Slovakia - South Africa Tax Treaty

NOTICE

No. 20409

25 August 1999

INCOME TAX ACT, 1962

CONVENTION BETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA AND THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION AND THE PREVENTION OF FISCAL EVASION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME

In terms of section 108(2) of the Income Tax Act, 1962 (Act No 58 of 1962), read in conjunction with section 231(4) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (Act No 108 of 1996), it is hereby notified that the Convention for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income set out in the Schedule to this Notice has been entered into with the Slovak Republic and has been approved by Parliament in terms of section 231(2) of the Constitution.

It is further notified in terms of paragraph 2 of Article 27 of the Convention, that the date of entry into force is 30 June 1999.

CONVENTION BETWEEN THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA AND THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION AND THE PREVENTION OF FISCAL EVASION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME

Preamble

The Republic of South Africa and the Slovak Republic desiring to promote and strengthen the economic relations between both countries,

Have agreed as follows:

Article 1 Personal Scope This Convention shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting States.

Article 2 Taxes Covered 1. This Convention shall apply to taxes on income imposed on behalf of a Contracting State or of its political subdivisions, irrespective of the manner in which they are levied. 2.

There shall be regarded as taxes on income all taxes imposed on total income or on elements of income.

The existing taxes to which the Convention shall apply are in particular: a)

in Slovakia: (i) (ii)

the tax on income of individuals; and the tax on income of legal persons;

(hereinafter referred to as "Slovak tax"); b)

in South Africa: (i) (ii)

the normal tax; and the secondary tax on companies;

(hereinafter referred to as "South African tax").

4. The Convention shall also apply to any other taxes of a substantially similar character which are imposed after the date of signature of the Convention in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any significant changes which have been made in their respective taxation laws.

Article 3 General Definitions 1.

For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires: a)

c) d) e) f)

the term "Slovakia" means the Slovak Republic and, when used in a geographical sense, means the territory in which the laws of the Slovak Republic are effective as well as any area within which the Slovak Republic may, in accordance with international law, exercise sovereign rights or jurisdiction; the term "South Africa" means the Republic of South Africa and, when used in a geographical sense, includes the territorial sea thereof as well as any area outside the territorial sea, including the continental shelf, which has been or may hereafter be designated, under the laws of South Africa and in accordance with international law, as an area within which South Africa may exercise sovereign rights or jurisdiction; the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean Slovakia or South Africa as the context requires; the term "person" includes an individual, a company and any other body of persons which is treated as an entity for tax purposes; the term "company" means any body corporate or any entity which is treated as a company or body corporate for tax purposes; the terms "enterprise of a Contracting State" and "enterprise of the other Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State; the term "national" means: (i) (ii)

any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State; any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State; the term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State, except when the ship or aircraft is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State; the term "competent authority" means: (i) (ii)

in Slovakia, the Minister of Finance of Slovakia or his authorised representative; in South Africa, the Commissioner for Inland Revenue or his authorised representative.

As regards the application of the provisions of the Convention by a Contracting State at any time, any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meaning which it has at that time under the laws of that State concerning the taxes to which the Convention applies.

Article 4 Resident 1.

For the purposes of this Convention the term "resident of a Contracting State" means: a)

in Slovakia, any person who, under the laws of Slovakia, is liable to tax therein by reason of his residence, place of management or any other criterion of a similar nature; but this term does not include any person who is liable to tax in Slovakia in respect only of income from sources in Slovakia; and in South Africa, any individual who is ordinarily resident in South Africa and any other person which has its place of effective management in South Africa.

Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then his status shall be determined as follows: a)

c) d)

he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which he has a permanent home available to him; if he has a permanent home available to him in both States, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State with which his personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests); if the State in which he has his centre of vital interests cannot be determined or if he has not a permanent home available to him in either State, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which he has an habitual abode; if he has an habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, he shall be deemed to be a resident of the State of which he is a national; if he is a national of both States or of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual agreement.

Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then it shall be deemed to be a resident of the State in which its place of effective management is situated.

Article 5 Permanent Establishment 1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "permanent establishment" means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on. 2.

The term "permanent establishment" includes especially: a) b) c) d) e) f)

a place of management; a branch; an office; a factory; a workshop; and a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place of extraction of natural resources.

