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Law Approving The Convention Between The Kingdom Of Belgium And The Hellenic Republic For The Avoidance Of Double Taxation And Prevent Fiscal Evasion With Respect To Taxes On Income, Signed At Athens On May 25, 2004 (1) (2)

Original Language Title: Loi portant assentiment à la Convention entre le Royaume de Belgique et la République hellénique tendant à éviter les doubles impositions et à prévenir l'évasion fiscale en matière d'impôts sur le revenu, signée à Athènes le 25 mai 2004 (1) (2)

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22 SEPTEMBER 2005. - An Act to assent to the Convention between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Hellenic Republic to avoid double taxation and to prevent tax evasion on income tax, signed in Athens on 25 May 2004 (1) (2)



ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Convention between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Hellenic Republic to avoid double taxation and to prevent tax evasion on income tax, signed in Athens on 25 May 2004, will come out its full and complete effect.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 22 September 2005.
ALBERT
By the King:
Minister of Foreign Affairs,
K. DE GUCHT
Minister of Finance,
D. REYNDERS
Seal of the State Seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
____
Note
(1) Session 2004-2005.
Senate.
Documents. - Bill tabled on 16 June 2005, No. 3-1250/1. - Report, number 3-1250/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion and voting. Session of 7 July 2005.
Room.
Documents. - Project transmitted by the Senate, No. 51-1934/1. - Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. 51-1934/2.
Annales parliamentarians. - Discussion and voting. Session of 14 July 2005.
(2) This Covention comes into force on 30 December 2005, in accordance with Article 28.

Convention between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Hellenic Republic to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion on income tax
The Government of the Kingdom of Belgium,
and
The Government of the Hellenic Republic,
Desirous of concluding a Convention to Avoid Double Taxation and Prevent Tax Evasion in Income Tax
agreed on the following provisions:
CHAPTER Ier. - Scope of the Convention
Article 1er
Target persons
This Convention applies to persons who are residents of a Contracting State or both Contracting States.
Article 2
Taxes targeted
1. This Convention applies to income taxes collected on behalf of a Contracting State, its political subdivisions or local authorities, regardless of the system of collection.
2. Income taxes are considered to be taxed on total income or on income elements, including taxes on gains from the alienation of movable or real property, as well as taxes on surplus-values.
3. Current taxes to which the Convention applies include:
(a) Greece:
1° the income tax of natural persons;
2° the income tax of legal persons,
including pre-payments and deductions at the source and additional taxes,
(hereinafter referred to as "Greek Tax").
(b) with regard to Belgium:
1° the tax of natural persons;
2° corporate tax;
3° the tax of legal persons;
4° the non-resident tax;
5° the special contribution assimilated to the tax of natural persons;
6° the complementary contribution of crisis,
including pre-payments, additional cents to such taxes and pre-payments, and additional taxes to the tax of natural persons,
(hereinafter referred to as "Belgian tax").
4. The Convention also applies to taxes of an identical or similar nature that would be established after the date of signature of the Convention and that would be in addition to or replace existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall communicate the significant changes to their respective tax laws.
CHAPTER II. - Definitions
Article 3
General definitions
1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context requires a different interpretation:
(a) the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean, in the context, Greece or Belgium;
(b) 1° the term "Greece" means the Hellenic Republic; employed in a geographical sense, it designates the national territory, including the territorial sea, as well as other maritime areas on which, in accordance with international law, Greece exercises sovereignty rights or jurisdiction;
2° the term "Belgium" means the Kingdom of Belgium; Used in a geographical sense, it designates the national territory, including the territorial sea, as well as other maritime zones on which, in accordance with international law, Belgium exercises sovereignty rights or jurisdiction.
(c) the term "person" includes individuals, societies and other groups of persons;
(d) the term "society" means any corporation or entity that is considered to be a legal entity for taxation purposes in the State of which it is a resident;
(e) the terms "company of a Contracting State" and "company of the other Contracting State" shall, respectively, designate a business operated by a resident of a Contracting State and a business operated by a resident of the other Contracting State;
(f) the term "nationals" means:
1° all natural persons who possess the nationality of a Contracting State;
2. all legal persons, societies of persons and associations constituted in accordance with the legislation in force in a Contracting State;
(g) the term "international traffic" means any carriage by a ship registered in, or with letters of sea by, a Contracting State or carried out by an aircraft operated by a company that has its effective steering seat in a Contracting State, except where the ship or aircraft is operated only between points located in the other Contracting State;
(h) the term "competent authority" means, with respect to Belgium or Greece, the Minister of Finance or its authorized representative.
