Entry Instance

HTTP 200 OK
Allow: GET, PUT, PATCH, DELETE, HEAD, OPTIONS
Content-Type: application/json
Vary: Accept

{
    "id": 969207,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/969207/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 283,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Kajiado South, JP",
    "speaker_title": "Hon. Katoo ole Metito",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13239,
        "legal_name": "Janet Marania Teyiaa",
        "slug": "janet-marania-teyiaa"
    },
    "content": "This is an important Treaty. It was developed by the Organization of Economic Co-operation and Development and the Council of Europe in 1988. This followed the global crisis when G20 London Summit in April, 2009, directed that the convention be opened for signatures to developing countries, to enable them benefit from the new era of transparency. It was effected on 1st June 2011. The convention is intended to promote international exchange of information between State parties on tax matters for the better operation of national tax laws while respecting the fundamental rights of the taxpayers. It actually respects the fundamental rights of tax payers. If you check the Treaty, in Articles 21 and 22, it talks of the protection of persons and limits in the obligation to provide assistance. It also talks about secrecy of information. It is highlighted in Article 21 that nothing in this Convention shall affect the rights and safeguards secured to persons by laws or administrative practice of the required States. In Article 22 on secrecy of information, it explains well that any information obtained by a party under this Convention shall be treated as secret and protected in the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that party. The Convention covers all possible types of administrative cooperation between the parties in the assessment and collection of taxes excluding Customs taxes. Therefore, the assistance includes assisting each other regarding the exchange of information, paid tax recovery and service of the documents. It also covers all forms of mutual assistance, exchange on request, spontaneous exchange tax examination abroad, simultaneous tax examination and assistance in tax collection while still protecting the tax payer’s rights. This is well defined in Articles 1, 2, 9, 10 and 14 of the main Convention. In terms of the benefit of this Convention to our country, it is meant to facilitate tax administration, sharing of information by tax authorities of all signatories to the Convention thereby checking tax evasion and tax avoidance. I heard that when we were conducting hearings from the relevant institutions, tax evasion was criminal and tax avoidance was not. This convention is going to be of great importance in checking both tax evasion and tax avoidance. The Convention also provides a means for significantly increasing Kenya’s ability to detect and prevent tax avoidance and evasion without the cost and resources that would be required for concluding several bilateral agreements with each of the countries. For the 135 countries that have so far signed and ratified, it will be easy to co-ordinate and retrieve this information without incurring a lot of cost or use of any financial resources. Therefore, if we ratify as a country, we will be able to exchange information with other signatories that have already ratified the Convention. Once ratified, Kenya will be required to respond to requests for tax information on nationals of the parties to the Convention, while maintaining the fundamental rights of taxpayers. Therefore, as much as you give out information on a taxpayer, you have to respect their rights. One of the requirements is that you have to inform the individual before giving out this information. They have to know that you are exchanging information about their taxes. Again, it requires member countries to use the existing administrative powers as provided for in their domestic laws to implement the requirement of the Convention for the exchange of information on tax matters. Therefore, it is required to be in compliance with the partner States constitutions"
}