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China-Singapore Tax Agreement
Agreement Between The Government Of The People’s Republic Of China And The Government Of The Republic Of Singapore For The Avoidance Of Double Taxation And The Prevention Of Fiscal Evasion With Respect To Taxes On Income
The Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of
Singapore,
DESIRING to conclude an Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the
Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income,
HAVE AGREED as follows:
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Article 1
Persons Covered
This Agreement shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting
States.
3
Article 2
Taxes Covered
1. This Agreement shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or
its local authorities, irrespective of the manner in which they are levied.
2. There shall be regarded as taxes on income all taxes imposed on total income or on
elements of income, including taxes on gains from the alienation of movable or immovable
property.
3. The existing taxes to which the Agreement shall apply are in particular:
(a) in China:
(i) the Individual Income Tax
(ii) the Enterprise Income Tax
(hereinafter referred to as "Chinese tax");
(b) in Singapore:
the Income Tax
(hereinafter referred to as "Singapore tax").
4. The Agreement shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes which are
imposed after the date of signature of the Agreement in addition to, or in place of, the existing
taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any significant
changes which have been made in their respective taxation laws.
4
Article 3
General Definitions
1. For the purposes of this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires:
(a) the term "China" means the People’s Republic of China, and when used in
geographical sense, means all the territory of the People’s Republic of China,
including its territorial sea, in which the Chinese laws relating to taxation apply,
and any area beyond its territorial sea, within which the People’s Republic of
China has sovereign rights of exploration for and exploitation of resources of
the sea-bed and its sub-soil and superjacent water resources in accordance with
international law;
(b) the term "Singapore" means the Republic of Singapore and when used in a
geographical sense, the term "Singapore" includes the territorial waters of
Singapore and any area extending beyond the limits of the territorial waters of
Singapore, and the sea-bed and subsoil of any such area, which has been or may
hereafter be designated under the laws of Singapore and in accordance with
international law as an area over which Singapore has sovereign rights for the
purposes of exploring and exploiting the natural resources, whether living or nonliving;
(c) the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean China or
Singapore as the context requires;
(d) the term"person" includes an individual, a company and any other body of persons;
(e) the term "company" means any body corporate or any entity that is treated as a
body corporate for tax purposes;
(f) the terms "enterprise of a Contracting State" and "enterprise of the other
Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a
Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other
Contracting State;
(g) the term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by
an enterprise of a Contracting State, except when the ship or aircraft is operated
solely between places in the other Contracting State;
(h) the term"competent authority" means:
(i) in the case of China, the State Administration of Taxation or its
authorised representative; and
(ii) in the case of Singapore, the Minister for Finance or his authorised
representative;
(i) the term"national" means:
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(i) any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;
(ii) any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from
the laws in force in a Contracting State.
2. As regards the application of the Agreement at any time by a Contracting State, any term
not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meaning that it has at that
time under the law of that State for the purposes of the taxes to which the Agreement applies, any
meaning under the applicable tax laws of that State prevailing over a meaning given to the term
under other laws of that State.
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Article 4
Resident
1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the term "resident of a Contracting State" means any
person who, under the laws of that State, is liable to tax therein by reason of his domicile,
residence, place of management, place of head office, place of incorporation or any other criterion
of a similar nature, and also includes that State, a local authority or statutory body thereof.
2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both
Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows:
(a) he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which he has a permanent
home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both States,
he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State with which his personal and
economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests);
(b) if the State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determined, or if
he has not a permanent home available to him in either State, he shall be deemed to
be a resident only of the State in which he has an habitual abode;
(c) if he has an habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed
to be a resident only of the State of which he is a national;
(d) in any other case, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the
question by mutual agreement.
3. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual is a
resident of both Contracting States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in
which its place of effective management is situated. If its place of effective management cannot be
determined, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual
agreement.
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Article 5
Permanent Establishment
1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the term "permanent establishment" means a fixed
place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on.
2. The term"permanent establishment" includes especially:
(a) a place of management;
(b) a branch;
(c) an office;
(d) a factory;
(e) a workshop; and
(f) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of natural
resources.