2. For the purposes of the Convention by a Contracting State, any expression not defined therein shall have the meaning assigned to it by the law of that State concerning the taxes to which the Convention applies, unless the context requires a different interpretation. The term "law of this State" is primarily the tax law of that State.
Article 4
Resident
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "resident of a Contracting State" means any person who, under the law of that State, is subject to tax in that State, because of his domicile, residence, management seat or any other similar criterion. However, this term does not include persons who are subject to tax in that State only for income from sources in that State.
2. When, according to the provisions of paragraph 1er, a natural person is a resident of the two Contracting States, his situation is settled as follows:
(a) that person is considered to be a resident of the State where the person has a permanent home; if it has a permanent home in both states, it is considered to be a resident of the State with which its personal and economic ties are the narrowest (centre of vital interests);
(b) if the State in which that person has the centre of his or her vital interests cannot be determined, or if it does not have a permanent home in any of the States, it is considered to be a resident of the State in which it normally resides;
(c) if the person normally stays in both States or if he or she does not normally stay in any of them, he or she is considered to be a resident of the State of which he or she is a national;
(d) if the person possesses the nationality of the two States or has no nationality of any of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall decide the question by mutual agreement.
3. When, according to the provisions of paragraph 1era person other than a natural person is a resident of the two Contracting States and is considered to be a resident of the State where his or her effective management seat is located.
Article 5
Stable establishment
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "stable establishment" means a fixed business facility through which a company operates all or part of its business.
2. The term "stable establishment" includes:
(a) a steering seat;
(b) a branch;
(c) an office;
(d) a factory;
(e) a workshop; and
(f) a mine, oil or gas well, a career or any other place of extraction of natural resources.
3. A construction or construction site is a permanent establishment only if its duration exceeds nine months.
4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, it is considered that there is no "stable establishment" if:
(a) the use of facilities for the sole purpose of storage, exposure or delivery of goods owned by the company;
(b) goods belonging to the undertaking are stored for storage, exposure or delivery purposes only;
(c) goods belonging to the enterprise are stored for the sole purpose of processing by another company;
(d) a fixed business facility is used for the sole purpose of purchasing goods or collecting information for the company;
(e) a fixed business facility is used for the sole purpose of carrying out any other preparatory or auxiliary activity for the enterprise;
(f) a fixed business facility shall be used only for the purpose of the cumulative year of activities referred to in subparagraphs (a) to (e), provided that the overall activity of the fixed business facility resulting from this accumulated business shall be preparatory or auxiliary.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1er and 2, where a person - other than an agent enjoying an independent status to which paragraph 6 applies - shall act on behalf of a business and shall, in a Contracting State, have powers that it normally exercises in it to enter into contracts on behalf of the enterprise, that undertaking shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in that State for all activities that the person exercises for the enterprise, unless the activities of that person are limited to those
6. A business is not considered to have a permanent establishment in a Contracting State solely because it operates in it through a broker, a general commissioner or any other agent with an independent status, provided that such persons act within the ordinary framework of their business.
7. A resident of a Contracting State for more than two months engaged in activities related to the exploration or exploitation of the bed of the sea and its basement, as well as their natural resources, located in the other Contracting State, shall be considered to carry out such activities through a permanent establishment or a fixed base located in that other State.
8. The fact that a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State or that operates therein (either through a permanent establishment or not) is not sufficient in itself to make any of these companies a permanent establishment of the other.
CHAPTER III. - Income tax
Article 6
Real estate income
1. The income that a resident of a Contracting State derives from real property (including income from farms or forestry) located in the other Contracting State, is taxable in that other State.
2. The term "real property" has the meaning assigned to it by the law of the Contracting State in which the property is located. The term includes, in any case, accessories, dead or alive livestock of farms and forests, the rights to which the provisions of private law apply in respect of land ownership, the usufruct of real property and the rights to variable or fixed payments for the exploitation or concession of the exploitation of mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships, ships and aircraft are not considered real property.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1er applies to income derived from direct exploitation or enjoyment, lease or charter, as well as any other form of exploitation of real property.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1er and 3 also apply to income from real property of a business as well as to income from real property used in the exercise of an independent profession.