3. A building site or a construction, installation or assembly project or any supervisory activity in connection with such site or project constitutes a permanent establishment only if it lasts more than twelve months. 4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article the term "permanent establishment" shall be deemed not to include: a) b) c) d) e) f)

the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise; the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery; the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise; the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the enterprise; the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of carrying on, for the enterprise, any other activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character; the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in subparagraphs a) to e), provided that the overall activity of the fixed place of business resulting from the combination is of a preparatory or auxiliary character.

Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies - is acting on behalf of an enterprise and has, and habitually exercises, in a Contracting State an authority to conclude contracts in the name of the enterprise, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in that State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise, unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business, would not make this fixed place of business a permanent establishment under the provisions of that paragraph. 6. An enterprise shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in a Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that State through a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, provided that such persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business. 7. The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise), shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the other.

Article 6 Income from Immovable Property 1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property (including income from agriculture or forestry) situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. The term "immovable property" shall have the meaning which it has under the law of the Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall in any case include property accessory to immovable property, livestock and equipment used in agriculture and forestry, rights to which the provisions of general law respecting landed property apply, usufruct of immovable property and rights to variable or fixed payments as consideration for the working of, or the right to work, mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources. Ships, boats and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property. 3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting or use in any other form of immovable property. 4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal services.

Article 7 Business Profits 1. The profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State unless the enterprise carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein. If the enterprise carries on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in the other State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent establishment. 2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, there shall in each Contracting State be attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it might be expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing wholly independently with the enterprise of which it is a permanent establishment. 3. In determining the profits of a permanent establishment, there shall be allowed as deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the permanent establishment including executive and general administrative expenses so incurred, whether in the State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere. 4. Insofar as it has been customary in a Contracting State to determine the profits to be attributed to a permanent establishment on the basis of an apportionment of the total profits of the enterprise to its various parts, nothing in paragraph 2 shall preclude that Contracting State from determining the profits to be taxed by such an apportionment as may be customary. The method of apportionment adopted shall, however, be such that the result shall be in accordance with the principles contained in this Article. 5. No profits shall be attributed to a permanent establishment by reason of the mere purchase by that permanent establishment of goods or merchandise for the enterprise. 6. For the purpose of the preceding paragraphs, the profits to be attributed to the permanent establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year unless there is good and sufficient reason to the contrary.

7. Where profits include items of income which are dealt with separately in other Articles of this Convention, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article.

Article 8 Shipping and Air Transport 1. Profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic shall be taxable only in that State. 2.

The provisions of this Article shall also apply to: a) b)

profits derived from the rental on a bare boat basis of ships or aircraft used in international traffic, profits derived from the use or rental of containers,

if such profits are incidental to the profits to which the provisions of paragraph 1 apply. 3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to profits derived from the participation in a pool, a joint business or an international operating agency.

Article 9 Associated Enterprises 1.

Where: a) b)

an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting State; or the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise of the other Contracting State,

and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be made between independent enterprises, then any profits which would, but for those conditions, have accrued to one of the enterprises, but, by reason of those conditions, have not so accrued, may be included in the profits of that enterprise and taxed accordingly. 2. Where a Contracting State includes in the profits of an enterprise of that State - and taxes accordingly - profits on which an enterprise of the other Contracting State has been charged to tax in that other State and the profits so included are profits which would have accrued to the enterprise of the first-mentioned State if the conditions made between the two enterprises had been those which would have been made between independent enterprises, then that other State may make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax charged therein on those profits. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of this Convention and the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall if necessary consult each other.

Article 10 Dividends 1. Dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, and according to the laws of that State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the dividends the tax so charged shall not exceed: a)

5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner is a company which holds directly at least 25 per cent of the capital of the company paying the dividends; 15 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends in all other cases.

The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement settle the mode of application of these limitations. This paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the company in respect of the profits out of which the dividends are paid. 3. The term "dividends" as used in this Article means income from shares or other rights participating in profits (not being debt-claims), as well as income from other corporate rights which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from shares by the laws of the Contracting State of which the company making the distribution is a resident. 4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 13, as the case may be, shall apply. 5. Where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income from the other Contracting State, that other State may not impose any tax on the dividends paid by the company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or insofar as the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent establishment or a fixed base situated in that other State, nor subject the company's undistributed profits to a tax on undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State.

