Suriah Indonesia
Syria (Suriah)

AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION AND THE PREVENTION OF FISCAL EVASION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME


 

AGREEMENT BETWEEN
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDONESIA
AND
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE SYRIAN ARAB REPUBLIC

FOR
THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION AND THE PREVENTION OF FISCAL EVASION WITH RESPECT TO TAKES ON INCOME

Article 1
PERSONAL SCOPE

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

Article 2
TAXES COVERED

  1. This Agreement shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or its local authorities, 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 employers.

  3. The existing taxes to which the Agreement shall apply are:

    (a) in the case of Indonesia:
    the income tax imposed under the Undang-undang Pajak Penghasilan 1984 (Law Number 7 of 1983 as amended);
    (b) in the case of Syria:
    - the income tax on commercial, industrial and non-commercial profits;
    - the income tax on salaries and wages;
    - the income tax on non-residents;
    - the income tax on revenue from movable and immovable capital;
    - Surcharges imposed as percentages of the above taxes or in any other form or rate
    (hereinafter referred to as "Syrian tax).
  4. The Agreement shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes which are imposed after the date of signature of the Agreement in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any substantial changes which have been made in their respective taxation laws.

Article 3
GENERAL DEFINITIONS

  1. For the purposes of this Agreement, unless the context otherwise requires:

    (a) the term "a Contracting State and the other Contracting State" mean Indonesia or Syria, as the context requires;
    (b) the term "Indonesia means the territory of the Republic of Indonesia as defined in its laws;
    (c) the term "Syria" means, in its geographical sense, the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic, including its territorial sea, its air space, the continental shelf, the subsoil and all other areas outside the Syrian territorial sea within which, in accordance with international law, Syria exercises sovereign rights for the purpose of extracting and exploring the natural, vital and mining resources and all other rights on the seabed and its subsoil and the superjacent waters;
    (d) the term "person" includes an individual, a company and any other body of persons;
    (e) the term national means:
    (i) any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;
    (ii) any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State;
    (f) the term "company" means any body corporate, or any entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes;
    (g) 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;
    (h) the term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State, except when the ship or aircraft is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State;
    (i) the term "competent authority" means:
    (i) in the case of Indonesia, the Minister of Finance or his authorized representative;
    (ii) in the case of Syria, the Minister of Finance or his authorized representative.
  2. As regards the application of the Agreement by a Contracting State, any term not defined therein shall have the meaning which it has under the taxation laws of that State to which the Agreement applies, any meaning under the applicable tax laws of that State prevailing over a meaning given to the term under other laws of that State.

Article 4
RESIDENT

  1. For the purposes of this Agreement, 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. But this term shall not include any person who is liable to tax in that State in respect only of income from sources in that State.

  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:

    (a) 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);
    (b) 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;
    (c) if he has an habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the Contracting State of which he is a national;
    (d) 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 person other than an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which its place of effective management is situated.

Article 5
PERMANENT ESTABLISHMENT

  1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the term "permanent establishment" means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise of a Contracting State is wholly or partly carried on in the other Contracting State.

  2. The term "permanent establishment" includes especially:

    (a) a place of management;
    (b) a branch;
    (c) an office;
    (d) a factory;
    (e) a workshop;
    (f) a warehouse or premises used as sales outlet;
    (g) a farm or plantation;
    (h) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction or exploration or exploitation of natural resources, drilling rig or working ship.
  3. The term "permanent establishment" likewise encompasses:

    1. a building site, a construction, assembly or installation project or supervisory activities in connection therewith, but only where such site, project or activities continue for a period of more than 6 months;

    2. the furnishing of services, including consultancy services by an enterprise through employees or other personnel engaged by the enterprise for such purpose, but only where activities of that nature continue (for the same or a connected project) within the country for a period or periods aggregating more than 183 days within any twelve month period.