Article 7
Business benefits
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 located therein. If the company operates in such a way, the profits of the company are taxable in the other State but only to the extent that they are attributable to that permanent establishment.
2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where a business of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment located therein, it shall be charged, in each Contracting State, to that permanent establishment the profits that it could have realized if it had constituted a separate undertaking carrying out identical or similar activities under identical or similar conditions and acting independently.
3. In order to determine the benefits of a permanent establishment, deductions are made of the expenses incurred for the purposes of this permanent establishment, including the executive expenses and general administrative expenses so exposed, either in the State where the permanent establishment is located or elsewhere.
4. If it is customary in a Contracting State to determine the profits attributable to a permanent establishment on the basis of a distribution of the total profits of the enterprise between its various parties, no provision in paragraph 2 shall prevent that Contracting State from determining the taxable profits according to the distribution in use; However, the method of distribution adopted must be such that the result obtained is consistent with the principles contained in this article.
5. No profit is charged to a permanent establishment because it simply purchased goods for the company.
6. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the benefits to be charged to the permanent establishment are determined annually on the same basis, unless there are valid and sufficient grounds to proceed otherwise.
7. Where profits include income elements treated separately in other articles of this Convention, the provisions of these articles are not affected by the provisions of this article.
Article 8
Maritime and air navigation
1. By derogation from the provisions of Article 7, paragraphs 1 to 6:
(a) profits derived from the operation, in international traffic, of vessels registered in, or with letters of sea by, a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State;
(b) profits derived from the operation, in international traffic, of aircraft shall be taxable only in the Contracting State where the effective management seat of the enterprise is located.
2. For the purposes of this section, profits derived from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic include, inter alia, profits derived from the rental of armed and equipped vessels or aircraft that are operated in international traffic.
3. The provisions of the preceding paragraphs also apply to benefits derived from participation in a pool, a joint operation or an international operating organization.
Article 9
Associated companies
When
(a) a business of a Contracting State directly or indirectly participates in the direction, control or capital of a business of the other Contracting State,
or
(b) that the same persons directly or indirectly participate in the direction, control or capital of a business of a Contracting State and a business of the other Contracting State,
and that,
in both cases, the two companies are, in their commercial or financial relations, bound by agreed or imposed conditions, which differ from those that would be agreed between independent companies, the profits that, without these conditions, would have been realized by one of the companies but could not be in fact because of these conditions, may be included in the profits of that undertaking and imposed accordingly.
Article 10
Dividends
1. Dividends paid by a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the corporation paying the dividends is a resident, and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of dividends if the beneficial owner is a corporation that holds directly or indirectly at least 25 per cent of the capital of the corporation that pays the dividends;
(b) 15 per cent of the gross amount of dividends in all other cases.
This subsection does not affect the taxation of the distributing corporation for profits that are used to pay dividends.
3. The term "dividends" used in this article refers to income from shares, shares or benefits, shares of mine, share of founder or other share of beneficiaries with the exception of receivables, as well as income - even allocated in the form of interest - subject to the same tax regime as income from shares by the law of the State whose debiting society is a resident.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the dividends, a resident of a Contracting State, exercises in the other Contracting State whose dividend-paying corporation is a resident, i.e., an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein, or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the dividend-generating interest is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
5. Where a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State derives from the profits or income of the other Contracting State, that other State may not collect any tax on the dividends paid by the corporation, except to the extent that such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or to the extent that the dividend-generating interest is effectively connected to a permanent establishment or to a fixed base located in that other State, or prelever any
Article 11
Interest
1. Interest arising from a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, these interests are also taxable in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the interest is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of interest in loans of any kind not represented by bearer securities and granted by bank companies;
(b) 10 per cent of the gross amount of interest in all other cases.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest shall be exempted from tax in the Contracting State from which it arises in respect of interest paid to the other Contracting State, to a political subdivision or local authority of that State, as well as to the Central Bank of Greece or to the National Bank of Belgium.
