Home | Databases | WorldLII | Search | Feedback Canadian Treaty Series

Convention between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Avoidance and Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital [2004] CATSer 5 (5 May 2004)

E104617

CONVENTION BETWEEN THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA AND THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA FOR THE AVOIDANCE OF DOUBLE TAXATION AND THE PREVENTION OF FISCAL AVOIDANCE AND EVASION WITH RESPECT TO TAXES ON INCOME AND ON CAPITAL

THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA and THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA,

DESIRING to conclude a Convention for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal avoidance and evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital,

HAVE AGREED as follows:

I. SCOPE OF THE CONVENTION

ARTICLE 1

Persons Covered

This Convention shall apply to persons who are residents of one or both of the Contracting States.

ARTICLE 2

Taxes Covered

1. This Convention shall apply to taxes on income and on capital imposed on behalf of each Contracting State, irrespective of the manner in which they are levied.

2. There shall be regarded as taxes on income and on capital all taxes imposed on total income, or on total capital, or on elements of income or of capital, including taxes on gains from the alienation of movable or immovable property, as well as taxes on capital appreciation.

3. The existing taxes to which the Convention shall apply are, in particular:

(a) in the case of Canada:

the taxes imposed by the Government of Canada under the Income Tax Act, (hereinafter referred to as "Canadian tax");

(b) in the case of Venezuela:

the taxes on income and the business assets tax, (hereinafter referred to as "Venezuelan tax").

4. The Convention shall apply also to any identical or substantially similar taxes which are imposed after the date of signature of the Convention in addition to, or in place of, the existing taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any significant changes which have been made in their respective taxation laws.

II. DEFINITIONS

ARTICLE 3

General Definitions

1. For the purposes of this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:

(a) the terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean, as the context requires, Canada or Venezuela;

(b) the term "person" includes an individual, a trust, a company, a partnership and any other body of persons;

(c) the term "company" means any body corporate or any entity which is treated as a body corporate for tax purposes;

(d) the terms "enterprise of a Contracting State" and "enterprise of the other Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State;

(e) the term "competent authority" means:

(i) in the case of Canada, the Minister of National Revenue or the Minister's authorized representative, and

(ii) in the case of Venezuela, the Integrated National Service of Customs and Tax Administration (Servicio Nacional Integrado de Administración Aduanera y Tributaria - SENIAT), its authorized representative or the authority which is designated as a competent authority for the purposes of the Convention;

(f) the term "national" means:

(i) any individual possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;

(ii) any legal person, partnership or association deriving its status as such from the laws in force in a Contracting State;

(g) the term "international traffic" means any voyage of a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State to transport passengers or property except where the principal purpose of the voyage is to transport passengers or property between places within the other Contracting State.

2. As regards the application of the Convention at any time by a Contracting State any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meaning which it has at that time under the law of that State concerning the taxes to which the Convention applies, any meaning under the tax laws of that State prevailing over a meaning given to the term under other laws of that State.

ARTICLE 4

Resident

1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "resident of a Contracting State" means:

(a) any person who, under the laws of that State, is liable to tax therein by reason of the person's domicile, residence, place of management, place of incorporation or any other criterion of a similar nature but does not include any person who is liable to tax in that State in respect only of income from sources in that State, and

(b) the Government of that State or a political subdivision or local authority thereof or any agency or instrumentality of any such government, subdivision or authority.

2. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 an individual is a resident of both Contracting States, then the individual's status shall be determined as follows:

(a) the individual shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which the individual has a permanent home available and if the individual has a permanent home available in both States, the individual shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State with which the individual's personal and economic relations are closer (centre of vital interests);

(b) if the State in which the individual's centre of vital interests cannot be determined, or if there is not a permanent home available to the individual in either State, the individual shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which the individual has an habitual abode;

(c) if the individual has an habitual abode in both States or in neither of them, the individual shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State of which the individual is a national;

(d) if the individual is a national of both States or of neither of them, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall settle the question by mutual agreement.

3. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a company is a resident of both Contracting States, then its status shall be determined as follows:

(a) it shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State of which it is a national;

(b) if it is a national of neither of the States, it shall be deemed to be a resident only of the State in which its place of effective management is situated.

4. Where by reason of the provisions of paragraph 1 a person other than an individual or a company is a resident of both Contracting States, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall by mutual agreement endeavour to settle the question and to determine the mode of application of the Convention to such person.

ARTICLE 5

Permanent Establishment

1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "permanent establishment" means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried on.

2. The term "permanent establishment" includes especially:

(a) a place of management;

(b) a branch;

(c) an office;

(d) a factory;

(e) a workshop; and

(f) a mine, an oil or gas well, a quarry or any other place relating to the exploration for or the exploitation of natural resources.

