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Articles 1 - 30 of 32
Full-Text Articles in Law
Toolkit For The Evaluation Of Crypto Tax Risks (Outline), Vincent Ooi
Toolkit For The Evaluation Of Crypto Tax Risks (Outline), Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
This Toolkit seeks to provide a practical, structured framework for the identification and assessment of crypto tax risks that can be used by tax administrations. It has three main parts. Firstly, an introduction to the Toolkit and how it should be used. Secondly, a series of questionnaires to complete. Thirdly, a commentary to provide additional context and details on each part of the Toolkit and its application. As tax administrations go through the questionnaires, they can rely on the Commentary to complement their existing knowledge and expertise to accurately identify the crypto tax risks facing their domestic tax systems.
'99-To-1’ Property Deals: Stamp Duty Avoidance Or Honest Mistake, Vincent Ooi
'99-To-1’ Property Deals: Stamp Duty Avoidance Or Honest Mistake, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
This article explains in detail the legal issues surrounding the recent ABSD audit and how exactly the general anti-avoidance rule and the stamp duty avoidance surcharge in the Stamp Duties Act 1929 can be invoked by the IRAS.The article highlights the fact that it may not be enough for a property buyer to show that the '99-to-1' holding was intended to enable the buyer to qualify for a home loan and not 'for stamp duty avoidance'. The property buyer must be able to answer the additional question of why the transfer of the property is 'staggered' in two stages and …
Report On The Challenges Which Digital Assets Pose For Tax Systems With A Special Focus On Developing Countries, Vincent Ooi
Report On The Challenges Which Digital Assets Pose For Tax Systems With A Special Focus On Developing Countries, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The paper highlights the need for governments to carefully consider the implications which the rise of crypto assets can have on tax systems, noting that the absence of a deliberate policy position would be a policy decision in itself, with consequences for the tax base. It discusses four main classes of tax risks which crypto assets pose.Firstly, crypto assets and crypto transactions can act as ‘functional substitutes’ for traditional assets and transactions. As existing tax laws are drafted without crypto assets in mind, this can produce a host of unintended tax consequences and produce opportunities for tax arbitrage.Secondly, the values …
Tax Events In The Life Cycle Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Tax Events In The Life Cycle Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Digital tokens, or crypto assets, are digital financial assets based on distributed ledger technology. They come in a considerable variety of forms and have been used in a large number of different ways. Yet, relatively few tax laws of any jurisdiction mention digital tokens specifically. It is therefore necessary to consider how orthodox tax rules can be applied to transactions involving digital tokens. Given the broad range of forms which digital tokens and transactions involving them can take, this may appear to be a daunting task. A framework providing a rough guide on how to navigate this somewhat new area …
Virtual Worlds, Real Money: Tax Issues In The Metaverse, Vincent Ooi, Daryl Loy
Virtual Worlds, Real Money: Tax Issues In The Metaverse, Vincent Ooi, Daryl Loy
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
When it comes to the tax world, the starting point is that international tax law does not currently give any special status to a meta realm as a distinct jurisdiction. The metaverse is not a term of art recognised by tax law. However, what we are likely to see is a change in business models and behavioural patterns, leading to different kinds of taxable events becoming either more or less prominent. Tax law may not inevitably change but the tax issues of the day will.In this article, we highlight three broad business models that are likely to feature prominently in …
The Curious Case Of The 0.1 Per Cent Service Charge, Vincent Ooi
The Curious Case Of The 0.1 Per Cent Service Charge, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Just before 1 August 2022, a coffeeshop zi char chain announced that it would impose a 0.1% service charge. This decision was reversed within two weeks due to "customers' reactions".While the rate might appear to be absurdly low and not worth the trouble of imposing, this article suggests that there was more to the situation than first meets the eye. GST regulations require merchants to list GST inclusive prices unless the goods and services are provided by hotels and F&B outlets that are subject to a service charge. The 0.1% rate is thus explicable as a likely attempt to get …
Tax Challenges In Debt Financing Involving Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Tax Challenges In Debt Financing Involving Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
When digital tokens are used in debt finance, one cannot assume that the same orthodox tax treatment will apply. The highly specific nature of tax provisions means that they may apply very differently once digital tokens rather than fiat currency are involved. Through a case study of Singapore law, this article shows that if debt finance transactions involving digital tokens are not carefully structured, there may be severe tax consequences, including the inability to deduct borrowing costs or benefit from common tax incentives, and the possible incurrence of additional tax liabilities. This article submits that, under Singapore tax law, it …
