Germany and Costa Rica in order to avoid double taxation on January 1
German Ministry of Finance of 24 October confirmed that the double tax avoidance, the contract between Germany and Costa Rica, will be applied from January 1, 2017. The agreement, which was signed on 13 February 2014, is the first such agreement between Germany and Costa Rica, and contains the OECD standard for the exchange of information between the tax authorities of the two countries. The tax on dividends will generally be limited to 15 percent. However, the rate of five percent would apply if the dividend recipient is a company (other than partners), which directly owns at least 20 percent of the shares of the paying company. Income tax on the interest payments, as a rule, is limited to five per cent. At the same time, the withholding tax on royalties will be capped at 10 percent. Author: Olena Kutova senior lawyer of the Finance Business Service company ...