Article 11 Interest 1. Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in that other State if such resident is the beneficial owner of the interest. 2. The term "interest" as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage and whether or not carrying a right to participate in the debtor's profits, and in particular, income from government securities and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such securities, bonds or debentures. Penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purposes of this Article. 3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 13, as the case may be, shall apply. 4. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest having regard to the debt-claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.

Article 12 Royalties 1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State. 2. However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise, and according to the laws of the State, but if the recipient is the beneficial owner of the royalties the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement settle the mode of application of this limitation. 3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as a consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright of literary, artistic or scientific work including cinematograph films and films, tapes or discs for television or radio broadcasting, any patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process, or for the use of, or the right to use, industrial, commercial or scientific equipment, or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 13, as the case may be, shall apply. 5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is that State itself, a political subdivision, a local authority or a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether he is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the liability to pay the royalties was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated. 6. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the royalties, having regard to the use, right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.

Article 13 Independent Personal Services 1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of professional services or other activities of an independent character shall be taxable only in that State unless he has a fixed base regularly available to him in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing his activities. If he has such a fixed base, the income may be taxed in the other Contracting State but only so much of it as is attributable to that fixed base. For the purposes of this provision, where an individual who is a resident of a Contracting State stays in the other Contracting State for a period or periods exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any period of twelve months commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned, he shall be deemed to have a fixed base regularly available to him in that other State and the income that is derived from his activities that are performed in that other State shall be attributable to that fixed base. 2. The term "professional services" includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.

Article 14 Dependent Personal Services 1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 15, 17, 18 and 19 salaries, wages and similar remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment shall be taxable only in that State unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is derived therefrom may be taxed in that other State. 2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment exercised in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned State if each of the following conditions is met: a)

b) c)

the recipient is present in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any period of twelve months commencing or ending in the fiscal year concerned; and the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, an employer who is not a resident of the other State; and the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the employer has in the other State.

Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration derived in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State may be taxed in that State.

Article 15 Directors' Fees Directors' fees and similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State in his capacity as a member of the board of directors or any similar organ of a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

Article 16 Entertainers and Sportspersons 1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 13 and 14, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture, radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsperson, from his personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State.

2. Where income in respect of personal activities exercised by an entertainer or sportsperson in his capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson himself but to another person, that income may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 13 and 14, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsperson are exercised. 3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, income mentioned in this Article shall be exempt from tax in the Contracting State in which the activity of the entertainer or sportsperson is exercised provided that this activity is supported wholly or mainly out of public funds of that State or of the other State or the activity is exercised under a cultural arrangement between the Contracting States.

Article 17 Pensions and Annuities 1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2 of Article 18, pensions and other similar remuneration and annuities arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State, may be taxed in the first-mentioned State. 2. The term "annuity" means a stated sum payable periodically at stated times during life or during a specified or ascertainable period of time under an obligation to make the payments in return for adequate and full consideration in money or money's worth.

Article 18 Government Service 1. a) Salaries, wages and similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State. b) However, such salaries, wages and similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the individual is a resident of that State who: (i) (ii)

is a national of that State; or did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.

a) Any pension paid by, or out of funds created by, a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State. b) However, such pension shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the individual is a resident of, and a national of, that State. 3. The provisions of Articles 14, 15, 16 and 17 shall apply to salaries, wages and similar remuneration, and to pensions, in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof.

Article 19 Teachers Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 14, a teacher who makes a temporary visit to one of the Contracting States for a period not exceeding two years for the purpose of teaching at a university, college, school or other educational institution in that State and who is, or immediately before such visit was, a resident of the other Contracting State shall, in respect of remuneration for such teaching, not be subject to tax in the first-mentioned State, provided that such remuneration is derived by him from outside that State and such remuneration is subject to tax in the other State.

Article 20 Students, Apprentices and Business Trainees A student, apprentice or business trainee who is present in a Contracting State solely for the purpose of his education or training and who is, or immediately before being so present was, a resident of the other Contracting State, shall not be subject to tax in the first-mentioned State on payments received from outside that first-mentioned State for the purposes of his maintenance, education or training.

Article 21 Other Income 1. Items of income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that State. 2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to income if the recipient of such income, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the income is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 13, as the case may be, shall apply.

