belgiquelex.be - Carrefour Bank of Legislation

26 NOVEMBER 2013. - An Act to assent to the Convention between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Government of the People's Republic of China to avoid double taxation and to prevent tax evasion in respect of income tax, done in Brussels on 7 October 2009 (1) (2) (3)

PHILIPPE, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 77 of the Constitution.
Art. 2. The Convention between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Government of the People's Republic of China to avoid double taxation and to prevent tax evasion on income tax, made in Brussels on 7 October 2009, will come out its full and full effect.
Promulgation of this law, let us order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels, 26 November 2013.
PHILIPPE
By the King:
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs,
D. REYNDERS
Minister of Finance,
K. GEENS
Seal of the state seal:
The Minister of Justice,
Ms. A. TURTELBOOM
____
Notes
(1) Session 2012-2013 and 2013-2014.
Senate.
Documents:
Bill tabled on 11 July 2013, No. 5-2204/1.
Report, No. 5-2204/2.
Annales parlementaire :
Discussion, meeting of October 24, 2013.
Vote, meeting of 24 October 2013.
House of Representatives.
Documents:
Project transmitted by the Senate, No. K.53-3092/1.
Report made on behalf of the commission, no. K.53-3092/2.
Text adopted in plenary and subject to Royal Assent, No. K.53-3092/3.
Annales parlementaire :
Discussion, meeting of 7 November 2013.
Vote, meeting of 7 November 2013.
(2) See the Decree of the Flemish Community/Flemish Region of 13 July 2012 (Belgian Monitor of 10 September 2012), the Decree of the French Community of 24 January 2013 (Belgian Monitor of 6 March 2013), the Decree of the German-speaking Community of 22 October 2012 (Belgian Monitor of 9 November 2012), the Decree of the Walloon Region of 7 March 2013 (Belgian Monitor of 26 March 2013 - Ed.
(3) This Convention entered into force on 29 December 2013, in accordance with Article 28.

CONVENTION AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BELGIUM ROYAUME AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE POPULAR REPUBLIC OF CHINA AGAINST THE IMPROVEMENT DOUBLE IMPOSITION AND FIRST THE FISCALE FRAUDY IN THE MIDDLE OF IMPACT ON THE RESP
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BELGIUM ROYAUME
AND
THE GOVERNMENT OF THE POPULAR REPUBLIC OF CHINA,
SEED to conclude a Convention to Avoid Double Taxation and Prevent Tax Fraud in Income Tax,
AGAINST the following:
Article 1^er
Target persons
This Convention applies to persons who are residents of a Contracting State or both Contracting States.
Article 2
Taxes targeted
1. This Convention applies to income taxes collected on behalf of a Contracting State, its political subdivisions or local authorities, regardless of the system of collection.
2. Income taxes are considered to be taxed on total income or income elements, including taxes on gains from the alienation of movable or real property, as well as taxes on surplus-values.
3. Current taxes to which the Convention applies include:
(a) with regard to China:
(i) the income tax of natural persons (the individual income tax);
(ii) corporate income tax (the enterprise income tax);
including the pre-payments for these taxes and the additional taxes and pre-payments
(hereinafter referred to as "Chinese tax");
(b) with regard to Belgium:
(i) the tax of natural persons;
(ii) corporate tax;
(iii) corporation tax;
(iv) non-resident tax;
(v) the complementary contribution of crisis;
including the pre-payments for these taxes and the additional taxes and pre-payments
(hereinafter referred to as "Belgian tax").
4. The Convention also applies to taxes of an identical or similar nature that would be established after the date of signature of the Convention and that would be in addition to or replace existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall communicate in a timely manner the substantial amendments to their respective tax laws.
