Agreement between the Government of the UNITED ARAB EMIRATES and the Government of the KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance

Article 1
Persons Covered

This Agreement shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting States.

Article 2
Taxes Covered

1. This Agreement shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or of its political subdivisions or local governments, 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 this Agreement shall apply are in particular:

   1. In the case of the Kingdom of Bahrain: The Corporate Income Tax (hereinafter referred to as 'Bahraini Tax').

   2. In the case of the United Arab Emirates: The Corporate Income Tax (hereinafter referred to as 'UAE Tax').

4. The provisions of this Agreement shall also apply to any identical or substantially similar taxes that are imposed by either of the Contracting States after the date of signature of this Agreement in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authority of each Contracting State shall notify the other of any significant changes that have been made in its tax laws.

Article 3
General Definitions

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires:

   1. The term 'Kingdom of Bahrain' and 'Bahrain' means the territory of the Kingdom of Bahrain, as well as the maritime zones, including the seabed and subsoil, and other areas over which the Kingdom of Bahrain exercises sovereign rights and jurisdiction in accordance with international law.

   2. The term 'United Arab Emirates' means the United Arab Emirates and, when used in a geographical sense, means the territories and islands belonging to the United Arab Emirates, including the territorial sea, maritime areas, economic zone, and continental shelf over which the United Arab Emirates exercises sovereign rights in accordance with its domestic laws and international law with respect to the exploration and exploitation of natural resources found in the sea waters, seabed, and subsoil of such waters.

   3. The term 'tax' means any tax covered by Article 2 of this Agreement.

   4. The term 'Contracting State' and 'the other Contracting State' means the Kingdom of Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates, as the context requires.

   5. The term 'person' includes an individual, a company, and any other body of persons, including the State and its administrative subdivisions or local governments.

   6. The term 'company' means any body corporate or any entity that is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes.

   7. The term 'enterprise' applies to the carrying on of any business.

   8. 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.

   9. The term 'international traffic' means any transport by a ship, aircraft, or road vehicle operated by an enterprise that has its place of effective management in a Contracting State, except when the ship, aircraft, or vehicle is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State.

   10. The term 'national' means:

       1. Any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State.

       2. Any legal person, partnership, or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State.

   11. The term 'competent authority' means:

       • In the case of the Kingdom of Bahrain, the Minister of Finance and National Economy or his authorized representative.

       • In the case of the United Arab Emirates, the Ministry of Finance represented by the Minister of Finance or his authorized representative.

   12. The term 'business' includes the performance of professional services and of other activities of an independent character.

2. As regards the application of this 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.

Article 4
Resident

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the term 'resident of a Contracting State' means:

   1. In the case of the Kingdom of Bahrain:

      1. An individual who is present in Bahrain for a period or periods totaling at least 183 days in the fiscal year.

      2. A company or other legal entity incorporated in Bahrain or having its place of effective management therein.

   2. In the case of the United Arab Emirates:

      1. Any individual who, under the laws of the United Arab Emirates, has his domicile, residence, habitual abode, or center of vital interests in the United Arab Emirates.

      2. A company or other legal entity incorporated in the United Arab Emirates or having its place of effective management therein.

   It includes the Contracting States and any of their political subdivisions or local governments and recognized pension funds. However, the term 'resident' does not include any person who is liable to tax in that Contracting State in respect only of income from sources in the other Contracting State.

2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows:

   1. He shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both Contracting States, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (center of vital interests).

   2. If the Contracting State in which he has his center of vital interests cannot be determined, or if he has not a permanent home available to him in either Contracting State, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State in which he has an habitual abode.

   3. If he has an habitual abode in both Contracting States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident only of the Contracting State of which he is a national.

   4. If he is a national of both Contracting States or of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual agreement.

3. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article 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.

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:

   1. A place of management;

   2. A branch;

   3. An office;

   4. A factory;

   5. A workshop.

   6. A mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry, or any other place of extraction or exploration of natural resources.

3. The term 'permanent establishment' also encompasses a building site, a construction, assembly or installation project, or supervisory activities in connection therewith, but only if such site, project or activities last more than six months.

4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term 'permanent establishment' shall be deemed not to include:

   1. The use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage, display, or delivery of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise;

   2. The maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage, display, or delivery;

   3. The maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;

   4. The maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information for the enterprise;

   5. 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;

   6. The maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in subparagraphs 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 whom paragraph 7 applies - is acting on behalf of an enterprise and has, and habitually exercises, in a Contracting State an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the enterprise, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in that 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.

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.

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 Contracting 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. In any case, the term shall 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 of this Article 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 of this Article shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise.

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 Contracting State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent establishment.

2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3 of this Article, 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, including insurance, so incurred, whether in the Contracting 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 of this Article 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 principles 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.

