24 April 2015

The Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) has updated its website on the procedures to obtain certification of the tax reclaim form for Singapore tax resident companies applying for treaty benefits under the Avoidance of Double Tax Agreement (DTA).

The tax reclaim form is issued by the treaty country. On its website, IRAS has stated that the tax reclaim form may require certification by the Singapore Competent Authority that certain conditions such as Singapore tax residency status is met before it can be submitted to the foreign tax authority for claiming treaty benefits.

A summary of the submission and collection procedures is as follows:

• Original completed tax reclaim forms are to be forwarded to IRAS for certification
• Tax reclaim forms will be processed by IRAS within two weeks to one month from the date of receipt
• Upon certification, the tax reclaim form will be posted to the company’s registered address, unless otherwise specified
• Collection is by appointment only, and by directors or authorised persons of the company.

IRAS will only endorse one copy of the Form – DGT 1 for each Indonesia Withholding Agent as it has a validity period of 12 months from the endorsement date. The endorsed Form – DGT 1 will be valid for a period of 12 months from the endorsement date if the two conditions below are met:

• The income is paid by the same Indonesian Withholding Agent; and
• The name and address of the income recipient are unchanged.

For further details, please refer to the IRAS website.

Source: IRAS