Article 3
General definitions
1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context requires a different interpretation:
(a) the term "Belgium" means the Kingdom of Belgium; employed in a geographical sense, it designates the territory of the Kingdom of Belgium, including its territorial sea and the areas on which, in accordance with international law, the Kingdom of Belgium exercises sovereign rights or jurisdiction;
(b) the term "China" means the People's Republic of China; employed in a geographical sense, it designates the entire territory of the People's Republic of China, within which the Chinese tax legislation applies, including its territorial sea, as well as areas beyond its territorial sea on which, in accordance with international law and its own domestic law, the People's Republic of China has sovereign rights for the exploration and exploitation of the resources of the seabed, their subsoil and the waters
(c) the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean, in the context, Belgium or China;
(d) the term "tax" means, depending on the context, Belgian tax or Chinese tax;
(e) the term "person" includes individuals, societies and other groups of persons;
(f) the term "society" means any corporation or entity that is considered to be a legal entity for taxation purposes in the Contracting State of which it is a resident;
(g) the terms "company of a Contracting State" and "company of the other Contracting State" shall, respectively, designate a business operated by a resident of a Contracting State and a business operated by a resident of the other Contracting State;
(h) the term "national", in respect of a Contracting State, means:
(i) any natural person who has the nationality or citizenship of that Contracting State; and
(ii) any legal person, partnership or association incorporated in accordance with the legislation in force in that Contracting State;
(i) the term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State, except where the ship or aircraft is operated only between points in the other Contracting State;
(j) the term "competent authority" means:
(i) with respect to China, the State Administration of Taxation or its authorized representative;
(ii) in respect of Belgium, the Minister of Finance or its authorized representative.
2. For the application of the Convention at any time by a Contracting State, any term or expression that is not defined therein shall, unless the context requires a different interpretation, the meaning assigned to it at that time by that State in respect of the taxes to which the Convention applies, the meaning assigned to that term or expression by the tax law of that State in respect of the meaning assigned to it by the other branches of the law of that State.
Article 4
Resident
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "resident of a Contracting State" means any person who, under the law of that State, is subject to tax in that State, because of his domicile, residence, place of incorporation, effective management seat, management seat or any other similar criteria of a similar nature and also applies to that State as well as to all its political subdivisions, local authorities or other criteria of a similar nature. However, this term does not include persons who are subject to tax in that State only for income from sources in that State.
2. When, according to the provisions of paragraph 1^er, a natural person is a resident of the two Contracting States, his situation is settled as follows:
(a) that person is considered to be a resident only of the State where the person has a permanent home; if it has a permanent home in both states, it is considered to be a resident only of the State with which its personal and economic ties are the narrowest (centre of vital interests);
(b) if the State where that person has the centre of its vital interests cannot be determined, or if it does not have a permanent home in any of the States, it is considered to be a resident only of the State where it normally resides;
(c) if the person normally stays in both States or if he or she does not normally stay in any of them, he or she is considered to be a resident only of the State of which he or she is a national;
(d) if the person possesses the nationality of the two States or has no nationality of any of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall decide the question by mutual agreement.
3. When, according to the provisions of paragraph 1^er, a person other than a natural person is a resident of the two Contracting States, it is considered to be a resident only of the State where its effective management seat is located. If its effective management seat cannot be determined, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall decide the matter by mutual agreement.
Article 5
Stable establishment
1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "stable establishment" means a fixed business facility through which a company operates all or part of its business.
2. The term "stable establishment" includes:
(a) a steering seat;
(b) a branch;
(c) an office;
(d) a factory;
(e) a workshop, and
(f) a mine, oil or gas well, a career or any other place of extraction of natural resources.
3. The term "stable establishment" also includes:
(a) a construction or assembly site or monitoring activities, but only when the construction or construction site or activities continue for a period of more than twelve months;
(b) the provision of services, including the services of consultants, by an enterprise acting through employees or other personnel engaged by the enterprise for that purpose, but only when such activities continue (for the same project or related project) in the territory of a Contracting State for one or more periods representing a total of more than 183 days within any period of twelve months.
4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, it is considered that there is no "stable establishment" if:
(a) the use of facilities for the sole purpose of storage, exposure or delivery of goods owned by the company;
(b) goods belonging to the undertaking are stored for storage, exposure or delivery purposes only;
(c) goods belonging to the enterprise are stored for the sole purpose of processing by another company;
(d) a fixed business facility is used for the sole purpose of purchasing goods or collecting information for the company;
(e) a fixed business facility is used for the sole purpose of carrying out any other preparatory or auxiliary activity for the enterprise;
(f) a fixed business facility shall be used only for the purpose of the cumulative year of activities referred to in subparagraphs (a) to (e), provided that the overall activity of the fixed business facility resulting from this accumulated business shall be preparatory or auxiliary.
