View Treaty - E102252

If the following document is not accessible to you, please contact us by e-mail at: info.jli@international.gc.ca, for obtaining a new document in HTML format.

Convention Between Canada and the Arab Republic of Egypt for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income

E102252 - CTS 1984 No. 31

The Government of Canada and the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt desiring to conclude a Convention for the avoidance of double taxation and the preven­tion of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes in income, have agreed as follows:


I. Scope of the Convention

Article 1

Personal Scope

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

Article 2

Taxes Covered

  1. This Convention shall apply to apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of each Contracting State, 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, taxes on the total amounts of wages or salaries paid by enterprises, as well as taxes on capital appreciation.
  3. The existing taxes to which the Convention shall apply are, in particular:
    1. in the case of Canada, the income taxes imposed by the Government of Canada, (hereinafter referred to as “Canadian tax”);
    2. in the case of Egypt:
      1. the tax on income derived from immovable property (including the land tax, the building tax and the ghaffir tax),
      2. the tax on income from movable capital,
      3. the tax on commercial and industrial profits,
      4. the tax on wages, salaries, indemnities and pensions,
      5. the tax on profits from liberal professions and all other non-commercial professions,
      6. the general income tax,
      7. the corporation profits tax,
      8. the supplementary taxes imposed as a percentage of taxes mentioned above or otherwise.

        (hereafter referred to as “Egyptian tax”).

  4. The Convention shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes which are imposed after the date of signature of the Convention in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The Contracting States shall notify each other of changes which have been made in their respective taxation laws.

II. Definitions

Article 3

General Definitions

  1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
    1.  
      1. the term “Canada” used in a geographical sense, means the territory of Canada, including any area beyond the territorial seas of Canada which, under the laws of Canada, is an area within which Canada may exercise rights with respect to the seabed and subsoil and their natural resources:
      2. the term “Egypt” means the Arab Republic of Egypt, and when used in a geographical sense, the term “Egypt” includes:
        1. the territorial sea thereof, and
        2. the seabed and subsoil of the submarine areas adjacent to the coast thereof, but beyond the territorial sea, over which Egypt exercises sovereign rights, in accordance with international law for the pur­pose of exploration for and exploitation of the natural resources of such area, but only to the extent that the person, property or activity to which the Convention is being applied is connected with such exploration or exploitation;
    2. the terms “a Contracting State” and “the other Contracting State” mean, as the context requires, Canada or Egypt;
    3. the term “person” includes an individual, an estate, a trust, a company, a partnership and any other body of persons;
    4. the term “company” means any body corporate or any entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes; in French, the term “société” also means a “corporation” within the meaning of Canadian law;
    5. 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;
    6. the term “competent authority” means:
      1. in the case of Canada, the Minister of National Revenue or his authorized representative,
      2. in the case of Egypt, the Minister of Finance or his authorized represen­tative;
    7. the term “tax” means Canadian tax or Egyptian tax, as the context requires;
    8. the term “national” means:
      1. any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State:
      2. any legal person, partnership and association deriving its status as such from the law in force in a Contracting State.
  2. As regards the application of the Convention by a Contracting State any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the mean­ing which it has under the law of that State concerning the taxes to which the Con­vention applies.

Article 4

Resident

  1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term “resident of a Contracting State” means any person who, under the laws of that State, is liable to tax therein by reason of his domicile, residence, place of management or any other criterion of a similar nature.
  2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 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 of the State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both States, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State with which his per­sonal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests);
    2. if the State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determin­ed, or if he has not a permanent home available to him in either State, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which he has an habitual abode;
    3. if he has a habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State of which he is a national;
    4. if he is a national of both 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 a company is a resident of both Contracting States, then its status shall be determined as follows:
    1. it shall be deemed to be a resident of the State of which it is a national;
    2. if it is a national of neither of the States, it shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which its place of effective management is situated.
  4. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual or a company is a resident of both Contracting States, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement endeavour to settle the question and to determine the mode of application of the Convention to such person.