4. The term "interest" used in this section refers to income from receivables of any kind, whether or not accompanied by mortgage guarantees or an interest clause in the debtor's profits, including income from public funds and borrowing obligations, including premiums and lots attached to such securities; However, the term "interest" does not, within the meaning of this section, include penalties for late payment or interest treated as dividends under section 10, paragraph 3.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 1er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the interest, a resident of a Contracting State, carries on in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the interest-generating debt is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
6. Interest shall be deemed to arise from a Contracting State where the debtor is that State itself, a political subdivision, a local authority or a resident of that State. However, where the debtor of interest, whether or not a resident of a Contracting State, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment, or a fixed base, for which the debt giving rise to the payment of interest has been contracted and which bears the burden of such interests, these shall be deemed to arise from the State where the permanent establishment or fixed base is located.
7. Where, because of special relations between the debtor and the beneficial owner or between the debtor and the other person maintain with third persons, the amount of interest, taking into account the debt for which they are paid, exceeds the amount agreed upon by the debtor and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relations, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the latter amount. In this case, the surplus portion of the payments shall remain taxable, in accordance with its legislation, in the Contracting State from which the interest arises.
8. The tax reductions set out in paragraph 2 do not apply where the receivable giving rise to the payment of interest was made primarily to take advantage of these reductions and not for legitimate economic reasons. When a Contracting State intends to refuse the benefit of the said reductions to a resident of the other Contracting State, the competent authority of the first State shall enter in consultation with the competent authority of the other Contracting State.
Article 12
Claims
1. Royalties from a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, such royalties are also taxable in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the royalties is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 5 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties.
3. The term " royalties" used in this article means remuneration of any kind paid for the use or concession of the use of a copyright on a literary, artistic or scientific work, including film and films, tapes or other means of reproduction or transmission for radio or television, a patent, a trademark or a trade, a drawing or a model,
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the royalties, a resident of a Contracting State, carries out in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the right or property generating the royalties is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
5. The royalties shall be deemed to come from a Contracting State when the debtor is that State itself, a political subdivision, a local authority or a resident of that State. However, where the debtor of royalties, whether or not a resident of a Contracting State, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment, or a fixed base, for which the contract giving rise to the payment of royalties has been concluded and which bears the charge of such royalties, these shall be deemed to be from the State where the permanent establishment or fixed base is located.
6. Where, because of special relations between the debtor and the beneficial owner or between the debtor and the other person maintain with third persons, the amount of royalties, taking into account the benefit for which they are paid, exceeds the amount agreed upon by the debtor and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relations, the provisions of this section apply only to the latter amount. In this case, the surplus portion of the payments shall remain taxable, in accordance with its legislation, in the Contracting State from which royalties arise.
7. The tax reduction referred to in subsection 2 does not apply where the use of royalty law or property was granted primarily to take advantage of this reduction and not for legitimate economic reasons. When a Contracting State intends to refuse the benefit of the said reduction to a resident of the other Contracting State, the competent authority of the first State shall enter in consultation with the competent authority of the other Contracting State.
Article 13
Capital gains
1. The gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of real property referred to in Article 6 and situated in the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. The gains from the alienation of movable property that are part of the assets of a permanent establishment that a business of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State, or of movable property that belong to a fixed base of which a resident of a Contracting State disposes in the other Contracting State for the exercise of an independent profession, including such gains from the alienation of that permanent establishment (ully or with
3. Gains derived from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic or movable property assigned to the operation of such vessels or aircraft shall be taxable in the same manner as benefits derived from the operation of such vessels or aircraft.
4. Gains from the alienation of all property other than those referred to in paragraphs 1er, 2 and 3 shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the assignor is a resident.
Article 14
Independent occupations
1. The income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from a liberal profession or other activities of an independent character shall be taxable only in that State, unless that resident has in the other Contracting State a fixed basis for the exercise of his or her activities in an ordinary manner. If it has such a fixed base, income may be taxed in the other State but only to the extent that it is attributable to that fixed base.