5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 2, where a person B other than an agent enjoying an independent status to which paragraph 6 B applies, shall act in a Contracting State on behalf of a business of the other Contracting State and shall have powers that it normally exercise to enter into contracts on behalf of the undertaking, that undertaking shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment for all activities that the person exercises for the enterprise, unless the activities of that person are limited to
6. A business of a Contracting State is not considered to have a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State solely because it operates therein through a broker, a general commissioner or any other agent enjoying an independent status, provided that such persons act within the ordinary framework of their activity. However, where the activities of such an agent are carried out exclusively or almost exclusively on behalf of that business, that agent is not considered an independent agent within the meaning of this paragraph.
7. The fact that a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State or that operates therein (either through a permanent establishment or not) is not sufficient in itself to make any of these companies a permanent establishment of the other.
Article 6
Real estate income
1. The income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from real property located in the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. The term "real property" has the meaning assigned to it by the law of the Contracting State in which the property is located. The term includes, in any case, accessories, dead or alive livestock of farms and forests, the rights to which the provisions of private law apply in respect of land ownership, the usufruct of real property and the rights to variable or fixed payments for the exploitation or concession of the exploitation of mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships and aircraft are not considered real property.
3. The provisions of paragraph 1^er applies to income derived from direct exploitation or enjoyment, lease or charter, as well as any other form of exploitation of real property.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 3 also apply to income from real property of a business as well as to income from real property used in the exercise of an independent profession.
Article 7
Business benefits
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 located therein. If the company operates in such a way, the profits of the company are taxable in the other State but only to the extent that they are attributable to that permanent establishment.
2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where a business of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment located therein, it shall be charged, in each Contracting State, to that permanent establishment the profits that it could have realized if it had constituted a separate undertaking carrying out identical or similar activities under identical or similar conditions and dealing independently with the enterprise of which it constitutes a permanent establishment.
3. In order to determine the profits of a permanent establishment, the expenses set out for the purposes of the permanent establishment shall be deducted, including the executive costs and general administrative expenses so exposed, either in the Contracting State where the permanent establishment is located or elsewhere.
4. If it is customary in a Contracting State to determine the profits attributable to a permanent establishment on the basis of a distribution of the total profits of the enterprise between its various parties, no provision in paragraph 2 shall prevent that State from determining the taxable profits according to the distribution in use; However, the method of distribution adopted must be such that the result obtained is consistent with the principles contained in this article.
5. No profit is charged to a permanent establishment because it simply purchased goods for the company.
6. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the benefits to be charged to the permanent establishment are determined annually on the same basis, unless there are valid and sufficient grounds to proceed otherwise.
7. Where profits include income elements treated separately in other articles of this Convention, the provisions of these articles are not affected by the provisions of this article.
Article 8
Maritime and air navigation
1. The profits derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from the operation, in international traffic, of ships or aircraft shall be taxable only in that State.
2. The provisions of paragraph 1^er also applies to benefits arising from participation in a pool, a joint operation or an international operating organization.
Article 9
Associated enterprises
1. When
(a) a business of a Contracting State directly or indirectly participates in the direction, control or capital of a business of the other Contracting State, or
(b) the same persons directly or indirectly participate in the direction, control or capital of a business of a Contracting State and a business of the other Contracting State,
and that, in both cases, both companies are, in their commercial or financial relations, bound by agreed or imposed conditions, that differ from those that would be agreed between independent companies, the profits that, without these conditions, would have been realized by one of the companies but could not be in fact because of these conditions, may be included in the profits of that undertaking and imposed accordingly.
2. When a Contracting State includes in the profits of a company of that State B and therefore imposes B profits on which a company of the other Contracting State has been imposed in that other State, and that the profits thus included are profits that would have been realized by the enterprise of the first State if the terms agreed between the two enterprises had been those that would have been agreed between independent enterprises, the other State shall make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of the tax that would have been made To determine this adjustment, the other provisions of this Convention shall be taken into account and, if necessary, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall consult.