Made Crypto Losses? Don't Assume The Taxman Will Subsidise You, Vincent Ooi, Vincent Ooi
Made Crypto Losses? Don't Assume The Taxman Will Subsidise You, Vincent Ooi, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The key points we made in the article are as follows:1) One might think that because income from transactions involving cryptocurrencies is taxable, the losses from such transactions would also be deductible. Unfortunately, the situation is not quite so straightforward.2) The key question is whether it is possible to establish that there was a trade or business (in trading cryptocurrencies). If so, then the deduction rules are a lot more generous. Otherwise, there will be quite a few restrictions:a) Losses from cryptocurrency transactions are unlikely to be useable to be set off against income from other sources.b) The losses will …
An Automation Tax- Adopt With Caution, Vincent Ooi
An Automation Tax- Adopt With Caution, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The post highlights three main issues that may result from the rapid and widespread automation of jobs: 1) declining tax revenues; 2) inequitable distribution of gains and losses from automation; and 3) social costs of job displacement, such as social support and retraining programmes for displaced workers.An automation tax may be imposed on a temporary basis to manage (slow) the rate of displacement of workers due to the adoption of automation technologies, but should not be a permanent feature. Otherwise, there will be a risk of loss of competitiveness in the long-term, possibly resulting in even greater economic harm.One main …
New Assets, (Largely) Same Old Rules: The Taxation Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
New Assets, (Largely) Same Old Rules: The Taxation Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
In this blog post, I highlight the fact that across jurisdictions, tax provisions specifically drafted to address the taxation of digital tokens are still quite rare, meaning that existing orthodox tax rules will have to be applied. However, care must be taken when applying tax provisions and one must be aware of the limits of "reasoning by analogy".Some tax provisions make reference to specific assets or asset classes and it cannot be assumed that digital tokens which look very similar to these assets will inevitably fall under those provisions. For example, no matter how much a digital payment token looks …
A Framework For Understanding The Taxation Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
A Framework For Understanding The Taxation Of Digital Tokens, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
As a relatively new area, the taxation of digital tokens can give rise to several dangerous misconceptions. This article lays out five propositions to counter these misconceptions: 1) digital tokens are not a single monolithic asset class attracting uniform tax treatment; 2) the common trichotomous division of digital tokens into payment, utility and security tokens is derived from securities regulation and should not be blindly adopted into tax law; 3) the three classes are not mutually exclusive and hybrid tokens may exist; 4) the fact that an asset is a digital token rarely changes its tax treatment by itself, which …
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Rapid developments in automation technology pose a risk of mass displacement of human labour, resulting in the need to support and retrain displaced workers (a negative externality). We propose an “automation tax” that would slow the adoption of automation technology in appropriate circumstances, giving workers and social support systems time to adapt. This could be easily implemented through changes to the existing schedular system of depreciation/ capital allowances, reducing the uncertainty of its application and implementation costs. Such a system would be flexible enough to keep up with rapid technological developments. Two main dimensions may be adjusted to produce intended …
Making Money From Cryptocurrency? The Taxman May Call On You, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Making Money From Cryptocurrency? The Taxman May Call On You, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Miners, forgers, hobbyists, traders – different rules apply. Just don’t assume crypto investment is somehow immune to taxation.
The Taxation Of Cryptocurrency Gains, Vincent Ooi
The Taxation Of Cryptocurrency Gains, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Taking Singapore as an example, this article lays out a series of tests for determining whether gains arising from the disposal of cryptocurrencies are trade or business income, “all other income” or capital gains. It also considers the possibility of a presumption that individuals engaging in such transactions are gambling.
Singapore’S Special Insolvency Scheme For Small Companies, Vincent Ooi, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez
Singapore’S Special Insolvency Scheme For Small Companies, Vincent Ooi, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
In this article, the authors examine a temporary program in Singapore to help micro and small businesses facing insolvency amid the COVID-19 crisis.
