The influence of international offshore jurisdictions on the pricing strategy

The article analyzes the causes of offshore jurisdictions and identifies the effects of offshore on national economies. An analysis of the implementation of export-import operations carried out by offshore companies in order to influence the pricing process. The pricing mechanism with affiliates within offshore jurisdictions was presented. It was substantiated the role of offshore banks in the implementation of the pricing mechanism. It was presented the pricing mechanisms within offshore jurisdictions. It has been made an analysis of the impact of transfer pricing within offshore jurisdictions. It was substantiated the economic mechanism of pricing. The international experience of regulation of offshore jurisdictions and the system of controlling the operations of affiliates was analyzed. It was substantiated the mechanisms of functioning of offshore zones and companies operating in offshore jurisdictions. The relationship between agreements concluded within offshore jurisdictions in the following areas is established and substantiated: the agreement is concluded between two independent companies in case of underpricing; the agreement is concluded between the companies connected with the capital relations (affiliated companies) at understatement of the price; agreements between two independent companies in case of overpricing; agreements between affiliated companies in case of overpricing. It was justified the use of the transfer pricing mechanism within offshore jurisdictions. Transfer prices allow you to withdraw capital from the country, as well as hide the profits of companies from taxation. The following ways of minimizing taxation are systematized: registration of a company that concentrates profits in a jurisdiction with lower taxation; concentration of profits in companies that are unprofitable according to management accounting; the use of front companies as sales companies in which profits are concentrated; non-payment of taxes as a result of illegal liquidation of the enterprise - the taxpayer, where the profit is concentrated. The basis of tax minimization is the use in the transaction of a price that deviates from the market.

INFLUENCE OF TRANSFER PRICES ON TAX EVASION

In recent years, transfer (internal) prices have become the subject of interest of many theorists and regulators, both for determining their effects on business and for the possibility of exploiting tax evasion. The foundations for the functioning of transfer pricing are given in the OECD guidelines, and further elaborated through national tax laws and regulations for their application. This regulatory framework treats all relevant entities, circumstances and conditions of transfer pricing, identification and explanation of transfer pricing methodology, and providing objective evidence on the application of the principle of independence and setting other conditions in transactions between related companies, all in order to prevent tax evasion and proven application of legal regulations in the field of transfer pricing. Since transfer prices are linked to decentralized related business entities consisting of parent companies and branches (organizational units or centers of responsibility) operating in the same or another country, tax evasion is done through the transfer of profits from a country with a high tax burden to a country with a lower tax rate. In addition, tax evasion is performed by reducing the tax base for value added tax, which is the difference between the transfer (non-market) price and the market price. Transfer price is formed using methods that are classified into two groups: classical transaction methods or transaction profit methods. Which method will be applied from these two groups depends on the adopted policy of the business entity. In principle, methods that are in line with the nature of the business of the business entity and that can determine the tax base in the most objective way should prevail. In practice, a method is chosen that results in maximizing profits and minimizing tax liabilities, which further leads to a better competitive position of the business entity, improvement of market position and increase of market shares. The subject of observation are all transactions between related parties on the basis of direct and indirect agreements, contracts, agreements and similar business relationships that affect the tax base, namely transactions with assets, services, financial transactions, capital transactions (purchase and sale of securities and shares ) and other similar transactions. The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether transfer prices are in line with the principle of marketability, regardless of the applied calculation method. The aim of this paper is to eliminate all possibilities of tax evasion in transactions between the parent company and subsidiaries within the group. In order to achieve the stated goal and purpose, the basic hypothesis of the work is set, which states that the application of different methods of calculating transfer prices affects the amount of the tax base. Proof of this hypothesis will be done on a case study example. The obtained results can serve as a basis for the commitment of the business entity for the appropriate method of calculating transfer prices. This excludes the individual goals of the business entity and the primacy given to one of the basic goals of taxation: achieving efficiency and fairness.

Legal regulation of liability for violation of transfer pricing requirements

Problem setting. Given that transfer pricing is a rather complex legal phenomenon, its application is characterized by a number of features, in practice there are often violations of tax legislation on transfer formation. Analysis of recent research. It is significant that the legal regulation of liability for violations of tax legislation and transfer pricing have been the subject of research by many scholars, in particular, such as: O. Dmytryk, D. Kobylnik, A. Kotenko, M. Kucheryavenko, O. Makukh, M. Mishin, E. Smychok and others. At the same time, the study of legal regulation of liability for violation of transfer pricing requirements was almost not conducted. In view of the above, the purpose of the article is to study the legal regulation of liability for violation of the requirements of transfer education. Article’s main body. In the article the author analyzes the modern legal regulation of liability for violation of transfer pricing requirements. Emphasis is placed on the need to improve the updated concept of financial responsibility by consolidating negligence as a possible form of guilt in tax offenses, determining the content of the assessment categories. Conclusions. It is noted that the state regulation of transfer pricing should be aimed not only at resolving issues of replenishment of the state budget by increasing tax revenues by reducing "loopholes" in the form of transfer prices, but also to maintain market relations and improve the efficiency of companies and their divisions.

Tariff elimination versus tax avoidance: free trade agreements and transfer pricing

We explore the new roles of rules of origin (ROO) when multinational enterprises (MNEs) manipulate their transfer prices to avoid a high corporate tax. The ROO under a free trade agreement (FTA) require exporters to identify the origin of exports to be eligible for a preferential tariff rate. We find that a value-added criterion of ROO restricts abusive transfer pricing by MNEs. Interestingly, an FTA with ROO can induce MNEs to shift profits from a low- to high-tax country. Because the ROO augment tax revenues inside FTA countries, they can transform a welfare-reducing FTA into a welfare-improving one.