Article 10
Dividends
1. Dividends paid by a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the corporation paying the dividends is a resident, and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed:
(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner of the dividends is a corporation (other than a partnership) that, prior to the payment of the dividends, held, for an uninterrupted period of at least 12 months, directly at least 25 per cent of the capital of the corporation that pays the dividends;
(b) 10 per cent of the gross amount of dividends in all other cases.
This subsection does not affect the corporation's taxation of profits that are used to pay dividends.
3. The term "dividends" used in this Article means income from beneficial shares or shares, with the exception of receivables, as well as other revenues that are subject to the same tax regime as income from shares under the laws of the Contracting State whose debiting corporation is a resident.
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the dividends, a resident of a Contracting State, exercises in the other Contracting State whose dividend-paying corporation is a resident, i.e., an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein, or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the dividend-generating interest is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
5. Where a corporation that is a resident of a Contracting State derives from the profits or income of the other Contracting State, that other State shall not collect any tax on the dividends paid by the corporation, except to the extent that such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or to the extent that the dividend-generating interest is effectively connected to a permanent establishment or to a fixed base located in that other State, or shall not prelever any
6. The provisions of this section shall not apply if the principal objective or one of the principal objectives of any person involved in the creation or assignment of shares or other rights under which dividends are paid is to take advantage of this section by means of such creation or assignment.
Article 11
Interest
1. Interest arising from a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, these interests are also taxable in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the interest is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 2, interest arising from a Contracting State and paid to the Government of the other Contracting State, to any of its political subdivisions or local authorities, to its Central Bank or to any financial institution wholly owned by the Government of that other Contracting State, as well as interest paid in connection with loans guaranteed or insured by the Government of a Contracting State, one of its political subdivisions or local authorities, its Central Bank or
4. The term "interest" used in this section refers to income from receivables of any kind, whether or not accompanied by mortgage guarantees or an interest clause in the debtor's profits, including income from public funds and borrowing obligations, including premiums and lots attached to these securities. However, this term does not include, within the meaning of this article, penalties for late payment or interest deemed to be dividends under the laws of the Contracting State whose debiting society is a resident.
5. The provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the interest, a resident of a Contracting State, carries on in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the interest-generating debt is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
6. Interest shall be deemed to arise from a Contracting State where the debtor is a resident of that Contracting State. However, where the debtor of interest, whether or not a resident of a Contracting State, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base for which the debt giving rise to the payment of interest has been contracted and which bears the burden of such interests, such interest shall be deemed to arise from the Contracting State where the permanent establishment or fixed base is located.
7. Where, because of special relations between the debtor and the beneficial owner or between the debtor and the other person maintain with third persons, the amount of interest, taking into account the debt for which they are paid, exceeds the amount agreed upon by the debtor and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relations, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the latter amount. In such cases, the surplus portion of the interest shall remain taxable in accordance with the laws of each Contracting State and taking into account the other provisions of this Convention.
8. The provisions of this section shall not apply if the principal objective or one of the principal objectives of any person involved in the creation or assignment of the receivable under which the interest is paid is to take advantage of this section by means of that creation or assignment.
Article 12
Claims
1. Royalties from a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. However, such royalties are also taxable in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the law of that State, but if the beneficial owner of the royalties is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall not exceed 7 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties.
3. The term " royalties" used in this article means the remuneration of any kind paid for the use or concession of the use of a copyright on a literary, artistic or scientific work, including film films and films or tapes registered for radio or television, a patent, a know-how (know-how), a trademark or trade, a drawing or a
4. The provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the royalties, a resident of a Contracting State, carries out in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located therein or an independent occupation by means of a fixed base located therein, and that the right or property generating the royalties is effectively connected to it. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as applicable, shall apply.
5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise from a Contracting State where the debtor is a resident of that Contracting State. However, where the debtor of royalties, whether or not a resident of a Contracting State, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base for which the contract giving rise to the payment of royalties has been concluded and which bears the charge of such royalties, such royalties shall be deemed to arise from the Contracting State where the permanent establishment or fixed base is located.
6. Where, because of special relations between the debtor and the beneficial owner or between the debtor and the other person maintain with third persons, the amount of royalties, taking into account the benefit for which they are paid, exceeds the amount agreed upon by the debtor and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relations, the provisions of this section apply only to the latter amount. In such cases, the excess portion of the royalties shall remain taxable according to the law of each Contracting State and taking into account the other provisions of this Convention.
