GAAR - Trinidad & Tobago - Iatj.net

Wide scope of the anti‐avoidance
provision
• The judicial attack on avoidance of taxation has been used not
only to counteract transactions designed to reduce tax but also
as an instrument to input additional income to the taxpayer.
Thus in TCL v BIR, a majority decision of the Tax Appeal Board
of Trinidad & Tobago, the court had to decide on the nature of
remittances from the Trinidad‐based company to a Bahamasbased
company, both such companies being subsidiaries of a
UK company for management services provided to the
Trinidad‐based company by the Bahamas company. While there
was no evidence that the Bahamas based company benefited
from interest on moneys held for the Trinidad company, the
Revenue sought to charge the taxpayer company on the
notional interest accruing from the balances held by the
Bahamas company to its order
3rd IATJ Assembly Munich 18‐19 October 2012 42