2. The term "liberal profession" includes independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or educational activities, as well as independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
Article 15
Dependent professions
1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, wages, salaries and other similar remuneration that a resident of a Contracting State receives under an employee employment shall be taxable only in that State, unless employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is exercised, the remuneration received as such is taxable in that other State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1erthe remuneration of a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employee employed in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first State if:
(a) the beneficiary stays in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding a total of 183 days during any twelve-month period beginning or ending in the fiscal year under review,
and
(b) compensation shall be paid by an employer or on behalf of an employer who is not a resident of the other State,
and
(c) the pay charge is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base that the employer has in the other State.
3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration received for an employee employed on board a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic shall be taxable in the same manner as the profits derived from the operation of such vessels or aircraft.
Article 16
Corporate managers
1. The fortieth, attendance and other similar remuneration that a resident of a Contracting State receives as a member of the board of directors or of a similar body of a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
This provision also applies to remuneration received as a result of the exercise of functions which, under the legislation of the Contracting State whose company is a resident, are treated as functions of a nature similar to those exercised by a person referred to in that provision.
2. Compensation that a person referred to in subsection 1er shall be paid from the corporation by reason of the exercise of a day-to-day activity of direction or of a technical nature and the remuneration that a resident of a Contracting State derives from his or her personal activity as a partner in a corporation other than a share-owning corporation, which is a resident of the other Contracting State, shall be taxable in accordance with the provisions of Article 15, as if it were remuneration that an employee shall be employed in the case of an employee
Article 17
Artists and athletes
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from his or her personal activities in the other Contracting State as an artist of the spectacle, such as a theatre, cinema, radio or television artist, or a musician, or as a sportsman, may be taxed in that other State.
2. Where the income of activities that an entertainer or a sportsperson exercises personally and in this capacity is attributed not to the artist or to the athlete himself but to another person, such income shall be taxable, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, in the Contracting State where the activities of the artist or athlete are carried out.
Article 18
Pensions
1. Subject to the provisions of Article 19, paragraph 2, pensions and other similar remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State for an earlier job shall be taxable only in that State.
2. However, pensions and other allowances, periodic or unpaid, paid in accordance with the social legislation of a Contracting State are taxable in that State. This provision also applies to pensions and allowances paid under a general regime organized by that Contracting State to supplement the benefits provided by that legislation.
Article 19
Public functions
1. (a) Compensation, other than pensions, paid by a Contracting State or any of its political subdivisions or local authorities to a natural person, for services rendered to that State or subdivision or community, shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and if the natural person is a resident of that State who:
1° has the nationality of that State, or
2° did not become a resident of that State for the sole purpose of rendering the services.
2. (a) Pensions paid by a Contracting State or any of its political subdivisions or local authorities, either directly or by debiting from funds that they have constituted, to a natural person, for services rendered to that State or to that subdivision or community, shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such pensions shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the natural person is a resident of that State and has its nationality.
3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16 and 18 apply to remuneration and pensions paid for services rendered in an industrial or commercial activity carried out by a Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local authorities.
Rule 20
Students
The sums that a student or trainee who is, or who was immediately before going to a Contracting State, a resident of the other Contracting State and who resides in the first State for the sole purpose of pursuing his or her studies or training shall be paid to cover his or her maintenance, education or training expenses shall not be taxable in that State, provided that they arise from sources outside that State.
Article 21
Other income
1. The income elements of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever they arise, which are not dealt with in the preceding articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1er shall not apply to income other than income derived from real property as defined in Article 6, paragraph 2, where the beneficiary of such income, resident of a Contracting State, carries on in the other Contracting State, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein, or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the right or property actually connected therein. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
CHAPTER IV. - Methods to eliminate double taxation
Article 22
1. With regard to Greece, double taxation is avoided as follows:
(a) When a Greek resident receives income that, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, is taxable in Belgium, Greece grants on the tax that it receives on the income of that resident a deduction of an amount equal to the income tax paid in Belgium. However, this deduction cannot exceed the portion of the income tax, calculated before deduction, corresponding to taxable income in Belgium.
(b) In the case of dividends within the meaning of Article 10, paragraph 3, which are paid by a corporation that is a resident of Belgium to a corporation that is a resident of Greece and has a share of at least 25 per cent in the capital of the corporation that pays the dividends, Greece grants, in addition to the deduction provided in (a) above, the deduction of the fraction of the Belgian tax paid by the distributor corporation.
