A.  A. Corporate

·        Corporate - Taxes on corporate income

Foreign investors may register their companies under the Myanmar Companies Act (CA) or in conjunction with the Myanmar Investment Law (MIL) or Myanmar Special Economic Zone Law (Myanmar SEZ Law). The new MIL 2016 was enacted on 18 October 2016. The new MIL is a consolidation of the Myanmar Citizen Investment Law (2013) and the Myanmar Foreign Investment Law (MFIL) (2012). The Myanmar Citizen Investment Law and MFIL have been repealed with effect from 18 October 2016. New rules governing the implementation of the new MIL were enacted on 30 March 2017. Investment permits issued under the old investment laws continue to be valid.

The differences between companies registered under the CA and the Myanmar Investment Commission (MIC)/SEZ are in relation to their eligibility for tax incentives and longer land use terms, as well as minimum foreign share capital requirements.

Generally, resident companies are taxed on a worldwide basis, and, as such, income from sources outside Myanmar is taxable.

Non-resident companies are taxed only on income derived from sources within Myanmar. Income received from any capital assets within Myanmar and from any source of income within Myanmar is deemed to be income received within Myanmar. The income is generally subject to tax under the normal rules for residents.

A company registered under the MIC/SEZ is entitled to enjoy certain exemptions and relief from taxes.

·        Commercial tax

Commercial tax, at rates ranging from 0% to 8%, is levied as a turnover tax on goods and services. Generally, commercial tax is imposed at the rate of 5%. The commercial tax that a business charges and collects is known as output tax, which has to be paid to the Myanmar tax authorities. Commercial tax incurred on business purchases and expenses are known as input tax. Businesses that are registered for commercial tax can claim commercial input tax if certain conditions are satisfied.

Commercial tax is imposed on a wide range of specified goods and services produced or rendered within the country, based on the sales proceeds, and on imported goods (see Customs duties below for details).

All services are subject to 5% commercial tax except for 29 types of services that are specifically exempt from commercial tax (e.g. life insurance, banking and financial services that are operated with the permission of the Central Bank of Myanmar, microfinance, public transportation).

No commercial tax is imposed if the proceeds from production and sales of goods, receipts from services, or proceeds from trading for a financial year are not more than 50 million Myanmar kyats (MMK) (the exemption threshold was MMK 20 million prior to 1 April 2017).

Commercial tax is zero-rated on all exports, except for electricity (8%) and crude oil (5%).

Companies registered under the MIC/SEZ may, at the discretion of the MIC/SEZ Committee, be granted exemption from commercial tax during certain stipulated periods