  4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term "permanent establishment" shall be deemed not to include:

    (a) the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage or display of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise;
    (b) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage or display;
    (c) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;
    (d) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the enterprise;
    (e) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of advertising, or for the supply of information;
    (f) 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;
    (g) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) to (f), provided that the overall activity of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a preparatory or auxiliary character.
  5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person -- other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies -- is acting in a Contracting State on behalf of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the first-mentioned State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise, if such a person:

    (a) has or habitually exercises in that State an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the enterprise, unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in paragraph 4 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; or
    (b) has no such authority, but habitually maintains in the first- mentioned State a stock of goods or merchandise from which he regularly delivers goods or merchandise on behalf of the enterprise; or
    (c) manufactures or processes in that State for the enterprise goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise.
  6. An enterprise of a Contracting State shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that other State through a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, 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.

  7. 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.

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. 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 and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property.

  3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or use in any other form of immovable 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.

  5. Where a person has shares or other rights in a company, trust or comparable institution and is thereby entitled to the enjoyment of immovable property situated in a Contracting State and held by that company, trust or comparable institution, income from direct use, letting or use in any other form of that right of enjoyment by that person may be taxed in that State notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7 and 14.

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 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 :

    (a) that permanent establishment;
    (b) sales in that other State of goods or merchandise of the same or similar kind as those sold through that permanent establishment; or
    (c) other business activities carried on in that other State of the same or similar kind as those effected through 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 of which it is a permanent establishment or with other associated enterprises with which it deals.

  3. In determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the business of the permanent establishment including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred, whether in the State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere.

  4. 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 contained in this Article.

  5. 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.

  6. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs of this Article, 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 Agreement, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article.

  8. The provisions of this Article shall not affect the provisions of the law of a Contracting State regarding the taxation of profits from the business of insurance.

  9. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Agreement where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State has a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State, the profits of the permanent establishment may be subjected to an additional tax in that other State in accordance with its law, but the additional tax so charged shall not exceed, 10 per cent of the amount of such profits after deducting therefrom income tax and other taxes on income imposed thereon in that other State.

  10. The provision of paragraph 9 of this Article shall not affect the provision contained in any production sharing contract and contracts of work (or any other similar contracts) relating to oil and gas sector or other mining sector concluded by either the Government of Indonesia or the Government of Syria, their instrumentalities, their relevant state oil and gas companies or any other entity thereof with a person who is a resident of the other Contracting State.

Article 8
SHIPPING AND AIR TRANSPORT

  1. Profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State. Such profits shall include profits from the use, maintenance or rental of containers used for the transport of goods or merchandise in international traffic, provided that such activities are incidental.

  2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to profits derived from the participation in a pool, a joint business or an international operating agency.

  3. The provisions of this Article do not include the profits realised by an enterprise of a Contracting State through commissions on sales, in the other Contracting State, of travel tickets of aircraft and ships belonging to other enterprises.

Article 9
ASSOCIATED ENTERPRISES

  1. Where

    (a) 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
    (b) 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 the tax charged therein on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of the Agreement and the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall, if necessary consult each other.

  3. A Contracting State shall not change the profits of an enterprise in the circumstance referred to in paragraph 2 after the expiry of the time limits provided in its tax laws.

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, if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax charged by the first-mentioned State may not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends actually distributed.

  3. The term "dividends" as used in this Article means income from shares or other rights, not being debt-claims, participating in profits, as well as income from other corporate rights 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.

  4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 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.

  5. 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 the company's 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 beneficial owner of the interest is a resident of the other Contracting State the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest.

  3. The term "interest" as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage, and 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 assimilate to income from money lent under the taxation law of the States in which the income arises.

  4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 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 

    (a) such permanent establishment or fixed base; or with
    (b) business activities referred to under (c) of paragraph 1 of Article 7.  
    In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or 14, as the case may be, shall apply.
  5. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, 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.

  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 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 Agreement.

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 the tax so charged shall not exceed 20 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties referred to in sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph 3 and 15 percent of the gross amount of the royalties referred to in sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph 3. The competent authorities of the Contracting State shall by mutual agreement settle the mode of application of these limitations.

