UN MTC Article 14: The Mistaken Retention

Abstract

The OECD deleted Article 14 from its Model Tax Convention (MTC) in 2000, however, the UN decided to retain it in 2009. The OECD has since been chastized for eliminating it and the UN eulogized for retaining it. This article, contrary to the prevailing perspective, supports the ‘delete decision’, though for reasons diametrically different from those on which Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) based its decision in 2000. It berates the UN for the ‘retain decision’ by debunking the grounds thereof and by mounting new arguments. In fact, it turns the mainstream scholarships’ professed position upside down that Article 14s continued presence on UN MTC accrued developing countries substantial economic benefits and broadened their tax base. It is argued that the deletion of UN MTC Article 14(1)(c) in 1999 through an angularly established setup – the Focus Group – was dramatic, mysterious, and undefendable warranting fresh and deeper scrutiny. This article postulates that without a robust built-in anti-base erosion principle, which was deleted in 1999, Article 14s presence in the UN MTC is counterproductive, base eroding, and inimical to fiscal interests of developing countries. Therefore, it strongly proposes to either restore the deleted Subparagraph 1(c) or also delete the retained rump Article 14 itself – sooner than later. UN MTC article 14, independent personal services, OECD MTC article 14, professional services, dependent personal services