2. With regard to Belgium, double taxation is avoided as follows:
(a) Where a Belgian resident receives income that is taxed in Greece in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, with the exception of those of articles 10, paragraph 2, 11, paragraphs 2, 7 and 8, and 12, paragraphs 2, 6 and 7, Belgium exempts from tax these revenues, but it may, in calculating the amount of its taxes on the rest of the income of that resident, apply the same rate as if the income in question had not been exempted.
(b) Subject to the provisions of Belgian law relating to the imputation on Belgian tax of taxes paid abroad, where a Belgian resident receives income elements that are included in his or her total income subject to Belgian tax and that consist of taxable dividends in accordance with Article 10, paragraph 2, and not exempted from Belgian tax under (c) below, in taxable interest in accordance with Article 11, paragraphs 7
(c) Dividends within the meaning of Article 10, paragraph 3, that a corporation that is a resident of Belgium receives from a company that is a resident of Greece are exempted from the corporate tax in Belgium, under the conditions and limits provided for in Belgian law.
(d) Where, in accordance with Belgian law, losses incurred by a company operated by a resident of Belgium in a permanent establishment located in Greece were effectively deducted from the profits of that undertaking for its taxation in Belgium, the exemption provided for in (a) does not apply in Belgium to the profits of other taxable periods that are attributable to that establishment, to the extent that such profits were also exempted from tax in Greece because of their compensation with
CHAPTER V. - Special provisions
Article 23
Non-discrimination
1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subject in the other Contracting State to any taxation or obligation relating thereto, which is other or heavier than those to which nationals of that other Contracting State are or may be subject to the same situation, in particular in respect of the residence. This provision also applies, notwithstanding the provisions of section 1erpersons who are not residents of a Contracting State or both Contracting States.
2. Stateless persons who are residents of a Contracting State shall not be subject in either Contracting State to any taxation or relative obligation that is other or heavier than those to which nationals of the State concerned are or may be subject in the same situation.
3. The imposition of a permanent establishment that a business of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State is not established in that other State in a less favourable manner than the taxation of the enterprises of that other State that exercise the same activity. This provision shall not be construed as requiring a Contracting State to grant personal deductions, deductions and tax reductions to the residents of the other Contracting State on the basis of the situation or family expenses that it grants to its own residents.
4. Unless the provisions of Article 9, Article 11, paragraph 7 or Article 12, paragraph 6, are applicable, the interests, royalties and other expenses paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be deductible, for the determination of the taxable profits of that undertaking, on the same terms as if they had been paid to a resident of the first Contracting State.
5. The undertakings of a Contracting State, whose capital is wholly or partly, directly or indirectly, held or controlled by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subject in the first State to any taxation or obligation relating thereto, which is other or heavier than those to which the other similar enterprises of the first State are or may be subject.
6. Nothing in this article shall be construed as preventing a Contracting State:
(a) to impose at the rate provided for in its legislation the benefits of a permanent establishment in that State owned by a company that is a resident of the other Contracting State, provided that the above-mentioned rate does not exceed the maximum rate applicable to the profits of the companies that are residents of the first Contracting State;
(b) to withdraw its deduction from the source on the dividends associated with an effective interest in a permanent establishment owned by that State a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State.
7. The provisions of this section shall apply notwithstanding the provisions of section 2, to taxes of any kind or denomination.
Article 24
Friendly procedure
1. Where a person considers that the measures taken by a Contracting State or by the two Contracting States shall result in or result in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, the person may, independently of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, submit his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which the person is a resident or, if the case falls under Article 23, paragraph 1erto that of the Contracting State of which it has nationality. The case shall be submitted within two years after the first notification of the measure that results in taxation not in conformity with the provisions of the Convention.
2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the request appears to it to be founded and if it is not itself able to make a satisfactory solution to it, to resolve the case by amicable agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to avoiding taxation not in conformity with the Convention.
3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour, by mutual agreement, to resolve the difficulties or to dispel the doubts to which the interpretation or application of the Convention may take place.
4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall agree on the administrative measures necessary for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention and in particular on the justifications to be provided by the residents of each Contracting State for the benefit in the other State of the exemptions or tax reductions provided for in this Convention.
5. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall communicate directly with each other for the purposes of the Convention.
