Malta Seeks Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement With US

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

22 April 2005

A Maltese parliamentary delegation to the United States has highlighted the need for a bilateral double taxation avoidance agreement during meetings with State Department officials.

Emphasising the fact that Malta is the only member state of the European Union not to have a double taxation treaty with the United States, the delegation, led by Jason Azzopardi, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Foreign and European Affairs, argued that this not only hinders bilateral trade, but puts Malta at a competitive disadvantage.

The delegation argued that a bilateral DTA would be of particular benefit to American oil and gas firms seeking to invest in Libya via Malta.

A previous double taxation agreement between the United States and Malta which began in 1980 was abrogated by the US government in 1997.

The Maltese delegation were keen to point out that this earlier agreement could form the basis for negotiations on a new double taxation deal between the two countries.

US Treasury officials have agreed to raise these bilateral tax issues at the next meeting of the National Foreign Trade Council, scheduled for next week.

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