Asia: Tax

As Hong Kong's talent policies attract more mainland residents to work and invest across the border, complex tax residency questions emerge. Can obtaining Hong Kong identity and spending fewer than 183 days in mainland China eliminate mainland tax obligations?

Australia's tax controversy landscape is becoming increasingly difficult for multinationals to navigate, with the Australian Taxation Office ("ATO") adopting sophisticated, assertive positions that test the limits of the law. Jones Day partners Lauren Moses and Niv Tadmore discuss the ATO's focus on transfer pricing, intangibles, and other cross-border issues, and they explain why understanding what drives the ATO is key to resolving disputes efficiently.

Explore Jones Day's comprehensive video series on navigating complex tax controversies across multiple jurisdictions, featuring expert insights on IRS strategies, economic substance doctrine, and the evolving global tax dispute landscape. Discover practical guidance on managing multijurisdictional tax challenges in Australia, Europe, and beyond, alongside specialized content on cross-border trade secrets and private credit infrastructure funding.

The article discusses the key changes introduced in the recent amendment to Section 9D of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act. which provides certainty, price parity, and uniform taxation across the country. It also discusses the background of the said amendment, which necessitated this amendment.

Tasmania's new taxation bill introduces significant changes for foreign investors and corporate groups, including reduced thresholds for surcharge relief and streamlined restructuring exemptions. The amendments lower the dwelling requirement from 50 to 10 units for foreign investor duty relief and eliminate pre- and post-transaction association requirements for corporate reconstructions.

Victoria's Commercial and Industrial Property Tax represents a fundamental shift in how commercial and industrial properties are taxed, replacing traditional upfront stamp duty with an annual property tax after a 10-year transition period. Understanding how this new regime affects property valuations, financing arrangements, and long-term ownership costs is crucial for anyone involved in commercial or industrial real estate transactions.

The 57th meeting of the GST Council was held in New Delhi on 8 October 2026 under the chairpersonship of the Union Finance & Corporate Affairs Minister, Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman. While the 56th meeting focused on rate rationalisation and reduction of rates, the 57th meeting made recommendations on process reforms covering registration, returns, refunds and adjudication; clarifications on the applicability of GST to certain goods and services; and other trade facilitation measures.

The Lucknow Bench of the GSTAT has issued contrasting rulings in two cases involving goods transported without e-way bills, where the bills were generated only after interception. While one case saw penalties set aside due to procedural lapse in a genuine transaction, the other upheld penalties citing intent to evade tax, raising questions about consistency in judicial interpretation of e-way bill violations.

The Gauhati High Court has ruled on the scope and limitations of sealing powers under Section 67(4) of the CGST Act, clarifying when tax authorities can seal premises during search operations. The judgment addresses whether sealing can continue after search completion and examines what types of items qualify as goods liable to confiscation under GST law.

Australia's tax controversy landscape is becoming increasingly difficult for multinationals to navigate, with the Australian Taxation Office ("ATO") adopting sophisticated, assertive positions that test the limits of the law. Jones Day partners Lauren Moses and Niv Tadmore discuss the ATO's focus on transfer pricing, intangibles, and other cross-border issues, and they explain why understanding what drives the ATO is key to resolving disputes efficiently.

The Delhi Tribunal's recent ruling in Paul Wurth Italia has reshaped the application of the force of attraction rule under tax treaties, emphasizing that a permanent establishment's mere existence cannot justify taxation of all source-country profits. This decision marks a critical shift toward requiring demonstrable factual and functional nexus between the PE and disputed income, signaling a more restrained interpretation of this contested principle in international taxation.

The Australian Taxation Office has issued its final ruling on cross-border software payments, dramatically expanding what constitutes a royalty subject to withholding tax. With retroactive application to July 2021 and a broad interpretation of copyright law, multinational companies face significant compliance risks and potential exposure across software distribution, cloud services, and digital intermediation arrangements.