3. The term"permanent establishment" likewise encompasses:
(a) a building site, a construction, assembly or installation project or supervisory
activities in connection therewith, but only where such site, project or activities
continue for a period ofmore than 6 months;
(b) the furnishing of services, including consultancy services, by an enterprise
through employees or other personnel engaged by the enterprise for such
purpose, but only if such activities of that nature continue (for the same or a
connected project) within a Contracting State for a period or periods
aggregating more than 6 months within any twelve-month period.
4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term "permanent
establishment" shall be deemed not to include:
(a) the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery of goods or
merchandise belonging to the enterprise;
(b) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise
solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery;
(c) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise
solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;
(d) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing
goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the enterprise;
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(e) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of carrying on,
for the enterprise, any other activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character;
(f) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities
mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) to (e), provided that the overall activity of the
fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a preparatory or
auxiliary character.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than an agent
of an independent status to whomparagraph 6 applies - is acting in a Contracting State on behalf of
an enterprise of the other Contracting State, has and habitually exercises an authority to conclude
contracts in the name of the enterprise, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent
establishment in the first-mentioned Contracting State in respect of any activities which that person
undertakes for the enterprise, unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in
paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business, would not make this fixed place
of business a permanent establishment under the provisions of that paragraph.
6. An enterprise of a Contracting State shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment
in the other Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that other State through a
broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, provided that such
persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business. However, when the activities of such
an agent are devoted wholly or almost wholly on behalf of that enterprise, and conditions are
made or imposed between that enterprise and the agent in their commercial and financial
relations which differ from those which would have been made between independent
enterprises, he will not be considered an agent of an independent status within the meaning of
this paragraph.
7. The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled
by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in
that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise), shall not of itself
constitute either company a permanent establishment of the other.
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Article 6
Income from Immovable Property
1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property (including
income from agriculture or forestry) situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that
other State.
2. The term "immovable property" shall have the meaning which it has under the law of the
Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall in any case include
property accessory to immovable property, livestock and equipment used in agriculture and
forestry, rights to which the provisions of general law respecting landed property apply, usufruct of
immovable property and rights to variable or fixed payments as consideration for the working of, or
the right to work, mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships and aircraft shall not
be regarded as immovable property.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or
use in any other form of immovable property.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable
property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of
independent personal services.
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Article 7
Business Profits
1. The profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State unless
the enterprise carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment
situated therein. If the enterprise carries on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may
be taxed in the other State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent
establishment.
2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State carries
on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, there
shall in each Contracting State be attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it
might be expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the same or
similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing wholly independently with the
enterprise of which it is a permanent establishment.
3. In determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as
deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the permanent establishment,
including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred, whether in the State in
which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere.
4. Insofar as it has been customary in a Contracting State to determine the profits to be
attributed to a permanent establishment on the basis of an apportionment of the total profits of
the enterprise to its various parts, nothing in paragraph 2 shall preclude that Contracting State
from determining the profits to be taxed by such an apportionment as may be customary. The
method of apportionment adopted shall, however, be such that the result shall be in
accordance with the principle contained in this Article.
5. No profits shall be attributed to a permanent establishment by reason of the mere purchase
by that permanent establishment of goods or merchandise for the enterprise.
6. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the profits to be attributed to the permanent
establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year unless there is good and
sufficient reason to the contrary.
7. Where profits include items of income which are dealt with separately in other Articles of
this Agreement, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this
Article.
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Article 8
Shipping and Air Transport
1. Profits derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or
aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to profits from the participation in a pool, a
joint business or an international operating agency.
3. Interest derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from its deposits of moneys
incidental to and connected with its operations of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be
regarded as profits derived fromthe operation of such ships or aircraft.
4. For the purposes of this Article, profits from the operation of ships or aircraft in
international traffic shall include:
(a) profits fromthe rental on a bareboat basis of ships or aircraft; and
(b) profits from the use, maintenance or rental of containers (including trailers and
related equipment for the transport of containers), used for the transport of goods
or merchandise;
where such rental or such use, maintenance or rental, as the case may be, is incidental to the
operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic.