Artificially Low Salaries And Tax Dodging, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Artificially Low Salaries And Tax Dodging, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
In the recent case of Wee Teng Yau v Comptroller of Income Tax, the Singapore Supreme Court considered the issue of tax avoidance by professionals for the first time. The case involved a dentist, Dr Wee, who was initially employed by Alfred Cheng Orthodontic Clinic Pte Ltd (ACOC). Subsequently, he incorporated Straighten Pte Ltd (SPL), of which he was the sole director and shareholder. Dr Wee continued to provide the same dental services to ACOC's patients as he had done before. However, instead of paying Dr Wee directly for his services, ACOC paid for his services to SPL, which in …
Tax Considerations For Funds Structuring In Asia, Vincent Ooi
Tax Considerations For Funds Structuring In Asia, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Tax considerations play a major role in the decisions of fund managers of where to base their funds. The highly mobile nature of capital has resulted in tax competition, leading to several host jurisdictions for funds in Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Labuan, and the BVI) having very similar tax characteristics in terms of low effective corporate income tax rates; no capital gains taxes; no exit taxes; a single tier of taxation; and generally no withholding taxes. Other ways in which jurisdictions have attempted to distinguish themselves include a strong Double Tax Agreement network, certainty on the taxation of the carried …
Tax Implications Of Covid-19 In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
Tax Implications Of Covid-19 In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
As taxpayers in Singapore deal with a radically changed business environment due to COVID-19, there is a need to make non-routine decisions quickly. These decisions can have significant tax implications, which will likely manifest themselves later as the economy recovers. It is critical for taxpayers to understand the tax consequences of their decisions, even as they focus on issues of immediate survival. While the majority of the relevant tax principles are not new, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the need to apply these existing principles to new situations and increased the frequency of certain activities that may have been …
Singapore Property Tax Law As It Stands: The Rebus Sic Stantibus Principle And The Statutory Formula, Vincent Ooi
Singapore Property Tax Law As It Stands: The Rebus Sic Stantibus Principle And The Statutory Formula, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The Singapore jurisprudence appears to have adopted the proposition that the rebus sic stantibus principle is to be disapplied where section 2(3) of the Singapore Property Tax Act (“PTA”) (the “Statutory Formula”) is applied. This article argues that this proposition perhaps ought to be stated more precisely. The principle is only disapplied where section 2(3)(b) is applied because it would run contrary to the statutory fiction imposed by section 2(3)(b) that the land is to be valued as if it were vacant land. There should be no disapplication of the principle where section 2(3)(a) is applied due to the absence …
The Tax Treatment Of Haircuts In Financial Reorganizations, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez, Vincent Ooi
The Tax Treatment Of Haircuts In Financial Reorganizations, Aurelio Gurrea-Martinez, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Over the past few years, Singapore has implemented various ambitious insolvency reforms aimed at making the country an international hub for debt restructuring. This article argues that while Singapore has put in place one of the most sophisticated restructuring frameworks in the world, some tax reforms might be useful to maximise the potential of this new restructuring framework. Namely, it will be pointed out that the tax treatment of debt forgiveness granted by creditors in corporate reorganisation (‘haircuts’) should be reviewed. Under the current legislation, these haircuts may be treated as taxable income. As a result, financially distressed debtors may …
Revisiting The Automation Tax Debate In Light Of Covid-19 And Resulting Structural Unemployment, Vincent Ooi
Revisiting The Automation Tax Debate In Light Of Covid-19 And Resulting Structural Unemployment, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
As lockdowns ease around the globe and businesses reopen, the threat of jobs being automated by machines and workers being displaced as a result has significantly increased. Businesses must keep the number of workers on site to a minimum to comply with safe distancing measures. Under these constraints while social distancing remains the norm, automation might be the way forward for companies that still want to continue production while minimising human contact. The threat of a workforce being replaced by robots and automation, a threat that has already alarmed the labour movement, is heightened with Covid-19. There will be considerable …
The Anti-Avoidance Response To Professionals Incorporating Companies In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
The Anti-Avoidance Response To Professionals Incorporating Companies In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The issue of whether the incorporating of companies by professionals in Singapore constitutes tax avoidance has attracted considerable attention. The recent case of GCL v. CIT provides some guidance in this area. It reaffirms the general two-part test in CIT v. AQQ, requiring one to first apply the objective predication principle before moving on to consider the subjective bona fides commercial reason exception. It establishes that the mere fact that a professional incorporated a company through which to practise would not be sufficient to constitute tax avoidance, since such an arrangement is common and widely used, with established commercial benefits. …
General Anti-Avoidance Rules And The Rule Of Law, Vincent Ooi
General Anti-Avoidance Rules And The Rule Of Law, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
General Anti-Avoidance Rules (“GAARs”) grant tax authorities wide powers to counteract tax avoidance transactions notwithstanding that the taxpayer may have complied with the strict letter of the law. These wide powers raise questions of possible conflicts with fundamental principles such as the Rule of Law, and Distributive and Corrective Justice. The main difficulty arises in attempting to reconcile the need for a GAAR to apply to unpredictable and rapidly developing situations, and the principle of certainty as one of the foundations of the Rule of Law. This paper begins by defining tax avoidance, establishing a moral duty to pay tax …
Singapore's Consistent, Agile Support For Innovation And Ip In A Digital Age, Sam Sim, Vincent Ooi
Singapore's Consistent, Agile Support For Innovation And Ip In A Digital Age, Sam Sim, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Singapore has been agile in refining its support for companies investing in the acquisition, development, enhancement and exploitation of intellectual property rights, which is the key to innovation in the digitalised economy of the future.Sam Sim and Vincent Ooi outline the main tax measures announced in recent budgets.