Article 22 Elimination of Double Taxation Double taxation shall be eliminated as follows: a)

in the case of Slovakia, Slovakia, when imposing taxes on its residents, may include in the tax base upon which such taxes are imposed the items of income which according to the provisions of this Convention may also be taxed in South Africa, but shall allow as a deduction from the amount of tax computed on such a base an amount equal to the tax paid in South Africa. Such deduction shall not, however, exceed that part of the Slovak tax, as computed before the deduction is given, which is appropriate to the income which, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, may be taxed in South Africa.

in the case of South Africa, Slovak tax paid by residents of South Africa in respect of income taxable in Slovakia, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, shall be deducted from the taxes due according to South African fiscal law. Such deduction shall not, however, exceed an amount which bears to the total South African tax payable the same ratio as the income concerned bears to the total income.

Article 23 Non-discrimination 1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith, which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of that other State in the same circumstances are or may be subjected. This provision shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, also apply to persons who are not residents of one or both of the Contracting States. 2. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other State than the taxation levied on enterprises of that other State carrying on the same activities. This provision shall not be construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State any personal allowances, reliefs and reductions for taxation purposes on account of civil status or family responsibilities which it grants to its own residents. 3. Except where the provisions of Article 9, paragraph 4 of Article 11, or paragraph 6 of Article 12, apply, interest, royalties and other disbursements paid by an enterprise of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of such enterprise, be deductible under the same conditions as if they had been paid to a resident of the first-mentioned State. 4. Enterprises of a Contracting State, the capital of which is wholly or partly owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subjected in the first-mentioned Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith, which is other or more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which other similar enterprises of that first-mentioned State are or may be subjected.

The provisions of this Article shall apply to taxes which are the subject of this Convention.

Article 24 Mutual Agreement Procedure 1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will result for him in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, present his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident or, if his case comes under paragraph 1 of Article 23, to that of the Contracting State of which he is a national. The case must be presented within three years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of the Convention. 2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation which is not in accordance with the Convention. Any agreement reached shall be implemented notwithstanding any time limits in the domestic law of the Contracting State. 3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by mutual agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of the Convention. They may also consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Convention. 4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of reaching an agreement in the sense of the preceding paragraphs. When it seems advisable in order to reach agreement to have an oral exchange of opinions, such exchange may take place through a Commission consisting of representatives of the competent authorities of the Contracting States.

Article 25 Exchange of Information 1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information as is necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes covered by the Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by Article 1. Any information received by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that State and shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) involved in the assessment or collection of, the enforcement or prosecution in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes covered by the Convention. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions.

2. The competent authorities shall, through consultation, develop appropriate conditions, methods and techniques concerning the matters in respect of which such exchanges of information shall be made, including, where appropriate, exchanges of information regarding tax avoidance. 3. In no case shall the provisions of paragraph 1 be construed so as to impose on one of the Contracting States the obligation: a) b) c)

to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws and the administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State; to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting State; to supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information, the disclosure of which would be contrary to public policy (ordre public).

Article 26 Members of Diplomatic Missions and Consular Posts Nothing in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of members of diplomatic missions or consular posts under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of special agreements.

Article 27 Entry into Force 1. The Contracting States shall notify each other that the constitutional requirements for the entry into force of this Convention have been complied with. 2. The Convention shall enter into force on the date of the later of the notifications referred to in paragraph 1 and its provisions shall apply: a)

with regard to taxes withheld at source, in respect of amounts paid or credited on or after the first day of the third month next following the date upon which the Convention enters into force; and with regard to other taxes, in respect of taxable years beginning on or after the first day of the third month next following the date upon which the Convention enters into force.

Article 28 Termination This Convention shall remain in force until terminated by one of the Contracting States. Either Contracting State may terminate the Convention, through the diplomatic channel, by giving notice of termination at least six months before the end of any calendar year following after the period of five years from the date on which the Convention enters into force. In such event, the Convention shall cease to have effect: a) b)

with regard to taxes withheld at source, in respect of amounts paid or credited after the end of the calendar year in which such notice is given; and with regard to other taxes, in respect of taxable years beginning after the end of the calendar year in which such notice is given.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, being duly authorized thereto, have signed this Convention.

DONE in duplicate at Cape Town this 28th day of May 1998 in the English and Slovak languages, both texts being equally authentic.

A B NZO FOR THE REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA

ZDENKA KRAMPLOVA FOR THE SLOVAK REPUBLIC

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