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Article 9
Associated Enterprises
1. Where
(a) an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the
management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, or
(b) the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management, control or
capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise of the other
Contracting State,
and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in their commercial
or financial relations which differ from those which would be made between independent
enterprises, then any profits which would, but for those conditions, have accrued to one of the
enterprises, but, by reason of those conditions, have not so accrued, may be included in the profits
of that enterprise and taxed accordingly.
2. Where a Contracting State includes in the profits of an enterprise of that State -- and
taxes accordingly -- profits on which an enterprise of the other Contracting State has been
charged to tax in that other State and the profits so included are profits which would have
accrued to the enterprise of the first-mentioned State if the conditions made between the two
enterprises had been those which would have been made between independent enterprises,
then that other State shall make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax charged
therein on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other
provisions of this Agreement and the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall if
necessary consult each other.
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Article 10
Dividends
1. Dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the
other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the
company paying the dividends is a resident and according to the laws of that State, but if the
beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so
charged shall not exceed:
(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner is a
company (other than a partnership) which holds directly at least 25 per cent of
the capital of the company paying the dividends;
(b) 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends in all other cases.
The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement settle the mode
of application of these limitations.
This paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the company in respect of the profits out of
which the dividends are paid.
3. The term "dividends" as used in this Article means income from shares or other rights, not
being debt-claims, participating in profits, as well as income from other corporate rights which is
subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from shares by the laws of the State of which
the company making the distribution is a resident.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the
dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State
of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, through a permanent establishment
situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base
situated therein, and the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected
with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article
14, as the case may be, shall apply.
5. Where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income from
the other Contracting State, that other State may not impose any tax on the dividends paid by the
company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or insofar as the
holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent
establishment or a fixed base situated in that other State, nor subject the company's undistributed
profits to a tax on undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits
consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State.
6. The provisions of this Article shall not apply if it was the main purpose of any person
concerned with the creation or assignment of the shares or other rights in respect of which the
dividend is paid to take advantage of this Article by means of that creation or assignment.
14
Article 11
Interest
1. Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State
may be taxed in that other State.
2. However, such interest may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which it arises and
according to the laws of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the interest is a resident of the
other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(a) 7 per cent of the gross amount of the interest if it is received by any bank or
financial institution;
(b) 10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest in all other cases.
The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement settle the mode
of application of this limitation.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest derived from a Contracting
State is exempt from tax in that State, if the beneficial owner is:
(a) in the case of China:
(i) the Government of the People’s Republic of China and any local
authority thereof;
(ii) the China Development Bank;
(iii) the Agricultural Development Bank of China;
(iv) the Export-Import Bank of China;
(v) the National Council for Social Security Fund;
(vi) the China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation; and
(vii) any institution wholly owned by the Government of China as may be
agreed from time to time between the competent authorities of the
Contracting States.
(b) in the case of Singapore:
(i) the Government of the Republic of Singapore;
(ii) the Monetary Authority of Singapore;
(iii) the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation Pte Ltd;
15
(iv) a statutory body; and
(v) any institution wholly owned by the Government of Singapore as may be
agreed from time to time between the competent authorities of the
Contracting States.
4. The term "interest" as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind,
whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate in the
debtor's profits, and in particular, income from government securities and income from bonds or
debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such securities, bonds or debentures.
Penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purpose of this Article.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest,
being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which
the interest arises, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other
State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect
of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed
base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
6. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that
State. Where, however, the person paying the interest, whether he is a resident of a Contracting
State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection
with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred, and such interest is borne by
such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the State
in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
7. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or
between both of themand some other person, the amount of the interest, having regard to the debtclaim
for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer
and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply
only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain
taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other
provisions of this Agreement.
8. The provisions of this Article shall not apply if it was the main purpose of any person
concerned with the creation or assignment of the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is
paid to take advantage of this Article by means of that creation or assignment.
16
Article 12
Royalties
1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting
State may be taxed in that other State.
2. However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise
and according to the laws of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the royalties is a resident
of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross
amount of the royalties. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual
agreement settle the mode of application of this limitation.