Article 8
Shipping, Air, and Land Transport

1. Profits from the operation of ships, aircraft, or road vehicles in international traffic shall be taxable only in the Contracting State in which the place of effective management of the enterprise is situated.

2. The term 'profits from the international operation of ships and aircraft' includes:

   1. Profits from the charter or rental of ships or aircraft used in international transport on a full basis (time or voyage).

   2. Profits from the charter or rental of ships or aircraft used in international transport without crew, fuel, or other facilities.

   3. Profits from the use or rental of containers and related equipment used in international transport.

   4. Profits derived from returns on funds deposited in banks provided they are generated from or connected to the operation of aircraft in international transport in the Contracting State.

   Provided that such profits and other income resulting from investments in shares, bonds, and other debt instruments are incidental to the income from the international operation of ships or aircraft.

3. If the place of effective management of a shipping enterprise is aboard a ship, then it shall be deemed to be situated in the Contracting State in which the home harbour of the ship is situated, or, if there is no such home harbour, in the Contracting State of which the operator of the ship is a resident.

4. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall also apply to profits from the participation in a pool, a joint business, or an international operating agency.

Article 9
Associated Enterprises

1. Where:

   1. 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

   2. 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.

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 shall be taxable only in that other Contracting State.

2. The term 'dividends' as used in this Article means income from shares, 'jouissance' shares or 'jouissance' rights, mining shares, founders' 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.

3. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article 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, 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 shall apply.

4. 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 situated in that other State.

   Nor may it subject the company's undistributed profits to a tax on the company's undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State. ^[G1]

Article 11
Income from Debt-Claims

1. Income from debt-claims arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State who is the beneficial owner of such income shall be taxable only in that other Contracting State.

2. The term 'Income from debt-claims' 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 income from debt-claims for the purpose of this Article.

3. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall apply if the beneficial owner of the income from debt-claims, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the income from debt-claims arises through a permanent establishment situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which such income is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 shall apply.

4. Income from debt-claims shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the income, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment in connection with which the indebtedness on which the income is paid was incurred, and such income is borne by such permanent establishment, then such income shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment is situated.

5. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the income from debt-claims, having regard to the debt-claim 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.

Article 12
Royalties

1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in that other State.

2. 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 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.

3. The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article 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, 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 shall apply.

4. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and 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.

5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 3 and 4, royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to the Government of the other Contracting State, a local authority, an agency thereof, a national bank, or any company owned by that Contracting State or a local authority, shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned Contracting State.

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 of this Agreement and situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State.

2. Capital 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, including such capital gains from the alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise), may be taxed in that other State.

3. Gains 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 the Contracting State in which the place of effective management of the enterprise is situated.

4. 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.

Article 14
Income from Employment

1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18, and 19 of this Agreement, 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 Contracting 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 Contracting State.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article, 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 in the following case:

   1. If the recipient is present in the other Contracting State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any twelve-month period commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned.

   2. And the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of the other State.

   3. And the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the employer has in the other Contracting State.

3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived from the exercise of an employment aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic shall be taxable in the State in which the place of effective management of the enterprise is situated, or where the regional services are performed by the regional manager of the enterprise.

Article 15
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 shall be taxable in that other State.

Article 16
Entertainers and Sportspersons

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7 and 14, 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 sportsperson, 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 sportsperson in his capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson himself but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7 and 14, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsperson are exercised.

3. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from activities exercised in the other Contracting State, in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 of this Article, shall be exempt from tax in that other Contracting State if the visit to that other Contracting State is supported wholly or mainly by public funds from the first-mentioned Contracting State, or one of its administrative subdivisions or local governments, or is carried out pursuant to a cultural agreement or agreement between the Governments of the Contracting States.

Article 17
Pensions

Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 19 of this Agreement, pensions and other similar remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State in consideration of past employment shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.

Article 18
Government Service

1. 1. Salaries, wages, and other similar remuneration - other than a pension - paid by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that Contracting State.

   2. However, such salaries, wages, and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that other State and the individual is a resident of that State who:

      1. is a national of that State; or

      2. did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.

2. 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article, any pensions and other similar remuneration paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State.

   2. However, such pensions shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that other Contracting State.

3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16, 17, and 18 of this Agreement 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 political subdivision or a local authority thereof.

Article 19
Students

Payments which a student or business apprentice or trainee who is or was immediately before visiting a Contracting State a resident of the other Contracting State and who is present in the first-mentioned 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 Contracting State, provided that such payments arise from sources outside that Contracting State.

Article 20
Teachers and Researchers

Remuneration which a teacher or researcher who is or was a resident of a Contracting State prior to being invited to or visiting the other Contracting State for the purpose of teaching or conducting research receives in respect of such activities shall not be taxed in that other Contracting State.

Article 21
Other Income

1. Items of income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Agreement shall be taxable only in that State.

2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to income, other than income from immovable property as defined in paragraph 2 of Article 6, if the recipient of such income, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment. In such case the provisions of Article 7 shall apply.