7. The provisions of this section shall not apply if the principal purpose or purpose of any person involved in the creation or assignment of rights under which royalties are paid is to take advantage of this section by means of such creation or assignment.
Article 13
Capital gains
1. The gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of real property referred to in Article 6, and situated in the other Contracting State, shall be taxable in that other State.
2. The gains from the alienation of movable property that are part of the assets of a permanent establishment that a business of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State, or of movable property that belong to a fixed base of which a resident of a Contracting State disposes in the other Contracting State for the exercise of an independent profession, including such gains from the alienation of that permanent establishment (ully or with
3. The gains that a business of a Contracting State derives from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic, or of movable property assigned to the operation of such ships or aircraft, shall be taxable only in that State.
4. The gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of shares that directly or indirectly derive more than 50 per cent from their value of real property located in the other Contracting State are taxable in that other State.
5. The gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of shares of a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other Contracting State if the first resident, at any time during the twelve-month period preceding that alienation, has owned, directly or indirectly, at least 25 per cent of the shares of that corporation. This provision does not apply to shares that are the subject of substantial and regular transactions in a recognized stock market if the total of shares disposed of by that resident in the fiscal year in which the alienation occurs does not exceed 5 per cent of the shares listed on the stock exchange of that corporation.
6. Gains from the alienation of all property other than those referred to in paragraphs 1^er, 2, 3, 4 and 5 shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the assignor is a resident.
Article 14
Independent occupations
1. The income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from a liberal profession or other independent activities shall be taxable only in that State. However, these revenues are also taxable in the other Contracting State:
(a) if the resident has, in the other Contracting State, a fixed basis for the exercise of his or her activities; in that case, only the fraction of income attributable to the fixed base is taxable in that other State; or
(b) if the stay in the other Contracting State extends over a period or periods of a total period of 183 days in any period of twelve months beginning or ending in the fiscal year under review; in that case, only the fraction of the income derived from the activities carried out in that other Contracting State shall be taxable in that other State.
2. The term "liberal profession" includes independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or educational activities, as well as independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.
Article 15
Dependent professions
1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, wages, salaries and other similar remuneration that a resident of a Contracting State receives under an employee employment shall be taxable only in that State, unless employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is exercised, the remuneration received as such is taxable in that other State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1^erthe remuneration of a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employee employed in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first State if:
(a) the beneficiary stays in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding a total of 183 days during any twelve-month period beginning or ending in the fiscal year under review; and
(b) compensation shall be paid by an employer, or on behalf of an employer, who is not a resident of the other State; and
(c) the pay charge is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base that the employer has in the other State.
3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration received for an employee employed on board a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State may be taxed in that State.
Article 16
Elevenths
The fortieth, attendance and other similar remuneration that a resident of a Contracting State receives as a member of the board of directors or of a similar body of a corporation that is a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.
Article 17
Artists and athletes
1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from his or her personal activities in the other Contracting State as an artist of the spectacle, such as a theatre, cinema, radio or television artist, or a musician, or as a sportsman, may be taxed in that other State.
2. Where the income of activities that an entertainer or a sportsperson exercises personally and in this capacity is attributed not to the artist or to the athlete himself but to another person, such income shall be taxable, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, in the Contracting State where the activities of the artist or athlete are carried out.
Article 18
Pensions
1. Subject to the provisions of Article 19, paragraph 2, pensions and other similar remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State for an earlier job shall be taxable only in that State.
2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1^erpension and other similar remuneration paid in accordance with the social legislation of a Contracting State shall be taxable in that State. This provision also applies to pension and other similar remuneration paid in accordance with a general plan organized by that Contracting State with a view to supplementing pension benefits provided by that legislation.
Article 19
Public functions
1. (a) Salaries, salaries and other similar remuneration paid by a Contracting State or any of its political subdivisions or local authorities to a natural person for services rendered to that State or subdivision or community shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such wages, salaries and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and if the natural person is a resident of that State who:
(i) has the nationality of that State; or
(ii) did not become a resident of that State for the sole purpose of rendering the services.
