New ‘general’ rate of 10% tax planned

A REVIEW of zero-10 needs to go ahead ‘on the presumption of a 10% general rate of corporate tax,’ according to the Policy Council.
The recommendation is made in a special Billet d’Etat published today and which will be debated by the States on Tuesday.
This follows last week’s announcement that zero-10 would need to be amended in the light of an increasingly hostile EU reaction to it.
It is also hoped all three Crown Dependencies will end up with very similar regimes.
‘Given the unprecedented global economic turbulence over the last 12-18 months and the significant worsening of the fiscal position of many European countries, it is believed that it is now the situation that several EU member States no longer consider a zero-10 corporate tax regime to be compliant with the spirit of the code,’ said Chief Minister Lyndon Trott in the Policy Council report.
The EU code of conduct for business taxation was designed to eliminate harmful tax practices.
Deputy Trott (pictured) said there was now an increased tendency for the EU to require ‘equivalence’ for third party countries to access the EU market without being discriminated against.
‘In order to maintain its position in the global economy, Guernsey must provide certainty for its investors and maintain the respect of the international community,’ said Deputy Trott.
Alternatives to zero-10 must receive UK support to achieve code compliance, he added. (from thisisguernsey)

will watch and listen to see what happens next