Putting Territoriality in Its Place: Singapore’s Perspective on Tax Competitiveness

Abstract

Even with the relative lack of concrete details, any possibility of tax reform in the United States generally attracts significant amounts of attention from all around the world. This is especially true now, with the looming of what appears to be the biggest tax reform since 1986. Of the many proposals within this reform, this article will focus on the proposed shift to a territorial tax system and reduction in corporate tax rates. It will demonstrate that the reform is overdue in the light of international norms and trends. In underscoring the imperatives of the proposed US tax reform, this article will evaluate and analyse the impact of these trends and the relevant experiences of some other countries. In particular, it will discuss in greater detail a similar tax reform initiative of Singapore in 1986 as well as the issue of a Singapore-United States double tax agreement.