Tax and Accounting

Tax services

Investments to the Middle East

We provide a variety of tax services to clients seeking to invest in the Middle East:

• High-level advice on foreign ownership rules, where applicable.
• Advice on the tax regime and the availability of tax incentives, where applicable.
• Advice on the possibility of structuring investments in Middle East countries with discriminatory tax regimes in order to mitigate taxation at the local entity level.
• Identification of suitable locations in the region to establish a Middle East investment holding platform.
• Advice on the risk of taxable presence as a result of movement of employees in the Middle East and/ or contracting arrangements.
• Advice on tax implications arising from the repatriation of profits during the investment holding period, and how these may be mitigated where possible.
• Advice on capital gains tax and transfer taxes that may arise on future exit of investments and how these may be mitigated where possible.
• Identification of tax risks and opportunities via tax due diligence exercises on target businesses that clients are seeking to acquire.
• Advice on transfer pricing considerations on transactions with related parties in the Middle East.
• Advice and management of tax risks and opportunities for employee deployments to the Middle East.
• Management of direct and indirect tax compliance matters arising from operations in the Middle East.

Outbound investments from the Middle East

We can also assist clients in outbound investments from the Middle East:

• Advice on fund structuring through Luxembourg.
• Advice on the use of Luxembourg as an investment holding platform for European and/or other international investments, and the corresponding tax considerations upon acquisition, during the investment holding period and upon exit.
• Advice on the use of financial instruments (including Islamic finance instruments where required) to repatriate profits, and the corresponding tax implications that need to be considered.
• Advice on the use of Luxembourg as a hub for research and development and/or an intellectual property holding platform
• Advice on the risk of taxable presence as a result of movement of employees from the Middle East to Luxembourg and/ or contracting arrangements with Luxembourg individuals/ entities.
• Identification of tax risks and opportunities via tax due diligence exercises on target businesses that clients are seeking to acquire in Europe or other target countries.
• Advice on transfer pricing considerations on transactions with related parties outside the Middle East.
• Management of tax risks and opportunities for employees working in Luxembourg.
• Management of direct and indirect tax compliance matters that arise from operations in Luxembourg.