Summary: SABMiller Case - Calling Time by ActionAid
1. LAW OF TAXATION IN GHANA
TAX AVOIDANCE AND TAX EVASION
The SABMiller Case Summary
PATRICK A.N. ABOKU
22.04.2019
2. Outline
Introduction
The Case for Calling Time
SABMiller: Four Ways to Avoid Tax
Prescription for SABMiller
Government’s Responsibilities
3. Introduction
SABMiller is the worlds 2nd Largest brewery in the World with its largest
breweries in African
ActionAid undertook an elaborative study into the activities of SABMiller
and reports of a widespread tax avoidance schemes
SABMiller denies most of the claims insisting it is committed to
sustainable development
Details can be obtained in the SABMiller Case – Calling Time by
ActionAid Calling Time on Tax Avoidance
4. The Casefor
CallingTime
OECD appointed by rich nations as a global center for the fight against
tax dodging estimates that Africa loses several times more revenue to tax
havens than it receives in aid
The following activities are legal
the lucrative search for ways to pay less
creating complex structures
routing money through opaque tax havens
and employing highly paid professional to find loopholes is legal
But are they ethical?
The million dollar question remains unanswered
Hope
The tide is turning against tax dodging in developing countries
South Africa’s Finance Minister has described “aggressive tax avoidance” as
a “serious cancer eating into the fiscal base of many countries”
NOTE:
Ghana’s tax revenue is about 22% way above its neighbors but below 36%
average for developed countries
5. SABMiller:
FourWaysto
AvoidTax
Transfer pricing made by SABMiller to its subsidiaries from developing
countries to tax havens like Mauritius, Netherlands and Switzerland
reduced profits and then the tax bill
There are questions why the OECD’s guidelines for transfer pricing is
suitable for developing countries?
Others advocate for the systems used by USA and Brazil, because the
OECD’s guidelines might be too complex to adopt
6. SABMiller:
FourWaysto
AvoidTax
Tax Dodge Strategy 1: Going Dutch
Local brands are sold by SABMiller subsidiaries in developing countries are
owned by Companies in Netherlands
In Netherland the tax rules makes companies to pay next to nothing for
income from royalties
Ghana has a Double Taxation Agreement with Netherland
The brewery in Ghana pays huge sums of money in dollars for these brand names
as royalties
The company in Ghana reports less or not profits at all
Thus it pays no tax at in Ghana and as well enjoy the tax haven in Netherland
Tax Dodge Strategy 2:The Swiss Role
Payment of management services in fees to subsidiaries in Europe especially
Switzerland where rates are very low
In Ghana it is 4.6% but much lower in other countries.
In Ghana once there is an agreement with a foreign country for management
services, it is enough to comply with the law
7. SABMiller:
FourWaysto
AvoidTax
Tax Dodge Strategy 3:Take a trip to Mauritius
In ordering raw materials, the company ordered through a company in
Mauritius to take advantage of the tax haven
Mauritius is not the origin of these raw materials instead SA is
Mauritius is not the easiest in terms of routing and access
In fact Mauritius is thousand of miles away from the Indian Sea
The objective is to increase the profits in the company in Mauritius by adopting
transfer pricing strategies and benefiting from the tax laws
Tax Dodge Strategy 4:Thinning on top
SABMiller borrowed so much from the company in Mauritius to the extend
than the company in Ghana was thinly capitalised
It is instructive to note that it borrowed to an amount no financial institution
will ever accept to borrow out to any company or individual
8. Prescriptionfor
SABMiller
SABMiller insisted through its management that they were committed to
sustainable development
However, no where in their strategy or vision was this ever captured
ActionAid therefore makes the following prescription for SABMiller
Undertake responsible tax payments
Adopt a responsible approach to tax
Stop using tax havens to siphon profits out of Africa
E.g. by ending huge payments for lucrative brand rights and management service
fees in Switzerland and Netherlands
Understand and disclose the impact of its tax planning
It needs to a tax code of conduct
It should be open and transparent about its use of tax havens and tax avoidance
techniques
It should be more transparent
Especially about financial information
It should provide country-by-country tax payments especially in the secretive tax
havens
9. Government’s
Responsibilities
1. Strengthen tax legislation and revenue administration capacity
especially in developing countries to deal with Multination
Corporations
2. Improve transparency of corporate reporting by making companies
financial reports and beneficial ownership information accessible to the
public.
3. Developing countries must not give up their right to tax royalties and
other management fees. Especially when negotiating Double Taxation
Agreements.
4. Developed countries should examine and where necessary reform the
way they tax multination corporations in order to make tax avoidance
less lucrative in developing countries
5. G20 and EU countries should also work together to bring a threat of
renewed action against tax havens
6. Upgrade the United Nations Committee of Tax Experts to an
intergovernmental body in which political issues of international
taxation can be discussed
10. Thank You
Discussion
Note that I own no Copy Right to the Content.
I summarized to the best of my understanding from ActionAid’s Report on for
SABMiller in it Calling Time for Tax Avoidance Report
The following persons were acknowledged by ActionAid in their report
(Written and researched by Martin Hearson and Richard Brooks Thanks to Emmanuel
Budo-Addo, Adwoa Kwateng-Kluvitse and Anna Thomas)