Rule 25
Exchange of information
1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange the information necessary to apply the provisions of this Convention or those of the domestic legislation of the Contracting States relating to the taxes covered by the Convention to the extent that the taxation it provides is not contrary to the Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by section 1er. The information received by a Contracting State shall be kept secret in the same manner as the information obtained under the domestic legislation of that State and shall only be communicated to the persons or authorities (including the courts and administrative bodies) concerned by the establishment or collection of the taxes referred to in the Convention, by the procedures or prosecutions relating to such taxes, or by the decisions on remedies relating to such taxes. These individuals or authorities only use this information for these purposes. They may report this information at public court hearings or in judgments.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1er in no case may be construed as imposing on a Contracting State the obligation:
(a) take administrative measures derogating from its legislation, administrative practice or those of the other Contracting State;
(b) provide information that could not be obtained on the basis of its legislation or in the course of its normal administrative practice or those of the other Contracting State;
(c) provide information that would reveal a commercial, industrial, professional or commercial secret or information that would be contrary to public order.
Rule 26
Recovery assistance
1. The Contracting States undertake to lend each other assistance and assistance in order to notify and recover the taxes referred to in Article 2 as well as any additional increments, interests, fees and fines without a criminal character.
2. Upon request of the competent authority of a Contracting State, the competent authority of the other Contracting State shall, in accordance with the legal and regulatory provisions applicable to the notification and recovery of such taxes of the Contracting State, notify and recover the tax claims referred to in paragraph 1er, which are due in the first State. These claims do not enjoy any privilege in the requested State and the requested State is not required to apply enforcement means that are not authorized by the legal or regulatory provisions of the requesting State.
3. The requests referred to in paragraph 2 shall be supported by an official copy of the enforceable titles, accompanied, if purchased, by an official copy of the administrative or judicial decisions passed in force of the evidence.
4. With respect to tax claims that are subject to appeal, the competent authority of a Contracting State may, in order to safeguard its rights, request the competent authority of the other Contracting State to take the precautionary measures provided for in the legislation of the other Contracting State; the provisions of paragraphs 1er to 3 are applicable, mutatis mutandis, to these measures.
5. The provisions of Article 25, paragraph 1er, shall also apply to any information brought under this Article to the knowledge of the competent authority of a Contracting State.
Rule 27
Limitation of the effects of the Convention
1. The provisions of this Convention do not limit the rights and benefits that the legislation of a Contracting State grants in respect of taxes referred to in Article 2.
2. The provisions of the Convention do not affect the tax privileges enjoyed by members of diplomatic missions or consular posts under either the general rules of the law of people or the provisions of special agreements.
CHAPTER VI. - Final provisions
Rule 28
Entry into force
1. This Convention shall be ratified and the instruments of ratification shall be exchanged in Brussels as soon as possible.
2. The Convention shall enter into force on the fifteenth day following that of the exchange of instruments of ratification and its provisions shall apply:
(a) taxes due to the source on income awarded or paid from 1er January 2005;
(b) other taxes on taxable period income ending on 31 December 2004.
3. The provisions of the Convention between Greece and Belgium with a view to avoiding double taxation and resolving certain other issues relating to income tax and the Final Protocol signed in Athens on 24 May 1968 shall cease to apply to any Belgian or Greek tax in respect of which this Convention has effect, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 2.
4. As from the date on which this Convention will enter into force and as long as it remains, the provisions of the Agreement between Greece and Belgium for the mutual tax exemption of the profits made by maritime or air shipping companies, in international traffic, concluded by exchange of letters dated in Athens on 15 and 23 June 1954, will cease to apply.
Rule 29
Denunciation
This Convention shall remain in force as long as it has not been denounced by a Contracting State, but each of the Contracting States may, until 30 June inclusive of any calendar year from the fifth year following that of the exchange of instruments of ratification, denounce it, in writing and through diplomatic channels, to the other Contracting State. In case of denunciation before 1er July of such a year, the Convention will last apply:
(a) taxes due to the source on the income awarded or paid by December 31 of the year of the denunciation;
(b) other taxes on taxable period income ending before December 31 of the year immediately following that of the denunciation.
In faith, the undersigned, duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Convention.
Done in Athens on 25 May 2004, in duplicate, in Greek, French and Dutch languages and the three texts being equally authentic. The French language text will prevail in the event of a discrepancy between the texts.