Article 5

Permanent Establishment

  1. For the purposes of this Convention, 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 of natural resources;
    7. a building site or construction or installation project which exists for more than 6 months;
    8. a farm or plantation; and
    9. premises used as a sales outlet.
  3. 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 or display 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 or display;
    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.
  4. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 5 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 3 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.
  5. An enterprise shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in a Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that State through a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, or merely because it maintains in that State a stock of goods with an agent of an independent status from which deliveries are made by that agent, provided that such persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business.  However, when the activities of such an agent are devoted wholly or almost wholly on behalf of that enterprise, he will not be considered an agent of an independent status within the meaning of this paragraph.
  6. 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.

III. Taxation of Income

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 State.
  2. For the purposes of this Convention, 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. The term shall in any case 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, boats and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property.
  3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or use in any other form of immovable property and to profits from the alienation of such property.
  4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal services.

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 or has carried on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in the other State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent establishment.
  2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, 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 or which it is a permanent establishment.
  3. In the determination of the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed those deductible expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the per­manent establishment including executive and general administrative expenses (other than expenses which would not be deductible if the permanent establishment were a separate enterprise), whether incurred in the State in which the permanent establish­ment is situated or elsewhere.
  4. 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.
  5. 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 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 embodied in this Article.
  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 Convention, then, the provisions of those Articles shall not be af­fected by the provisions of this Article.

Article 8

Shipping and Air Transport

  1. Profits derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State.
  2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1 and Article 7, profits deriv­ed from the operation of ships or aircraft used principally to transport passengers or goods exclusively between places in a Contracting State may be taxed in that State.
  3. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall also apply to profits referred to in those paragraphs derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from its 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 tax charged therein on those profits. In deter­mining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of this Convention.
  3. A Contracting State shall not change the profits of an enterprise in the cir­cumstances referred to in paragraph 1 after the expiry of the time limits provided in its national laws and, in any case, after five years from the end of the year in which the profits which would be subject to such change would have accrued to an enter­prise of that State.
  4. The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 shall not apply in the case of fraud, willful default or neglect.

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 may be taxed in that other State.
  2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the dividends the tax so charged shall not exceed 15 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends.  The provisions of this paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the company on the profits out of which the dividends are paid.
  3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, dividends paid by a com­pany which is a resident of Egypt to an individual who is a resident of Canada may in Egypt be subject to the general income tax levied on net total income. However, the general income tax thus imposed shall in no case exceed an average of 20 per cent of the net dividends payable to such individual.
  4. The term “dividend” 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 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.
  5. The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 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, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base 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 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
  6. 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 or a fixed base situated in that other State, nor subject the company’s undistributed profits to a tax on undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State.

Article 11

Interest

  1. Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
  2. However, such interest may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which it arises, and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the interest the tax so charged shall not exceed 15 per cent of the gross amount of the interest.
  3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest beneficially derived by
    1. a Contracting State, or by an instrumentality of that Contracting State, not subject to tax by that Contracting State on its income, or
    2. a resident of such Contracting State with respect to loans made, guaranteed, or insured by that Contracting State or an instrumentality thereof,

    shall be exempt from tax by the other Contracting State.

  4. The term “interest” as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, (exclusive of interest on debts secured by mortgages on immovable property in which case the provisions of Article 6 shall apply) 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, as well as income which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from money lent by the laws of the State in which the income arises.  However, the term “interest” does not include in­come dealt with in Article 10.
  5. The provisions of paragraph 2 and 3 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
  6. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a political subdivision, a local authority or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the interest, whether he is a resident of a Con­tracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fix­ed base in connection with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred, and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establish­ment or fixed base is situated.
  7. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the reci­pient or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest, 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 Convention.