  3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as consideration for the use of, or the right to use,

    (a) any patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, or any industrial or scientific equipment, or for information concerning industrial or scientific experience;
    (b) any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work including cinematograph films, or tapes for television or radio broadcasting.
  4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 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 

    (a) such permanent establishment or fixed base, or with
    (b) business activities referred to under (c) of paragraph 1 of Article 7.

    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 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 a fixed base in connection with which the liability 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 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 payment shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Agreement.

Article 13
CAPITAL GAINS

  1. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable property referred to in Article 6 and 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 personal services, including such gains from the alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such fixed base, may be taxed in that other State.

  3. Gains derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic or movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft shall be taxable only in that State.

  4. Gains from the alienation of any property, other than that referred to in paragraphs 1, 2, and 3, shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a resident.

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 State unless he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities or he is present in that other State for a period or periods exceeding in the aggregate 183 days within any twelve month period.

     

    If he has such a fixed base or remains in that other State for the aforesaid period or periods, the income may be taxed in that other State but only so much of it as is attributable to that fixed base or is derived in that other 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, engineers, lawyers, dentists, architects and accountants.

Article 15
DEPENDENT PERSONAL SERVICES

  1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18, 19 and 20, 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 State 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:

    (a) the recipient is present in that other State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days within any twelve month period; and
    (b) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of that other State; and
    (c) 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 derived 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

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

  2. The remuneration which a person to whom paragraph 1 applies derived from the company in respect of the discharge of day-to-day functions of a managerial or technical nature may be taxed in accordance with the provisions of Article 15.

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 the 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. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer or athlete from his personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned State if those activities in the other State are supported mainly by public funds of the first-mentioned State or its local authorities.

Article 18
PENSIONS AND ANNUITIES

  1. Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 2 of Article 19, any pensions or other similar remuneration paid to a resident of one of the Contracting States from a source in the other Contracting State in consideration of past employment or services in that other Contracting State and any annuity paid to such a resident from such a source may be taxed in that other State.

  2. The term "annuity" 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.

  3. Nothing contained in paragraphs 1 shall affect the provisions of the law of a Contracting State concerning the exemption of pensions from tax.

Article 19
GOVERNMENT SERVICE

1. (a) Salaries, wages and other similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a Contracting State or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or authority 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 other State and the individual is a resident of that State who:
(i) is a national of that State: or
(ii) did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.
2. (a) Any pension paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or authority shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that other State.
3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16 and 18 shall apply to salaries, wages and other similar remunerations and to pensions, in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or a local authority thereof.
4. Nothing contained in paragraph 2 shall affect the provisions of the law of a Contracting State concerning the exemption of pensions from tax.

Article 20
TEACHERS AND RESEARCHERS

An individual who is immediately before visiting a Contracting State a resident of the other Contracting State and who, at the invitation of the Government of the first-mentioned Contracting State or of a University, college, school, museum or other cultural institution in that first mentioned Contracting State or under an official programme of cultural exchange, is present in that Contracting State for a period not exceeding two consecutive years solely for the purpose of teaching, giving lectures or carrying out research at such institution shall be exempt from tax in that Contracting State on his remuneration for such activity, provided that payment of such remuneration is derived by him from outside that Contracting State.

Article 21
STUDENTS AND TRAINEES

  1. Payments which a student 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 Contracting State solely for the purpose of his education or training received for the purpose of his maintenance, education or training shall not be taxed in that Contracting State, provided that such payments arise from sources outside that Contracting State.

  2. In respect of grants, scholarships and remuneration from employment not covered by paragraph 1, a student or business trainee described in paragraph 1 shall, in addition, be entitled during such education or training to the same exemption, reliefs or reductions in respect of taxes available to residents of the Contracting State which he is visiting.

