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TMI BlogAgreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Belize for the Exchange of Information with respect to taxesX X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Now, therefore, in exercise of the powers conferred by section 90 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961), the Central Government hereby directs that all the provisions of said agreement between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of Belize for the exchange of information with respect to taxes as set out in the Annexure hereto, shall be given effect to in the Union of India with effect from the date of entry into force of said agreement i.e., the 25th day of November, 2013. [Notification No. 03/2014/F. No. 503/4/2012-FTD-I] AKHILESH RANJAN, Jt. Secy. ANNEXURE AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF THE REPUBLIC OF INDIA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF BELIZE FOR THE EXCHANGE OF INFORMATION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES The Government of the Republic of India and the Government of Belize, desiring to facilitate the exchange of information with respect to taxes, have agreed as follows: Article 1 Object and Scope of the Agreement The competent authorities of the Contracting Parties shall provide assistance through exchange of information that is foreseeably relevant to the administration and enforcement of the domestic laws of the Contracting Parties concerning taxes ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he Belize Constitution, including the territorial waters and any other area in the sea and in the air within which Belize, in accordance with international law, exercises sovereign rights or its jurisdiction; (c) the term "Contracting Party" means India or Belize as the context requires; (d) the term "competent authority" means: (i) in the case of India, the Finance Minister, Government of India, or its authorized representative; (ii) in the case of Belize, the Minister of Finance or his authorised representative. (e) the term "person" includes an individual, a company, a body of persons and any other entity which is treated as a taxable unit under the taxation laws in force in the respective Contracting Parties; (f) the term "company" means any body corporate or any entity that is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes; (g) the term "publicly traded company" means any company whose principal class of shares is listed on a recognised stock exchange provided its listed shares can be readily purchased or sold by the public. Shares can be purchased or sold "by the public" if the purchase or sale of shares ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... context otherwise requires or the competent authorities agree to a common meaning pursuant to the provisions of Article 9 of this Agreement, have the meaning that it has at that time under the law of that Party, any meaning under the applicable tax laws of that Party prevailing over a meaning given to the term under other laws of that Party. Article 5 Exchange of Information Upon Request 1. The competent authority of the requested Party shall provide upon request information for the purposes referred to in Article 1. Such information shall be exchanged without regard to whether the requested Party needs such information for its own tax purposes or whether the conduct being investigated would constitute a crime under the laws of the requested Party if such conduct occurred in the requested Party. 2. If the information in the possession of the competent authority of the requested Party is not sufficient to enable it to comply with the request for information, that Party shall use all relevant information gathering measures to provide the requesting Party with the information requested, notwithstanding that the requested Party may not need such information for its own tax purpose ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , the name and address of any person believed to be in possession or control of the requested information; (g) a statement that the request is in conformity with the laws and administrative practices of the requesting Party, that if the requested information was within the jurisdiction of the requesting Party then the competent authority of the requesting Party would be able to obtain the information under the laws of the requesting Party or in the normal course of administrative practice and that it is in conformity with this Agreement; (h) a statement that the requesting Party has pursued all means available in its own territory to obtain the information, except those that would give rise to disproportionate difficulties. 7. The competent authority of the requested Party shall forward the requested information as promptly as possible to the requesting Party. To ensure a prompt response, the competent authority of the requested Party shall: (a) Confirm receipt of a request in writing to the competent authority of the requesting Party and shall notify the competent authority of the requesting Party of deficiencies in the request, if any, within 60 days of the receipt of the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional secret or trade process, provided that information described in paragraph 4 of Article 5 shall not be treated as such a secret or trade process merely because it meets the criteria in that paragraph; or (ii) to obtain or provide information, which would reveal confidential communications between a client and an attorney, solicitor or other admitted legal representative where such communications are: (a) produced for the purposes of seeking or providing legal advice or (b) produced for the purposes of use in existing or contemplated legal proceedings; or (iii) to carry out administrative measures at variance with its laws and administrative practices, provided nothing in this subparagraph shall affect the obligations of a Contracting Party under paragraph 4 of Article 5. 3. A request for information shall not be refused on the ground that the tax claim giving rise to the request is disputed. 4. The requested Party shall not be required to obtain and provide information which the requesting Party would be unable to obtain in similar circumstances under its own laws for the pu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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