Challenges in transfer pricing: A concept of safe harbours for financial transactions

Abstract

The OECD project against BEPS has brought and initiated many changes – among others, in the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines. To react and respond to changes in the current business environment, a new chapter for transfer pricing in financial transactions has also been introduced (namely chapter X). This step can be considered beneficial. However, meeting all the requirements for setting a transfer price for financial transactions seems to remain a very demanding and expensive task. Furthermore, the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines have been of a general nature rather than providing responses to all potential problems and circumstances – they provide fundamental ideas and principles. Thus, the potential to apply a simplified procedure for setting a transfer price (even for financial transactions) can be viewed as desirable, both for taxpayers and tax authorities. The aim of the paper is linked to this idea – to present the results of a comparative study dealing with the rules for safe harbours for financial transactions (namely loans) as established worldwide, providing a summary of existing concepts and systematized criteria for a safe harbour to be considered.

The OECD project against BEPS has brought and initiated many changes – among others, in the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines. To react and respond to changes in the current business environment, a new chapter for transfer pricing in financial transactions has also been introduced (namely chapter X). This step can be considered beneficial. However, meeting all the requirements for setting a transfer price for financial transactions seems to remain a very demanding and expensive task. Furthermore, the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines have been of a general nature rather than providing responses to all potential problems and circumstances – they provide fundamental ideas and principles. Thus, the potential to apply a simplified procedure for setting a transfer price (even for financial transactions) can be viewed as desirable, both for taxpayers and tax authorities. The aim of the paper is linked to this idea – to present the results of a comparative study dealing with the rules for safe harbours for financial transactions (namely loans) as established worldwide, providing a summary of existing concepts and systematized criteria for a safe harbour to be considered.