An APA may prevent costly and time-consuming examinations and litigation of major transfer pricing issues for taxpayers and tax administrations. Once an APA has been agreed, less resources may be needed for subsequent examination of the taxpayer’s return, because more information is known about the taxpayer. It may still be difficult, however, to monitor the application of the arrangement. The APA process itself may also present time savings for both taxpayers and tax administrations over the time that would be spent in a conventional examination, although in the aggregate there may be no net time savings, for example, in jurisdictions that do not have an audit procedure and where the existence of an APA may not directly affect the amount of resources devoted to compliance.
TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.155
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By OECD
Category: OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines (2022), TPG2022 Chapter IV: Administrative Dispute Resolution | Tag: Advance pricing arrangement (APA)
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- TPG2022 Chapter II Annex I paragraph 1[See Chapter II, Part III, Section B of these Guidelines for general guidance on the application of the transactional net margin method. The assumptions about arm’s length arrangements in the following examples are intended for illustrative purposes only and should not be taken as prescribing adjustments and arm’s length arrangements...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.162Another potential disadvantage could occur where one tax administration has undertaken a number of bilateral APAs which involve only certain of the associated enterprises within an MNE group. A tendency may exist to harmonise the basis for concluding later APAs in a way similar to those previously concluded without sufficient...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.164In addition to the foregoing concerns, there are a number of possible pitfalls as described below that could arise if an APA program were improperly administered, and tax administrations who use APAs should make strong efforts to eliminate the occurrence of these problems as APA practice evolves....
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.167Problems could also develop if tax administrations misuse information obtained in an APA in their examination practices. If the taxpayer withdraws from its APA request or if the taxpayer’s application is rejected after consideration of all of the facts, any nonfactual information provided by the taxpayer in connection with the...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.149An APA should be subject to cancellation, even retroactively, in the case of fraud or misrepresentation of information during an APA negotiation, or when a taxpayer fails to comply with the terms and conditions of an APA. Where an APA is proposed to be cancelled or revoked, the tax administration...
- OECD COVID-19 TPG paragraph 95When considering the consequences of the failure to meet critical assumptions, tax administrations and taxpayers should consider the (i) terms of the APA; (ii) any agreement between relevant tax administrations as to how to deal with the failure; and (iii) any applicable domestic law or procedural provisions.45 This section follows...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.154APAs can provide an opportunity for both tax administrations and taxpayers to consult and cooperate in a non-adversarial spirit and environment. The opportunity to discuss complex tax issues in a less confrontational atmosphere than in a transfer pricing examination can stimulate a free flow of information among all parties involved...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV paragraph 4.5This section describes three aspects of transfer pricing compliance that should receive special consideration to help tax jurisdictions administer their transfer pricing rules in a manner that is fair to taxpayers and other jurisdictions. While other tax law compliance practices are in common use in OECD member countries – for...
- TPG2022 Chapter IV Annex II paragraph 53Tax authorities are encouraged, where possible, to devote sufficient resources and skilled personnel to the process to ensure that cases are settled promptly and efficiently. Some tax authorities may wish to improve the efficiency of their MAP APA programmes by setting informal goals for the length of time taken to...
- OECD COVID-19 TPG paragraph 98In some circumstances, it may be possible to retain some of the terms set out in an APA, but revise specific provisions for which the breach in the critical assumptions is relevant. For example, an APA may cover a series of controlled transactions for which the agreed methodology for only...