2. (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1^erpension and other similar remuneration paid by a Contracting State, or any of its political subdivisions or local authorities, either directly or by debit from the funds they have constituted, to a natural person, for services rendered to that State or to that subdivision or community, shall be taxable only in that State.
(b) However, such pensions and other similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the natural person is a resident of that State and has its nationality.
3. The provisions of Articles 15, 16, 17 and 18 apply to wages, salaries, pensions, and other similar remuneration paid in respect of services rendered in an industrial or commercial activity carried out by a Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local authorities.
Rule 20
Students
The sums that a student who is, or who was immediately before going to a Contracting State, a resident of the other Contracting State, and who stays in the first State for the sole purpose of pursuing his or her studies, shall be paid to cover his or her maintenance or education expenses shall not be taxable in that State, provided that they arise from sources outside that State.
Article 21
Other income
The income elements which are not dealt with in the preceding articles of this Convention and which come from a Contracting State may be taxed in that State.
Article 22
Elimination of double taxation
1. With regard to Belgium, double taxation is eliminated as follows:
(a) Where a Belgian resident receives income other than dividends, interest or royalties, which are taxed in China in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, Belgium exempts tax from such income but may, in calculating the amount of tax on the rest of the income of that resident, apply the same rate as if the income in question had not been exempted.
Belgium also exempts, subject to progressivity, the profits of a Belgian company that are attributable to a permanent establishment through which the company operates in China and that are taxable in China in accordance with the provisions of this Convention. This exemption is not applicable where activities carried out through the permanent establishment consist exclusively or principally:
- to make collective or financial investments;
- to take financial services for the exclusive or principal benefit of the business or related businesses;
or where the permanent establishment holds a portfolio investment or copyright, a patent, a trademark or trade mark, a drawing, model, plan, formula or secret process representing a total of more than one third of the elements that make up the assets of the permanent establishment and that such detention is not part of the activities, other than the possession of such rights or property, carried out through the permanent establishment.
Notwithstanding the provisions of this subparagraph and any other provision of this Convention, Belgium shall take into account, for the determination of additional taxes established by Belgian municipalities and towns, the professional income exempted from tax in Belgium in accordance with this subparagraph. These additional taxes are calculated on the tax that would be due in Belgium if the professional income in question were derived from Belgian sources.
(b) The exemption provided for in subparagraph (a) is also granted in respect of incomes deemed to be dividends under Belgian legislation, that a Belgian resident receives in respect of an entity incorporated in accordance with China's legislation, where that entity has not been taxed as such in China, provided that the resident of Belgium has been taxed in China, commensurate with its participation in that entity, The exempt income is the income earned after deduction of costs, which are disclosed in Belgium or elsewhere, relating to the management of participation in that entity.
(c) The dividends that a corporation that is a resident of Belgium receives from a corporation that is a resident of China are exempted from the corporate tax in Belgium under the conditions and within the limits provided by Belgian legislation.
(d) Where a corporation that is a resident of Belgium receives from a corporation that is a resident of China dividends that are not exempted in accordance with subparagraph (c), such dividends are nevertheless exempted from corporate tax in Belgium if the corporation that is a resident of China actively engages in an effective industrial or commercial activity in China. In this case, these dividends are exempted from the conditions and within the limits set out in Belgian legislation, with the exception of those relating to the tax regime applicable to incomes that are used for the payment of dividends.
A company is not considered to be actively engaged in an effective industrial or commercial activity in China where the company is an investment corporation, a financing corporation (other than a bank) or a cash company or where the company holds a portfolio investment or copyright, a patent, a trade mark or trade mark, a drawing, a model, a plan, a formula or a secret process representing a total of more than one-third of its assets and that such holding does not
(e) Subject to the provisions of Belgian law relating to the imputation on Belgian tax of taxes paid abroad, where a Belgian resident receives income elements that are included in his overall income subject to Belgian tax and which consist of interest or royalties, the Chinese tax collected on these revenues is charged on the Belgian tax related to the said income.
(f) Where, in accordance with Belgian law, losses incurred by a company operated by a resident of Belgium in a permanent establishment located in China were effectively deducted from the profits of that undertaking for its taxation in Belgium, the exemption provided for in subparagraph (a) does not apply in Belgium to the profits of other taxable periods that are attributable to that establishment, to the extent that these profits were also exempted from tax in China for that reason.