Article 22
OTHER INCOME

  1. Items of income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with on the foregoing Articles of this Agreement, other than income arising as a result of a transfer or requisition of the right on ownership or management of property situated in the other Contracting State and also income in the form of lotteries, prizes and insurance or reinsurance premium shall be taxable in the first mentioned State.

  2. The provisions of paragraph 1 of this Article shall not apply to income from immovable property as defined in paragraph 2 of Article 6 of this Agreement, if the recipient of such income, being the resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal service from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the income 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.

Article 23
ELIMINATION OF DOUBLE TAXATION

  1. Where a resident of a Contracting State derives income which, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, may be taxed in the other Contracting State, then the first Contracting State shall allow as a deduction from the tax on the income of that resident an amount equal to the income tax paid in the other Contracting State; such deduction shall not, however, exceed part of the income tax, as computed before the deduction is given, which is attributable to the income which may be taxed in the other Contracting State.

  2. Where, in accordance with any provisions of this Agreement, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State is exempt from tax in that State, such State may nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax on the remaining income of such resident, take into account the exempted income.

Article 24
NON-DISCRIMINATION

  1. 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. This provision shall not be construed as 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.

  3. 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 than the taxation and connected requirements to which other similar enterprises of the first-mentioned State are or may be subjected.

  4. Except where the provisions of paragraph 1 of Article 9, paragraph 7 of Article 11, or paragraph 6 of Article 12 apply, interest, royalty and other disbursements paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been paid to a resident of the first-mentioned State.

Article 25
MUTUAL AGREEMENT PROCEDURE

  1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, present his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under paragraph 1 of Article 24, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a national. The case must be presented within two years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of the Agreement.

  2. The competent authority 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 this Agreement.

  3. 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 Agreement. They may also consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Agreement.

  4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs. The competent authorities, through consultations, shall develop appropriate bilateral procedures, conditions, methods and techniques for the implementation of the mutual agreement procedure provided for in this Article.

Article 26
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 Agreement or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes covered by the Agreement, insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to this Agreement, in particular for the prevention of fraud or evasion of such taxes. 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. However, if the information is originally regarded as secret in the transmitting State it shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) involved in the assessment or collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes which are the subject of the Agreement. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such purposes but 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:

    (a) to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State;
    (b) 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;
    (c) 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 27
DIPLOMATIC AGENTS AND CONSULAR OFFICERS

Nothing in this Agreement shall affect the fiscal privileges of diplomatic agents or consular officers under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of special agreements.

Article 28
ENTRY INTO FORCE

  1. This Agreement shall enter into force on the later of the dates on which the respective Governments may notify each other in writing that the formalities constitutionally required in their respective States have been complied with.

  2. This Agreement shall have effect:

    (a) in respect of tax withheld at source to income derived on or after 1 January in the year next following that in which the Agreement enters into force; and
    (b) in respect of other taxes on income, for taxable years beginning on or after 1 January in the year next following that in which the Agreement

Article 29
TERMINATION

This Agreement shall remain in force until terminated by a Contracting State. Either Contracting State may terminate the Agreement, through diplomatic channels, by giving written notice of termination on or before the thirtieth day of June of any calendar year following after the period of five years from the year in which the Agreement enters into force.

In such case, this Agreement shall cease to have effect:

(a) in respect of tax withheld at source to income derived on or after 1 January in the year next following that in which the notice of termination is given.
(b) in respect of other taxes on income, for taxable years beginning on or after 1 January in the year next following that in which the notice of termination is given.


In witness whereof, the undersigned, duly authorized thereto, have signed this Agreement.

 

Done at Jakarta, this twenty seventh day of June 1997 in the Indonesian, Arabic and English languages. The three texts being equally authentic. In case there is any divergence of interpretation between the Indonesian and Arabic texts, the English text shall prevail.


For the Government of
the Republic of Indonesia

Ali Alatas
Minister for Foreign Affair's

For the Government of
the Syrian Arab Republic

Mohammad Khaled Al-Mahayni
Minister of Finance