3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as a
consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work
including cinematograph films, or films or tapes for radio or television broadcasting, any computer
software, patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process, or for the use of, or
the right to use, industrial, commercial or scientific equipment or for information concerning
industrial, commercial or scientific experience.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties,
being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which
the royalties arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other
State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in
respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment
or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that
State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a resident of a Contracting
State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection
with which the liability to pay the royalties was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such
permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the State in
which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
6. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or
between both of themand some other person, the amount of the royalties, having regard to the use,
right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed
upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of
this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the
payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being
had to the other provisions of this Agreement.
7. The provisions of this Article shall not apply if it was the main purpose of any person
concerned with the creation or assignment of rights in respect of which the royalties are paid
to take advantage of this Article by means of that creation or assignment.
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Article 13
Capital Gains
1. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable
property referred to in Article 6 and situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that
other State.
2. Gains from the alienation of movable property forming part of the business property of a
permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting
State or of movable property pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a Contracting State
in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent personal services,
including such gains fromthe alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole
enterprise) or of such fixed base, may be taxed in that other State.
3. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of ships or
aircraft operated in international traffic, or movable property pertaining to the operation of
such ships or aircraft, shall be taxable only in that State.
4. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of shares deriving
more than 50 per cent of their value directly or indirectly from immovable property situated in the
other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
5. Subject to paragraph 4, gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the
alienation of shares, participation, or other rights in the capital of a company or other legal
person which is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other
Contracting State if the recipient of the gains, at any time during the twelve-month period
preceding such alienation, had a participation, directly or indirectly, of at least 25 per cent in
the capital of that company or other legal person.
6. Gains from the alienation of any property other than that referred to in the preceding
paragraphs of this Article shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a
resident.
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Article 14
Independent Personal Services
1. Income derived by an individual who is a resident of a Contracting State from the
performance of professional services or other activities of an independent character shall be
taxable only in that State unless:
(a) he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State
for the purpose of performing his activities; in that case, only so much of the
income as is attributable to that fixed base may be taxed in that other
Contracting State; or
(b) his stay in the other Contracting State is for a period or periods amounting to
or exceeding in the aggregate 183 days within any twelve-month period; in
that case, only so much of the income as is derived from his activities
performed in that other State may be taxed in that other State.
2. The term "professional services" includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic,
educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers,
engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
19
Article 15
Dependent Personal Services
1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, salaries, wages and other similar
remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment shall be
taxable only in that State unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the
employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is derived therefrom may be taxed in that other
State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remuneration derived by a resident of a
Contracting State in respect of an employment exercised in the other Contracting State shall be
taxable only in the first-mentioned State if:
(a) the recipient is present in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding in
the aggregate 183 days within any twelve-month period; and
(b) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of
the other State; and
(c) the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which
the employer has in the other State.
3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived in respect of
an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise
of a Contracting State, shall be taxable only in that State.
20
Article 16
Directors' Fees
Directors' fees and other similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State in his
capacity as a member of the board of directors of a company which is a resident of the other
Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
21
Article 17
Artistes and Sportsmen
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a resident of a
Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture, radio or television artiste, or a
musician, or as a sportsman, from his personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting
State, may be taxed in that other State.
2. Where income in respect of personal activities exercised by an entertainer or a sportsman in
his capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsman himself but to another person, that
income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, be taxed in the Contracting
State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsman are exercised.
22
Article 18
Pensions
Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 19, pensions and other similar
remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State in consideration of past employment shall be
taxable only in that State.
23
Article 19
Government Service
1. (a) Salaries, wages and other similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a Contracting
State or a local authority or statutory body thereof to an individual in respect of services
rendered to that State or authority or body shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such salaries, wages and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the
other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the individual is a
resident of that State who:
(i) is a national of that State; or
(ii) did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the
services.
2. (a) Any pension paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a local authority or
statutory body thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or
authority or body shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual
is a resident of, and a national of, that State.
3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16, 17 and 18 shall apply to salaries, wages and other similar
remuneration, and to pensions, in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried
on by a Contracting State or a local authority or statutory body thereof.
