UK/Algeria Double Taxation Agreement
UK/Algeria Double Taxation Agreement completes UK ratification process
UKTI
On 11 November, the UK’s Privy Council approved the UK/Algeria Double Taxation Agreement (DTA), paving the way for the DTA to enter into force from the 1st of January 2016, once the Algerian Government also completes ratification.
The DTA is an agreement between the United Kingdom and Algeria which means that companies do not have to pay tax on their earnings in both countries. Although the terms of the Agreement vary depending on the nature of the business, some companies can expect to save up to 20% of their profits.
The DTA was first proposed in 2013 after UK companies wrote to the British Ambassador asking for him to look into how a DTA might be agreed. This then led to a team of British experts from HMRC (Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs) visiting Algeria in the summer of 2014 to discuss the detail with their opposite numbers in the Algerian Ministry of Finances. The experts agreed the wording of the DTA in summer 2014 and the Agreement was signed by Foreign Minister Lamamra and Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond during the latter’s visit to Algiers in February 2015.
Since then, officials have taken forward the ratification process, which concluded for the UK at the 11 November meeting of the Privy Council at Buckingham Palace. British Ambassador Andrew Noble said: I am very pleased to see that we are on course for the Double Taxation Agreement to come into force on the 1st of January. This is an excellent endorsement of our bilateral relationship; it just didn’t make sense for our European nations to have a special agreement in place enabling them to save money while the UK did not. This month alone, my Trade Officers have met over 100 British companies* anxious to learn more about opportunities here, and a DTA will be seen by them as a great asset.
between 6 and 13 November, Embassy trade officers attended the UKTI Export Week in the UK. Officers met British companies in Belfast, Cardiff. Bristol, London, Cambridge, Edinburgh, Gateshead, Barnsley, Nottingham, Birmingham and Manchester.