Article 12

Royalties

  1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
  2. However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise, and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the royalties the tax so charged shall not exceed 15 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties.
  3. 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, 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, and includes payments of any kind in respect of motion picture films and works on film or videotape for use in connection with television.
  4. The provisions of paragraph 2 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, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base 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 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
  5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a political subdivision, a local authority or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a resident of a Con­tracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or fixed base in connection with which the obligation to pay the royalties was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.
  6. 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 Convention.

Article 13

Capital Gains

  1. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable property situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
  2. 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 or of movable property pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent services, including such gains from the aliena­tion of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such a fixed base may be taxed in that other State.
  3. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic and movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft, shall be taxable only in that State.
  4. Gains from the alienation of
    1. shares of the capital stock of a company the property of which consists prin­cipally of immovable property situated in a Contracting State, and
    2. an interest in a partnership, trust or estate, the property of which consists principally of immovable property situated in a Contracting State,

may be taxed in that State. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term “immovable property” includes the shares of a company referred to in subparagraph (a) or an interest in a partnership, trust or estate referred to in subparagraph (b).

Article 14

Independent Personal Services

  1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of profes­sional services or other activities of an independent character shall be taxable only in that Contracting State unless he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities or is present within that other Contracting State for a period or periods exceeding in the aggregate 90 days in the taxable year concerned. If he has such a fixed base or remains in that other Contracting State for the aforesaid period or periods, the income may be taxed in the other Contracting State but only so much of it as is attributable to that fixed base or is derived in that other Contracting State during the aforesaid period or periods.
  2. The term “professional services” includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.

Article 15

Dependent Personal Services

  1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, 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 States 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 State.
  2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, 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 if
    1. the recipient is present in the other Contracting State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 90 days in the calendar year concerned, and
    2. the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resi­dent of the other State, and
    3. the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the employer has in the other State.
  3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in interna­tional traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State, shall be taxable only in that State.

Article 16

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 or a similar organ of a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State.

Article 17

Artistes and Athletes

  1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, 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 an athlete, 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 an athlete in his capacity as such accrues not to that entertainer or athlete himself but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the enter­tainer or athlete are exercised.
  3. Where the services mentioned in paragraph 1 are provided in a Contracting State by an enterprise of the other Contracting State, then the income derived from providing those services by such enterprise shall be exempt from tax in the first-mentioned Contracting State, if the enterprise is directly or indirectly supported, whol­ly or substantially, from the public funds of the Government of that other Contrac­ting State in connection with the provisions of such services.

Article 18

Pensions and Annuities

  1. Pensions and annuities arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in both Contracting States.
  2. The term “annuities” means a stated sum payable periodically at stated times, during life or during a specified or ascertainable period of time, under an obligation to make the payments in return for adequate and full consideration in money or money’s worth.

Article 19

Government Service

  1.  
    1. 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 State.
    2. However, such remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contrac­ting State if the services are rendered in that 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. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to remuneration 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 20

Students

Payments which a student, apprentice or business 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 State, provided that such payments arise from sources out­side that State.

Article 21

Other Income

  1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2, items of income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt in the foregoing Articles of this Con­vention shall be taxable only in that State.
  2. However, if such income is derived by a resident of a Contracting State from sources in the other Contracting State, such income may also be taxed in the State in which it arises, and according to the law of that State. However, in the case of income from an estate or trust, the tax so charged shall, provided that the income is taxable in the Contracting State in which the recipient resides, not exceed 15 per cent of the gross amount of the income.