The Case For Redistributive Taxation In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
The Case For Redistributive Taxation In Singapore, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
In light of the recent debate on whether Singapore should consider imposing wealth and inheritance taxes on ultra-high net worth individuals, this article seeks to address two key questions: 1) whether wealth should be taxed; and 2) how wealth should be taxed. The first question is one of moral philosophy while the second is one of tax policy.
Automation Tax Vs Robot-Tax, Vincent Ooi
Automation Tax Vs Robot-Tax, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
The positive impact of developments in technology on the economy has historically outweighed the disruptive impact on employment. Society has benefited from the efficiency gains derived from the application of technology in production, while workers displaced by these technologies have largely been successfully retrained and employed in other jobs. However, the pace of development of the “Fourth Industrial Revolution” now presents a risk of mass displacement of human labour, particularly in tasks that are repetitive and menial. The “Fourth Industrial Revolution” is characterised by significant progress in a closely-linked cluster of areas such as robot dexterity, machine learning, processing power, …
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Centre for AI & Data Governance
Rapid developments in automation technology pose a risk of massdisplacement of human labour, resulting in the need to support and retraindisplaced workers (a negative externality). We propose an “automation tax”that would slow the adoption of automation technology in appropriatecircumstances, giving workers and social support systems time to adapt. Thiscould be easily implemented through changes to the existing schedular systemof depreciation/ capital allowances, reducing the uncertainty of its applicationand implementation costs. Such a system would be flexible enough to keepup with rapid technological developments. Two main dimensions may beadjusted to produce intended distortionary effects: 1) accelerated depreciation,and 2) bonus depreciation. While …
Proposed Reforms To Singapore Goods And Services Taxation In The Digital Economy, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Proposed Reforms To Singapore Goods And Services Taxation In The Digital Economy, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
With the rapid development of the digital economy and the increasing importance of GST as a source of tax revenue, the Singapore Government has proposed several reforms to tighten the collection of tax revenue and tap its tax base more efficiently. The reforms focus on activating the currently dormant “reverse charge” mechanism to collect GST on supplies of services “imported” by businesses; creating an “overseas vendor registration regime” to catch digital products “imported” by individuals; and clarifying the “place of supply” requirement for supplies of digital products. This article considers the reforms from the perspective of a foreign business that …
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Taxation Of Automation And Artificial Intelligence As A Tool Of Labour Policy, Vincent Ooi, Glendon Goh
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Rapid developments in automation technology pose a risk of mass displacement of human labour, resulting in the need to support and retrain displaced workers (a negative externality). We propose an “automation tax” that would slow the adoption of automation technology in appropriate circumstances, giving workers and social support systems time to adapt. This could be easily implemented through changes to the existing schedular system of depreciation/ capital allowances, reducing the uncertainty of its application and implementation costs. Such a system would be flexible enough to keep up with rapid technological developments. Two main dimensions may be adjusted to produce intended …
Shining A Light On Tax Avoidance, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Shining A Light On Tax Avoidance, Hern Kuan Liu, Vincent Ooi
Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law
Tax avoidance is a technical legal term which has a precise meaning in law. This can be compared to the more general term of "tax dodging", which has no such technical legal meaning. In light of this, we think it might be useful to explain the concept of tax avoidance.