24
Article 20
Students and Trainees
Payments which a student or business apprentice who is or was immediately before visiting
a Contracting State a resident of the other Contracting State and who is present in the firstmentioned
State solely for the purpose of his education or training receives for the purpose of his
maintenance, education or training shall not be taxed in that State, provided that such payments
arise fromsources outside that State.
25
Article 21
Other Income
Items of income not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Agreement and arising in a
Contracting State may be taxed in that State.
26
Article 22
Elimination of Double Taxation
1. In China, double taxation shall be eliminated as follows:
(a) Where a resident of China derives income from Singapore the amount of tax on
that income payable in Singapore in accordance with the provisions of this
Agreement, may be credited against the Chinese tax imposed on that resident.
The amount of the credit, however, shall not exceed the amount of the Chinese
tax on that income computed in accordance with the taxation laws and
regulations of China.
(b) Where the income derived from Singapore is a dividend paid by a company
which is a resident of Singapore to a company which is a resident of China and
which owns not less than 10 per cent of the shares of the company paying the
dividend, the credit shall take into account the tax paid to Singapore by the
company paying the dividend in respect of its income.
2. In Singapore, double taxation shall be avoided as follows:
Where a resident of Singapore derives income from China which, in accordance with the
provisions of this Agreement, may be taxed in China, Singapore shall, subject to its laws
regarding the allowance as a credit against Singapore tax of tax payable in any country
other than Singapore, allow the Chinese tax paid, whether directly or by deduction, as a
credit against the Singapore tax payable on the income of that resident. Where such income
is a dividend paid by a company which is a resident of China to a resident of Singapore
which is a company owning directly or indirectly not less than 10 per cent of the share
capital of the first-mentioned company, the credit shall take into account the Chinese tax
paid by that company on the portion of its profits out of which the dividend is paid.
3. For the purposes of the credit referred to in paragraph 2 of this Article, Chinese tax payable
shall be deemed to include the amount of Chinese tax which would have been paid if the
Chinese tax had not been exempted, reduced or refunded in accordance with the
Enterprise Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China and the Detailed Rules
and Regulations for the Implementation of such Law.
27
Article 23
Non-Discrimination
1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State
to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith which is other or more burdensome
than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of that other Contracting
State in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be
subjected.
2. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State
has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other Contracting
State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other Contracting State carrying on the
same activities.
3. Nothing in this Article shall be construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to:
(a) residents of the other Contracting State any personal allowances, reliefs and
reductions for tax purposes which it grants to its own residents, or
(b) nationals of the other Contracting State those personal allowances, reliefs and
reductions for tax purposes which it grants to its own nationals who are not
resident in that Contracting State or to such other persons as may be specified
in the taxation laws of that Contracting State.
4. Enterprises of a Contracting State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or
controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall
not be subjected in the first-mentioned State to any taxation or any requirement connected
therewith which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to
which other similar enterprises of the first-mentioned State are or may be subjected.
5. Where a Contracting State grants tax incentives to its nationals designed to promote
social or economic development in accordance with its national policy and criteria, it shall not
be construed as discrimination under this Article.
6. In this Article, the term "taxation" means taxes which are the subject of this
Agreement.
28
Article 24
Mutual Agreement Procedure
1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or
will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, he may,
irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, present his case to the
competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under
paragraph 1 of Article 23, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a national. The case must
be presented within 3 years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in
accordance with the provisions of the Agreement.
2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and if
it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by mutual agreement with
the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation
which is not in accordance with the Agreement. Any agreement reached shall be implemented
notwithstanding any time limits in the domestic law of the Contracting States.
3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by mutual
agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of the Agreement.
They may also consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in
the Agreement.
4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other
directly for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs.
29
Article 25
Exchange of Information
1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information as
is foreseeably relevant for carrying out the provisions of this Agreement or to the
administration or enforcement of the domestic laws concerning taxes covered by the
Agreement imposed on behalf of the Contracting States or their local authorities, insofar as the
taxation thereunder is not contrary to the Agreement.