2. In China, double taxation is eliminated as follows:
(a) Where a resident of China receives income from Belgium, the amount of tax due in Belgium on such income in accordance with the provisions of this Convention is attributable to the Chinese tax collected by that resident. However, the amount of imputation may not exceed the amount of Chinese tax for these revenues, calculated in accordance with China's tax laws and regulations.
(b) When a corporation that is a resident of Belgium pays a dividend to a corporation that is a resident of China and holds at least 20 percent of the shares of the corporation that pays the dividend, imputation takes into account the Belgian tax paid for its income by the corporation that pays the dividend.
Article 23
Miscellaneous
The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the right of each Contracting State to apply its domestic legislation and measures in respect of tax evasion and fraud, whether or not they are described as such, to the extent that they do not give rise to taxation contrary to this Convention.
Article 24
Non-Discrimination
1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subject in the other Contracting State to any taxation or obligation relating thereto, which is other or heavier than those to which nationals of that other Contracting State are or may be subject to the same situation, particularly in respect of the residence. This provision also applies, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, to persons who are not residents of a Contracting State or both Contracting States.
2. The imposition of a permanent establishment that a business of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State is not established in that other State in a less favourable manner than the taxation of the enterprises of that other State that exercise the same activity. This provision shall not be construed as requiring a Contracting State to grant personal deductions, deductions and tax reductions to the residents of the other Contracting State on the basis of the situation or family expenses that it grants to its own residents.
3. Unless the provisions of Article 9, paragraph 1^er, Article 11, paragraph 7, or Article 12, paragraph 6, shall not apply, any interest, royalties and other expenses paid by a business of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be deductible, for the determination of the taxable profits of that undertaking, under the same conditions as if they had been paid to a resident of the first State.
4. The undertakings of a Contracting State, whose capital is wholly or partly, directly or indirectly, held or controlled by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subject in the first State to any taxation or obligation relating thereto, which is other or heavier than those to which the other similar enterprises of the first State are or may be subject.
5. The provisions of this section shall apply, notwithstanding the provisions of section 2, to taxes of any kind or denomination.
Rule 25
Friendly procedure
1. Where a person considers that the measures taken by a Contracting State or by the two Contracting States shall result in or result in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, the person may, independently of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, submit his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which the person is a resident or, if the case falls under Article 24, paragraph 1^erto that of the Contracting State of which it has nationality. The case shall be submitted within three years after the first notification of the measure that results in taxation not in conformity with the provisions of the Convention.
2. The competent authority shall endeavour, if the claim appears to it to be justified and if it is not itself in a position to provide a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by amicable agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to avoiding taxation not in conformity with the Convention. The agreement shall be applied irrespective of the time limits provided by the domestic law of the Contracting States.
3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour, by mutual agreement, to resolve the difficulties or to dispel the doubts to which the interpretation or application of the Convention may take place.
4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate with each other concerning the administrative measures necessary for the implementation of the provisions of the Convention and, in particular, with regard to the justifications to be provided by the residents of each State to benefit in the other State from the exemptions or tax reductions provided for in this Convention.
5. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate directly with each other for the purposes of the Convention.
Rule 26
Exchange of information
1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange the information likely to be relevant to the application of the provisions of this Convention or for the administration or application of the domestic law relating to the taxes of any kind or denomination collected on behalf of the Contracting States, in particular with a view to preventing tax evasion relating to such taxes, to the extent that the taxation it provides is not contrary to the Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by sections 1^er and 2.
2. The information received under paragraph 1 by a Contracting State shall be kept secret in the same manner as the information obtained under the domestic legislation of that State and shall be communicated only to the persons or authorities (including the courts and administrative bodies) concerned by the establishment or collection of the taxes referred to in paragraph 1^er, by the procedures or prosecutions relating to these taxes, by decisions on remedies relating to these taxes, or by the control of the foregoing. These individuals or authorities only use this information for these purposes. They may disclose this information in public court hearings or judgments.
