FFF-Legal

The Malta 2012 Budget announced in Parliament today contains interesting tax measures aimed at enhancing foreign direct investment in target sectors including a tax exemption on royalties derived from copyright and IP, an extension of the 15% tax rate for game directors, game designers, researchers and academics working in Malta and new tax incentives for digital game development.

The draft directive released by the EU Commission on the 28th September 2011 provides for a financial transactions tax (FTT) within the EU with effect from the 1 January 2014.

Malta and Hong Kong have signed a double taxation agreement today. The agreement was signed by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor K C Chan and the Maltese Ambassador to China, Mr Joseph Cassar. The Hong Kong Malta DTA sets out the allocation of taxing rights between the Malta and HK and is widely based on the OECD model treaty.

The 15% reduced tax rate available to foreign professionals working in Malta in target sectors has been extended to include posts within companies engaged in the internet gaming business. 

The Securitisation Transactions (Deductions) Rules contain special provisions on the Maltese tax treatment of securitisation transactions and related tax deductions. Below is an overview of the Maltese tax implications of a securitisation transaction.

The Maltese Divorce regime came into force on the 1st October, 2011 and is now regulated by the Maltese Civil Code. Separating couples will, have an additional option to consider if their marriage breaks down to a point of no return.  There are many issues for spouses to weigh before taking the plunge, not least of which (apart from the emotional distress) involve onerous decisions relating to asset division, maintenance, child support and the care and custody of the minor children born during marriage.  The new divorce law is not intended at providing easy exit routes to what may be temporary, fixable marital crises.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has clarified the circumstances in which a sponsored link advertiser will be liable for trade mark infringement when it makes use of an adword or keyword that has been registered as a trade mark by a third party. In a Judgment delivered on the 22 September 2011 (Case C-323/09) the CJEU answered the questions referred to it by the UK High Court relating to keywords and trade mark infringement.  The Court reiterated the need for balance between the protection afforded to trade marks with a reputation and fair competition in the sector for the goods and services for which such marks are registered.