As reported in our July 2015 newsletter, in George Anson v HMRC the Supreme Court found that the denial of a double taxation relief (“DTR”) claim made by Mr. Anson, a member of a Delaware Limited Liability Company (“LLC”), violated article 23(2)(a) of the UK-US Double Taxation Convention. HMRC had argued that what Mr. Anson received was a distribution from the LLC and no DTR was due because the US tax was charged on a share of the profit rather than on a distribution of it. The Supreme Court found, agreeing with the First-tier Tribunal (“FTT”), that the profits of the LLC belonged to the members as they arose and therefore belonged to Mr. Anson when it was taxed in the US. Consequently his claim to double tax relief was well-founded.
HMRC have now issued Revenue and Customs Brief 15 (2015) as their response to the Supreme Court’s decision. HMRC believe the case can be distinguished on its facts and intend to carry on applying their previous approach where appropriate. No details are provided of the type of facts which would distinguish the Anson case from others.This article appears in the JHA September 2015 Tax Newsletter, which also features:
C-89/14 A2A: Compound interest by Cristiana Bulbuc
C-386/14 Groupe Steria: Dividend Tax by Alessia Riposi
C-10/14, C-14/14 and C-17/14 Miljoen: Withholding Tax by Alice McDonald
You can download the complete newsletter as a PDF here: September 2015 – Tax Newsletter