Cost-based transfer pricing with the existence of a direct channel in an integrated supply chain

Purpose This study aims to analytically explore the economic role of transfer pricing in a vertically integrated supply chain with a direct channel, specifically when it uses cost-based transfer prices, as is frequently observed in management practices. We compare two representative transfer pricing methods: full-cost and variable-cost pricing. Although many firms open a direct channel, which affects the optimal decision on transfer prices, prior literature has not considered this case. Design/methodology/approach We demonstrate the results using a non-cooperative game theoretical approach. Findings The results show that full-cost pricing is more profitable than variable-cost pricing when the fixed cost allocation to the marketing division is low, contrary to the established position in prior studies, from which I select their benchmark case. Moreover, we obtain a counterintuitive result, whereby, the firm-wide profit of a vertically integrated supply chain increases with fixed cost allocation. Originality/value This study considers the direct channel and internal transfer pricing in a vertically integrated supply chain, while prior research only considers one or the other. This model suggests an optimal choice of cost-based transfer pricing in managerial decisions. In addition, the authors demonstrate the positive effect of increasing fixed cost allocation, which prior management studies do not show. The findings of this study have implications for managerial practice by providing insights into supply chain design and showing that firms should consider the competition between channels when making decisions about transfer pricing methods.

Substitution across profit shifting methods and the impact on thin capitalization rules

Thin capitalization rules limit firms’ ability to deduct internal interest payments from taxable income, thereby restricting debt shifting activities of multinational firms. Since multinational firms can limit their tax liability in several ways, regulation of debt shifting may have an impact on other profit shifting methods. We therefore provide a model in which a multinational firm can shift profits out of a host country by issuing internal debt from an entity located in a tax haven and by manipulating transfer prices on internal goods and services. The focus of this paper is the analysis of regulatory incentives, $$(i)$$ ( i ) if a multinational firm treats debt shifting and transfer pricing as substitutes or $$(ii)$$ ( i i ) if the methods are not directly connected. The results provide a new aspect for why hybrid thin capitalization rules are used. Our discussion in this paper explains why hybrid rules can result in improvements in welfare if multinational firms treat methods of profit shifting as substitutes.

Sustainability of Public Finance through the Lens of Transfer Prices and Their Associated Risks: An Empirical Research

At a time when the world economy is being affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, we are more aware than ever of the importance of the sustainability of public finances. This paper outlines its importance by discussing transfer prices and their fiscal associated risks. In the current economic context, marked by the crisis and by an increasing pressure from the control authorities on companies, no matter how important the theoretical research, it cannot capture very well the pulse of practical activity. Under these conditions, empirical studies are becoming increasingly important, requiring an approach to practical economic reality. In order to analyze the way in which companies that carry out transactions with affiliated parties approach the transfer prices and the risks related to them, we conducted an empirical, quantitative research using the CAWI method (Computer Assisted Web Interviewing) and the questionnaire. The research results demonstrate an awareness by the responding companies of the importance of transfer pricing and their risks, the transactions most prone to control in this area being those of financing within the group, followed equally by management services, consulting, assistance and transactions with goods. In the face of legislation that leaves room for interpretation and a high number of controls on transfer pricing, a small number of companies participating in the research have used the Advance Price Agreement as a tool to reduce the tax risk associated with transfer pricing. Companies also face uncertainty about how ongoing global tax reforms will affect them in the coming period.

Current trends in the development of international taxation

The monograph is devoted to current trends in international taxation, aimed at developing a methodology for countering the erosion of the tax base, as well as practical issues of its application in modern Russia and abroad. The results of the BEPS Project initiated by the G20 member countries under the leadership of the OECD were evaluated. The analysis of the Russian rules for determining transfer prices for intangible assets in the light of the OECD recommendations issued under the BEPS Project is carried out. The article summarizes the legal approaches to countering the abuse of Double Taxation Agreements abroad and shows their development in Russia. The economic analysis of the scale and consequences of the erosion of the national tax base is made. An assessment of the potential fiscal and economic effects of the creation of special administrative regions in the Kaliningrad Region and Primorsky Krai was carried out. Recommendations on the strategy of the long-term tax policy of the Russian Federation in the field of international taxation have been developed. It is addressed to economists, lawyers, managers, managers and specialists of federal government bodies, as well as teachers, postgraduates and students of economic and law universities and faculties, students of the professional development system.

Practical Issues Regarding International Underppinnings of Tax Legislation Under the Auspices of Law No. 296/2020

In this article, it will be analyzed, from the perspective of doctrine and jurisprudence, the implications of some international aspects of tax legislation, under the auspices of the latest changes in the field of taxation made by Romania. For this purpose, it will be analyzed the implications of the new fiscal provisions regarding the international aspects from the perspective of Law no. 296/2020. In this sense, it will be focused upon certain issues such as international double taxation, transfer prices, affiliated businesses and corporate tax. Also, the case presented in the jurisprudence section enriched in the second part of the article comes to support the framework of the future application of the new provisions regarding certain fiscal aspects with elements of foreignness in Romania. The results of the research subsumed in this article highlight the fact that the tax legislation in Romania has had a significant improvement, especially in terms of international aspects of financial and tax law. In conclusion, both the analysis of the evolution of tax legislation and the case law presented show that there are significant improvements at a national level, both in terms of the quality of the enactment of a tax law and the way in which the provisions of the law are implemented in practice.