Article 22
Elimination of Double Taxation

1. Where a resident of a Contracting State derives income or owns capital which, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, may be taxed in the other Contracting State, the first-mentioned State shall allow:

   1. As a deduction from the tax on the income of that resident, an amount equal to the income tax paid in that other Contracting State.

   2. As a deduction from the tax on the capital of that resident, an amount equal to the capital tax paid in that other Contracting State.

2. Where in accordance with any provision of the Agreement income derived by a resident of a Contracting State is exempt from tax in that State, such State may nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax on the remaining income of such resident, take into account the exempted income.

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 State in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be subjected. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, the provisions of this paragraph shall also apply to persons who are not residents of one or both of the Contracting States.

2. Stateless persons who are residents of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in either 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 the State concerned in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be subjected.

3. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favorably levied in that other State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other State carrying on the same activities. This provision shall not be construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State any personal allowances, reliefs and reductions for taxation purposes on account of civil status or family responsibilities which it grants to its own residents.

4. Except where the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 9, paragraph 6 of Article 11, or paragraph 4 of Article 12 apply, interest (income from debt-claims), royalties and other disbursements paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been paid to a resident of the first-mentioned State.

   Similarly, any debts of an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable capital of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been contracted to a resident of the first-mentioned State.

5. 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.

6. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 2, the provisions of this Article shall apply to taxes of every kind and description.

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 either of the Contracting States.

   The case must be presented within three 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, including through a joint commission consisting of themselves or their representatives, for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs.

5. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may, by mutual agreement, determine the appropriate mode of application of this Agreement and, in particular, the requirements to which residents of a Contracting State shall be subjected in order to obtain, in the other State, the tax relief or exemption provided for in this Agreement.

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 of every kind and description imposed on behalf of the Contracting States, or of their local authorities, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to the Agreement. The exchange of information is not restricted by Articles 1 and 2 of this Agreement.

2. Any information received under paragraph 1 of this Article 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 of this Article, or the oversight of the above.

   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 of this Article be construed so as to impose on a Contracting State the obligation:

   1. To carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State.

   2. 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.

   3. 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).

4. If information is requested by a Contracting State in accordance with this Article, the other Contracting State shall use its information gathering measures to obtain the requested information, even though that other State may not need such information for its own tax purposes.

   The obligation contained in the preceding sentence is subject to the limitations of paragraph 3 of this Article but in no case shall such limitations be construed to permit a Contracting State to decline to supply information solely because it has no domestic interest in such information.

5. In no case shall the provisions of paragraph 3 of this Article be construed to permit a Contracting State to decline to supply information solely because the information is held by a bank, other financial institution, nominee or person acting in an agency or a fiduciary capacity or because it relates to ownership interests in a person.

Article 26
Special Provisions

Government investments (including investments of the Central Bank, public financial institutions and authorities, and companies wholly owned by the Contracting State or its local governments) shall be exempt from tax in the other Contracting State. Income derived from such investments (including gains from the alienation thereof) shall also be exempt. The provisions of this Article shall not apply to immovable property, nor to income derived from such immovable property.

Article 27
Members of Diplomatic Missions 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.

Article 28
Income from Natural Resources

1. Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Agreement, income and profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the exploration and exploitation of natural resources in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in that other Contracting State.

2. Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the application of domestic provisions for the prevention of tax evasion or avoidance.

Article 29
Entitlement to Benefits

Notwithstanding the other provisions of this Agreement, a benefit under this Agreement shall not be granted in respect of an item of income if it is reasonable to conclude, having regard to all relevant facts and circumstances, that obtaining that benefit was one of the principal purposes of any arrangement or transaction that resulted directly or indirectly in that benefit, unless it is established that granting that benefit in these circumstances would be in accordance with the object and purpose of the relevant provisions of this Agreement.

Article 30
Entry into Force

1. Each Contracting State shall notify the other Contracting State in writing through diplomatic channels of the completion of the procedures required by its law for the entry into force of this Agreement. This Agreement shall enter into force on the first day of the second month following the month in which the last notification was received.

2. The provisions of this Agreement shall apply:

   1. In respect of taxes withheld at source, to amounts paid on or after the first day of January following the date on which this Agreement enters into force.

   2. In respect of other taxes, for taxable years beginning on or after the first day of January following the date on which this Agreement enters into force.

Article 31
Termination

1. This Agreement shall remain in force for an indefinite period. Either Contracting State may terminate it through diplomatic channels by giving written notice of termination to the other Contracting State not later than 30 days in any calendar year starting five years after the year in which this Agreement entered into force.

2. In such case, the provisions of this Agreement shall cease to have effect:

   1. In respect of taxes withheld at source, on amounts paid after the end of the calendar year in which the notice of termination is given.

   2. In respect of other taxes, for taxable years beginning after the end of the calendar year in which the notice of termination is given.