IV.  Methods for Prevention of Double Taxation

Article 22

Elimination of Double Taxation

  1. In the case of Canada, double taxation shall be avoided as follows:
    1. Subject to the existing provisions of the law of Canada regarding the deduc­tion from tax payable in Canada of tax paid in a territory outside Canada and to any subsequent modification of those provisions - which shall not affect the general principle hereof - and unless a greater deduction or relief is provided under the laws of Canada, tax payable in Egypt on profits, in­come or gains arising in Egypt shall be deducted from any Canadian tax payable in respect of such profits, income or gains.
    2. Subject to the existing provisions of the law of Canada regarding the deter­mination of the exempt surplus of a foreign affiliate and to any subsequent modification of those provisions - which shall not affect the general prin­ciple hereof - for the purpose of computing Canadian tax, a company resi­dent in Canada shall be allowed to deduct in computing its taxable income any dividend received by it out of the exempt surplus of a foreign affiliate resident in Egypt.

    The terms “foreign affiliate” and “exempt surplus” as used in this Article shall have the meaning which they have for the purposes of paragraphs 95(1)(d) and 113(1)(a) respectively, of the Canadian Income Tax Act.

  2. For the purposes of paragraph 1(a), tax payable in Egypt by a company which is a resident of Canada
    1. in respect of profits attributable to a trade or business carried on by it in Egypt, or
    2. in respect of dividends or interest received by it from a company which is a resident of Egypt,

      shall be deemed to include any amount which would have been payable as Egyptian tax for any year but for an exemption from, or reduction of, tax granted for that year or any part thereof under -

    3. any of the following provisions, that is to say:

      Articles 16 and 18 of Law No. 43 of 1974 as amended by Law No. 32 of 1977 concerning Arab and Foreign Capital Investment and Free Zones so far as they were in force on, and have not been modified since, the date of signature of this Convention, or have been modified only in minor respects so as not to affect their general character; and except to the extent that any of the said provisions has the effect of exempting or relieving a source of income for a period in excess of ten years;

    4. any other provisions which may subsequently be made granting an exemp­tion or reduction of tax which is agreed by the competent authorities of the Contracting States to be of a substantially similar character, if it has not been modified thereafter or has been modified only in minor respects so as not to affect its general character.
  3. For the purposes of determining the amount of income tax due to Egypt, profits of a company resident in Egypt (including dividend distributions out of such profits) from sources (including Egypt) other than Canada, and exempted or relieved in Canada by reason of paragraph 1(b) or 2 shall be considered as not subject to taxation in Canada within the meaning of Article 16 of the Egyptian Law No. 43 of 1974 as amended by Law No. 32 of 1977.
  4. In the case of Egypt, double taxation shall be avoided as follows: where a person being a resident of Egypt derives income from Canada and that income, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention may be taxed in Canada, Egypt shall allow as a deduction from the tax on the income of that person an amount equal to the tax paid in Canada. Such deduction shall not, however, exceed that part of the tax, as computed before the deduction is given, which is appropriate to the in­come derived from Canada.
  5. For the purposes of this Article, profits, income or gains of a resident of a Contracting State which are taxed in the other Contracting State in accordance with this Convention shall be deemed to arise from sources in that other State.

V.  Special Provisions

Article 23

Non-Discrimination

  1. The 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 are or may be subjected.
  2. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Con­tracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other State carrying on the same activities.
  3. Nothing in this Article shall be construed as
    1. 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;
    2. affecting the application in Egypt of Article 4, paragraph 9 and Article 120, paragraph 4 of Law No. 157 of 1981 (as they may be amended from time to time in minor respects without affecting the general principle thereof) provided that if the exemption given by either of these Articles is made available to nationals of any State or territory other than a Contracting State such exemption shall likewise be made available to nationals of Canada.
  4. Nothing in this Convention shall be construed as preventing a Contracting State from imposing on the earnings of a company attributable to a permanent establishment in that State, tax in addition to the tax which would be chargeable on the earnings of a company which is a national of that State, provided that any addi­tional tax so imposed shall not exceed 15 per cent of the amount of such earnings which have not been subjected to such additional tax in previous taxation years. For the purpose of this provision, the term “earnings” means the profits attributable to a permanent establishment in a Contracting State in a year and previous years after deducting therefrom all taxes, other than the additional tax referred to herein, imposed on such profits by that 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 other similar enterprises of the first-mentioned State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of a third State, are or may be subjected.
  6. In this Article, the term “taxation” means taxes which are the subject of the Convention.