2. Any information received by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in the same
manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that State and shall be disclosed
only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) concerned with the
assessment or collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination
of appeals in relation to the taxes referred to in paragraph 1. Such persons or authorities shall
use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose the information in public court
proceedings or in judicial decisions.
3. In no case shall the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 be construed so as to impose on a
Contracting State the obligation:
(a) to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and administrative
practice of that or of the other Contracting State;
(b) to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the normal
course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting State;
(c) to supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial,
commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information, the disclosure of
which would be contrary to public policy (ordre public).
30
Article 26
Miscellaneous Rule
Nothing in this Agreement shall prejudice the right of each Contracting State to apply
its domestic laws and measures concerning the prevention of tax avoidance, whether or not
described as such, insofar as they do not give rise to taxation contrary to the Agreement.
31
Article 27
Members of DiplomaticMissions and Consular Posts
Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the fiscal privileges of members of diplomatic
missions or consular posts under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of
special agreements.
32
Article 28
Entry into Force
1. Each of the Contracting States shall notify to the other the completion of the procedures
required by its law for the bringing into force of this Agreement.
2. The Agreement shall enter into force on the date of the later of these notifications and its
provisions shall have effect:
(a) in China:
in respect of income derived during the taxable years beginning on or after
the first day of January next following that in which this Agreement enters
into force.
(b) in Singapore:
in respect of tax chargeable for any year of assessment beginning on or after 1
January in the second calendar year following the year in which the Agreement
enters into force.
3. The Agreement between the People’s Republic of China and the Republic of Singapore
for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to
Taxes on Income signed on 18th April 1986 shall cease to have effect for all cases covered by
this Agreement as from the date on which the provisions of this Agreement commence to have
effect.
33
Article 29
Termination
This Agreement shall remain in force until terminated by a Contracting State. Either
Contracting State may terminate the Agreement, through diplomatic channels, by giving notice of
termination at least six months before the end of any calendar year after the expiration of a period
of five years from the date of its entry into force. In such event, the Agreement shall cease to have
effect:
(a) in China:
in respect of income derived during the taxable years beginning on or after
the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the
notice of termination is given.
(b) in Singapore:
in respect of tax chargeable for any year of assessment beginning on or after 1
January in the second calendar year following the year in which the notice is
given.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorised thereto, have signed this
Agreement.
DONE at Singapore on this 11th day of July 2007 in duplicate in the Chinese and
English languages, both texts being equally authentic.
For the Government of
the People’s Republic of China
Wang Li
Deputy Commissioner of State
Administration of Taxation
For the Government of
the Republic of Singapore
Moses Lee
Commissioner of Inland Revenue
34
PROTOCOL
At the moment of signing the Agreement between the Government of the People’s
Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Singapore for the Avoidance of Double
Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income (hereinafter
referred to as "the Agreement"), both sides have agreed upon the following provisions which shall
forman integral part of the Agreement.
1. With respect to Article 3 (General Definitions)
The term “body of persons” in paragraph 1(d) includes a trust established in a
Contracting State if the domestic law of that Contracting State regards the trust as a
tax resident of that State.
2. With respect to Article 8 (Shipping and Air Transport)
(a) Residents of Singapore carrying on the operation of ships or aircraft in
international traffic shall be exempt from Business Tax or any other similar tax
imposed on the gross receipts in China; and
(b) For residents of China carrying on the operation of ships or aircraft in
international traffic, supplies of international transportation shall be zero-rated
in terms of the Goods and Services Tax or any other similar tax and the input
tax attributable to such supplies shall be creditable in full amount in Singapore.
3. With respect to Article 12 (Royalties)
For the application of the percentage rate referred to in Paragraph 2 there shall be taken as
the taxable base of the royalties paid for the use of or the right to use any industrial,
commercial or scientific equipment, 60 per cent of the gross amount of these payments.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorised thereto, have signed this
Protocol.
35
DONE at Singapore on this 11th day of July 2007 in duplicate in the Chinese and
English languages, both texts being equally authentic.
For the Government of
the People’s Republic of China
Wang Li
Deputy Commissioner of State
Administration of Taxation
For the Government of
the Republic of Singapore
Moses Lee
Commissioner of Inland Revenue