3. The provisions of paragraphs 1^er and 2 may in no case be construed as imposing on a Contracting State the obligation:
(a) take administrative measures derogating from its legislation, administrative practice or those of the other Contracting State;
(b) provide information that could not be obtained on the basis of its legislation or in the course of its normal administrative practice or those of the other Contracting State;
(c) provide information that would reveal a commercial, industrial, professional or commercial secret or information that would be contrary to public order.
4. If information is requested by a Contracting State in accordance with this Article, the other Contracting State shall use the powers available to it to obtain the information requested, even if it does not need it for its own tax purposes. The obligation contained in the previous sentence shall be subject to the limitations provided for in paragraph 3 unless such limitations are likely to prevent a Contracting State from communicating information solely because they do not have an interest in it in the national context.
5. The provisions of paragraph 3 shall in no case be construed as allowing a Contracting State to refuse to disclose, at the request of the other Contracting State, information held by banks or other financial institutions.
Rule 27
Members of diplomatic missions and consular posts
The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the tax privileges enjoyed by members of diplomatic missions or consular posts under either the general rules of international law or the provisions of special agreements.
Rule 28
Entry into force
1. The two Contracting States shall notify, in writing and through diplomatic channels, the fulfilment of the procedures required by their domestic legislation for the entry into force of this Convention. This Convention shall enter into force on 30^e day after receipt of the second of these notifications. This Convention shall apply to income earned from 1^er January of the year following that of its entry into force or related to taxation years beginning on or after 1^er January of the year following that of its entry into force.
2. The Convention between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Government of the People's Republic of China with a view to avoiding double taxation and preventing tax evasion in respect of income taxes and the Protocol signed in Beijing on 18 April 1985, as amended by the Additional Protocol signed in Beijing on 27 November 1996, shall cease to be applicable to income in respect of which the provisions of this Convention will effect in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 1^er.
Rule 29
Denunciation
This Convention shall remain in force indefinitely, but each of the Contracting States may, until 30 June inclusive of any calendar year beginning after the expiry of a five-year period from the date of its entry into force, denounce it, in writing and through diplomatic channels, to the other Contracting State. In such cases, this Convention shall cease to apply with respect to income earned in tax years beginning on or after 1^er January of the year immediately following the denunciation.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Convention.
DONE in Brussels on 7 October 2009, in duplicate, in Chinese, Dutch, French and English, the four texts being equally authentic. In the event of a discrepancy between texts in Chinese, Dutch, French and English, the English language text will prevail.

PROTOCOLE
At the time of the signing of the Convention between the Government of the Kingdom of Belgium and the Government of the People ' s Republic of China to avoid double taxation and to prevent tax evasion in respect of income taxes, the undersigned agreed on the following provisions which are an integral part of the Convention.
1. For the purposes of this Convention, it is understood that the term "tax year" means:
(a) in respect of Belgium, the taxable period;
(b) in respect of China, the taxable year.
2. For the purposes of Article 13, paragraphs 4 and 5:
If, in a Contracting State, the capital gains tax rate referred to in Article 13, paragraphs 4 and 5 exceeds 10 per cent, the competent authorities shall consult.
3. For the purposes of section 26, paragraph 5:
Information held by banks and other financial institutions will only be exchanged upon request. If the application does not identify both a specific taxpayer and a specific bank or financial institution, the competent authority of the requested State may refuse to collect information that is not already in its possession.
4. For the application by Belgium of Article 26, paragraph 5:
(a) in order to obtain this information, the Belgian tax administration has the power to request the communication of information and to conduct investigations and hearings notwithstanding any contrary provision of the domestic tax legislation of Belgium;
(b) the penalties set out in Belgium's domestic legislation against a person who fails to provide relevant information for the application of its domestic tax legislation apply as if the obligation to provide information under paragraph 5 is an obligation provided for in Belgium's domestic tax legislation;
(c) where a person refuses to provide information requested under paragraph 5 or fails to provide such information within the time limit prescribed by the Belgian tax administration, the Belgian tax administration may use appropriate enforcement measures against that person.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the undersigned, duly authorized by their respective Governments, have signed this Protocol.
DONE in Brussels on 7 October 2009, in duplicate, in Chinese, Dutch, French and English, the four texts being equally authentic. In the event of a discrepancy between texts in Chinese, Dutch, French and English, the English language text will prevail.