Article 24

Mutual Agreement Procedure

  1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Con­vention, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic laws of those States, address to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident, an application in writing stating the grounds for claiming the revision of such taxation. To be admissible, the said application must be submitted within two years from the first notification of the action which gives rise to taxation not in ac­cordance with the Convention.
  2. The competent authority referred to in paragraph 1 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 Convention.
  3. A Contracting State shall not, after the expiry of the time limits provided in its national laws and, in any case, after five years from the end of the taxable period in which the income concerned has accrued, increase the tax base of a resident of either of the Contracting States by including therein items of income which have also been charged to tax in the other Contracting State.  This paragraph shall not apply in the case of fraud, wilful default or neglect.
  4. 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 Convention.
  5. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Convention.

Article 25

Exchange of Information

  1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such in­formation as is necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes covered by the Conven­tion insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to the Convention. The ex­change of information is not restricted by Article 1. Any information received 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) involved in the assessment or collection of, the enforcement in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes covered by the Convention.  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.
  2. In no case shall the provisions of paragraph 1 be construed so as to impose on a Contracting State the obligation:
    1. to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and the 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).

Article 26

Diplomatic Agents and Consular Officers

  1. Nothing in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of diplomatic agents or consular officers under the provisions of special agreements.
  2. Notwithstanding Article 4, an individual who is a member of a diplomatic mission, consular post or permanent mission of a Contracting State which is situated in the other Contracting State or in a third State shall be deemed for the purposes of the Convention to be a resident of the sending State if he is liable in the sending State to the same obligations in relation to tax on his total income as are residents of that sending State.
  3. The Convention shall not apply to International Organizations, to organs or officials thereof and to persons who are members of a diplomatic mission, con­sular post or permanent mission of a third State, being present in a Contracting State and who are not liable in either Contracting State to the same obligations in relation to tax on their total income as are residents thereof.

Article 27

Miscellaneous Rules

  1. The provisions of this Convention shall not be construed to restrict in any man­ner any exclusion, exemption, deduction, credit, or other allowance now or hereafter accorded
    1. by the laws of a Contracting State in the determination of the tax imposed by that State, or
    2. by any other agreement entered into by a Contracting State,
  2. Nothing in the Convention shall be construed as preventing the application of the provisions of the domestic law of each Contracting State concerning the taxa­tion of income of persons in respect of their participation in non-resident companies or concerning fiscal evasion.
  3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of applying the Convention.

VI. Final Provisions

Article 28

Entry into Force

  1. This Conventions shall be ratified and the instruments of ratification shall be exchanged at Ottawa.
  2. The Convention shall enter into force upon the exchange of instruments of ratification and its provisions shall have effect for the first time:
    1. in respect of tax withheld at the source on amounts paid or credited on or after the first day of January in the calendar year following that in which the exchange of instruments of ratification takes place; and
    2. in respect of other taxes for taxation years beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year following that in which the exchange of instruments of ratification takes place.

Article 29

Termination

This Convention shall continue in effect indefinitely but either Contracting State may, on or before June 30 in any calendar year after the year of the exchange of instruments of ratification, give to the other Contracting State a notice of termina­tion in writing through diplomatic channels; in such event, the Convention shall cease to have effect:

  1. in respect of tax withheld at the source on amounts paid or credited on or after the first day of January in the calendar year following that in which the notice is given; and
  2. in respect of other taxes for taxation years beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year following that in which the notice is given.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, duly authorized thereto by their respec­tive Governments, have signed this Convention.

DONE in duplicate at Cairo, this 30th day of May 1983 in the English, French and Arabic languages, each version being equally authentic.


Robert Elliott
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Mahmud Salah Eddin Hamed
FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE ARAB REPUBLIC OF EGYPT


Date modified: