Introduction
The Macau Special Administrative Region (Macau) is a free port with no tariffs on general imports. It has 12% as its maximum tax rates for corporate profit and individual income and, by way of its annual budget law, a number of tax allowances and exemptions are provided for these taxes each year.
The current Macau tax system was established in the 1970s and 1980s.
In an effort to create a uniform approach to tax concepts and principles of the Macau tax system, as well as staying current with Macau’s economic development and international tax standards, the government recently set out a series of draft bills on tax matters to the Legislative Assembly.
These draft bills include:
- amendments to Law No. 5/2017 (the Legal Framework on the Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes (LFET)); and
- the Tax Code, which will serve as the basis of the future tax system.
Both draft bills were introduced to the Legislative Assembly in November 2021. While the former has already been enacted by Law No. 1/2022, the latter is still under discussion at the Third Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly.
LFET
Law No. 1/2022 amended the LFET with the aim of better aligning Macau with the international standards set out by the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes. These amendments were approved by the Legislative Assembly on 24 January 2022 and came into force on 1 April 2022.
These amendments include, in particular:
- adding information that is held by the management entities of pension funds and non-mandatory central provident funds for information upon request (IUR);
- eliminating the time restriction on the information to be provided via an IUR, which was limited to information covered in the year in which the request was received and the five preceding tax years; and
- legal consequences for non-compliance or circumvention of the rules regarding automatic exchange of information – for example, the rules set out in the General Reporting Standards and Due Diligence Procedures for Financial Account Information approved by the chief executive of Macau in accordance with the LFET.
These amendments also entail making necessary adjustments following the abolishment of the old offshore regime.
The draft bill of the Tax Code aims to provide a modern tax system that is in line with Macau’s economic development and international taxation standards, as well as ensuring Macau’s tax revenue and protecting the legitimate rights and interests of taxpayers. The draft bill proposes to unify the provisions of the existing separate tax regulations and set out the rights and obligations in several aspects:
- tax legal relations and their guiding principles;
- relevant contentious proceedings; and
- execution procedures.
The draft bill of the Tax Code is divided into five sections, with a total of 293 articles. Currently, it is undergoing detailed discussions at the Third Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly, namely regarding:
- compensatory interest for overcharging or mischarging of tax due to facts imputable to the administration;
- the appointment of tax representatives for taxpayers who reside outside Macau or who reside in Macau but stay in Macau for fewer than 183 days in a calendar year;
- limitation periods for tax obligations;
- filing of anonymous complaints;
- additional tax charges of an amount equivalent to 3% of the unpaid tax, in addition to interest on late payments; and
- removing the tax execution procedure for fines upon the death of the tax debtor.
The Third Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly completed a round of appreciation of the draft bill in June 2022.
Article 106 of the Basic Law of Macau, a constitutional document of Macau, sets out that Macau will, taking the low tax policy previously pursued in Macau as a reference, enact laws, on its own, concerning:
- types of taxes;
- tax rates;
- tax reductions;
- allowances and expenditures; and
- other matters of taxation.
The Basic Law also provides for no foreign exchange control policies (article 109), the status of a free port (article 110), and the policy of free trade and the free movement of goods, intangible assets and capital (article 111).
In this context, Macau maintains a low complementary income tax (also called “corporate profit tax”) and professional tax (also called ” individual income tax”), both capped at 12%. Tax allowances and exemptions are in general provided in the budget law of the Macau, such as under Macau’s 2022 budget law:
- corporate profit tax – taxable profits of up to 600,000 Macanese pataca (approximately $74,200) are exempted in general. In particular, taxable profits generated from Portuguese-speaking countries are also exempted; and
- individual income tax – taxable incomes of up to 144,000 Macanese pataca (approximately $17,900) are exempted.
Macau has also entered double tax treaties with China, Hong Kong and a number of Portuguese-speaking countries.
Strengthening the confidence of the international community and foreign investors in the Macau tax system is a key aim of these amendments, as well as making the Macau business environment more competitive and attractive by providing a modern and more organised tax system.
For further information, please contact:
Calvin Tinlop Chui , Partner, Rato Ling,
chui@lektou.com
