are no exchange controls in Finland. H. PERSONAL TAX Finnish resident individuals are subject to tax in respect of their worldwide income. Non-residents are taxed on their income derived from Finland. A temporary expatriate regime applies under which qualifying specialists and executives may apply for a flat rate of income tax of 35% to apply to income from duties carried out in Finland, instead of the ordinary progressive tax rates, and to become exempt from the health insurance premium. The tax year for individuals is the calendar year. Married persons are taxed separately both on earned income and investment income. Interest and insurance deductions may be dependent, in certain circumstances, on the mar1tal status of the taxpayer. In general, married persons will have their own deductions. Individuals are entitled to deduct from their investment income and earned income all expenses incurred in acquiring and maintaining such income, as regulated in more detail. Individuals have usually a right to deduct interest expenses from investment income. Interest expenses are deductible if the debt is related to the acquisition of taxable income. In 2014, 75% of interest on a loan used to purchase the individual's permanent home is deductible. An individual is taxed separately on earned income and on investment income. Earned income is subject to national income tax, municipal income tax and church tax. Earned income includes salaries, wages and benefits in kind. Investment income includes dividend income, capital gains, certain interest income and income from rental activities. Capital income up to EUR 40,000 is taxed at 30% whereas amounts over EUR 40,000 are taxed at 32%. Finnish nationals are, in addition, subject to the three-year rule. According to this rule, a Finnish national is considered to remain resident in Finland for three years after the end of the year in which he left the country, unless he shows that he has not maintained essential ties in Finland during the tax years concerned. However, under the terms of tax treaties, the three-year rule may be negated if the individual is deemed resident in another country. Finland imposes both inheritance and gift tax. The minimum taxable amount for inheritance taxation is EUR 20,000 and for gift tax EUR 4,000. Tax rates for both inheritance and gift tax vary from 7% to 35%, depending on who is the receiver of the inheritance and the value inherited or gifted. PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 9
Wages and salar1es paid by an employer are subject to an employee withholding tax. The amount withheld is based on the amount of wages or salary as well as on the individual circumstances of the employee. The national income tax rates in 2014 for earned income are as follows: Dividends 1 Dividends 2 Royalties 3 Interest Non-treaty countries: 20 20 N/A 20 Treaty countries: Argentina 15 10 15 15 Armenia 15 5 5 5/10 Australia 15 5 10 5 Austria 10 0 0 5 Azerbaijan 10 5 10 5 Barbados 15 5 5 5 Belarus 15 5 5 5 Belgium 15 0 10 5 Bosnia-Herzegovina 15 5 25 10 Brazil 10 10 15 15 Bulgaria 10 0 0 5 Canada 15 5 10 10 China 10 5 10 10 Croatia 15 5 0 10 Czech Republic 15 0 0 10 Denmark 15 0 0 0 Egypt 10 10 15 25 Estonia 15 0/5 10 10 Faroe Islands 15 0 10 0 France 0 0 0 0 Georgia 10 0/5 0 0 Germany 15 0 0 5 Greece 13 13 10 10 Hungary 15 5 0 5 Iceland 15 0 10 0 India 10 10 10 10 Indonesia 15 10 10 15 Ireland 0 0 0 0 PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 10
Dividends 1 Dividends 2 Royalties 3 Interest Israel 15 5 10 10 Italy 15 0 15 5 Japan 15 10 10 10 Kazakhstan 15 5 10 10 Korea, Republic of 15 10 10 10 Kyrgyzstan 15 5 10 5 Latvia 15 5 10 10 Lithuania 15 5 10 10 Luxembourg 15 5 0 5 Macedonia 15 0 10 0 Malaysia 15 5 15 5 Malta 15 5 0 0 Mexico 0 0 10/15 10 Moldova 15 5 5 3/7 Morocco 10 7 10 10 New Zealand 15 15 10 10 Norway 15 0 0 0 Pakistan 20 12/15 15 10 Poland 15 5 5 5 Romania 5 0 5 5 Russia 12 5 0 0 Serbia 15 5 0 10 Singapore 10 5 5 5 Slovenia 15 5 5 5 South Africa 15 5 0 0 Spain 15 0 10 5 Sri Lanka 15 15 10 10 Sweden 15 0 0 0 Switzerland 10 0 0 0 Tanzania 20 20 15 20 Thailand 28 20 10/25 15 Turkey 15 5 5/10/15 10 Ukraine 15 5 5/10 10 United Kingdom 0 0 0 0 PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 11
Dividends 1 Dividends 2 Royalties 3 Interest United States 15 5 0 0 United Arab Emirates 0 0 0 0 Uzbekistan 15 5 5 10 Vietnam 15 10/5 10 10 Zambia 15 5 15 15 NOTES: 1 Tax at source on dividend. 2 The recipient is a company whose share in the company making the payment is at least the percentage indicated in the tax treaty. In some cases, the holding refers to share capital and in others to voting power. The relevant tax treaty should be checked to determine the exact requirements. 3 According to the domestic tax law, interest paid to a non-resident is usually exempt from taxation in Finland PKF Worldwide Tax Guide 2014 12