Tax

Corporate income tax rules are governed by the Income Tax Law, which came into force in 2004. The Ministry of Finance issues ministerial resolutions concerning aspects of tax and zakat, a payment under Islamic law that is used for charitable or religious purposes. The General Authority of Zakat and Tax (GAZT) regularly issues circulars and responses to frequently asked questions containing its interpretation or position on regulations. The GAZT generally prefers to take a substance-over-form approach in dealing with tax matters. The GAZT often scrutinises transactions and challenges taxpayers if they view transactions as being motivated by non-commercial tax reasons. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Wadih AbouNasr, Head of Tax, KPMG KSA Levant Cluster.