3. A building site or construction or installation project constitutes a permanent establishment only where such site or project continues for a period or periods aggregating more than 183 days within any twelve month period commencing or ending in the taxable year concerned.

4. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, the term "permanent establishment" shall be deemed not to include:

(a) the use of facilities solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise;

(b) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of storage, display or delivery;

(c) the maintenance of a stock of goods or merchandise belonging to the enterprise solely for the purpose of processing by another enterprise;

(d) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of purchasing goods or merchandise or of collecting information, for the enterprise;

(e) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for the purpose of carrying on, for the enterprise, any other activity of a preparatory or auxiliary character;

(f) the maintenance of a fixed place of business solely for any combination of activities mentioned in subparagraphs (a) to (e) provided that the overall activity of the fixed place of business resulting from this combination is of a preparatory or auxiliary character.

5. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2, where a person - other than an agent of an independent status to whom paragraph 6 applies - is acting on behalf of an enterprise and has, and habitually exercises in a Contracting State an authority to conclude contracts on behalf of the enterprise, that enterprise shall be deemed to have a permanent establishment in that State in respect of any activities which that person undertakes for the enterprise unless the activities of such person are limited to those mentioned in paragraph 4 which, if exercised through a fixed place of business, would not make this fixed place of business a permanent establishment under the provisions of that paragraph.

6. An enterprise shall not be deemed to have a permanent establishment in a Contracting State merely because it carries on business in that State through a broker, general commission agent or any other agent of an independent status, provided that such persons are acting in the ordinary course of their business.

7. The fact that a company which is a resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, or which carries on business in that other State (whether through a permanent establishment or otherwise), shall not of itself constitute either company a permanent establishment of the other.

III. TAXATION OF INCOME

ARTICLE 6

Income from Immovable Property

1. Income derived by a resident of a Contracting State from immovable property (including income from agriculture or forestry) situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. For the purposes of this Convention, the term "immovable property" shall have the meaning which it has for the purpose of the relevant law of the Contracting State in which the property in question is situated. The term shall in any case include property accessory to immovable property, livestock and equipment used in agriculture and forestry, rights to which the provisions of general law respecting landed property apply, usufruct of immovable property and rights to variable or fixed payments as consideration for the working of, or the right to work, mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources; ships and aircraft shall not be regarded as immovable property.

3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall apply to income derived from the direct use, letting, or use in any other form of immovable property and to income from the alienation of such property.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 shall also apply to the income from immovable property of an enterprise and to income from immovable property used for the performance of independent personal services.

ARTICLE 7

Business Profits

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 situated therein. If the enterprise carries on or has carried on business as aforesaid, the profits of the enterprise may be taxed in the other State but only so much of them as is attributable to that permanent establishment.

2. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 3, where an enterprise of a Contracting State carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, there shall in each Contracting State be attributed to that permanent establishment the profits which it might be expected to make if it were a distinct and separate enterprise engaged in the same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealing wholly independently with the enterprise of which it is a permanent establishment and with all other persons.

3. In the determination of the profits of a permanent establishment in a Contracting State, there shall, in accordance with the law of that State, be allowed as deductions expenses which are incurred for the purposes of the business activities of the permanent establishment including executive and general administrative expenses, whether incurred in the State in which the permanent establishment is situated or elsewhere. However, no such deduction shall be allowed in respect of amounts, if any, paid (otherwise than as a reimbursement of actual expenses) by the permanent establishment to the head office of the enterprise or any of its other offices as royalties, fees or other similar payments in return for the use of patents or other rights, or by way of commission, for specific services performed or for management, or, except in the case of a bank, as interest on moneys lent to the permanent establishment.

4. No profits shall be attributed to a permanent establishment by reason of the mere purchase by that permanent establishment of goods or merchandise for the enterprise.

5. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the profits to be attributed to the permanent establishment shall be determined by the same method year by year unless there is good and sufficient reason to the contrary.

6. Where profits include items of income which are dealt with separately in other Articles of this Convention, then the provisions of those Articles shall not be affected by the provisions of this Article.

ARTICLE 8

Shipping and Air Transport

The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the application of the reciprocal exemption from taxes on income with respect to income from the operation of ships or aircraft in international traffic as provided in the Agreement Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Republic of Venezuela for the Avoidance of Double Taxation Regarding Shipping and Air Transport signed at Caracas on June 26, 1990.

ARTICLE 9

Associated Enterprises

1. Where

(a) an enterprise of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of the other Contracting State, or

(b) the same persons participate directly or indirectly in the management, control or capital of an enterprise of a Contracting State and an enterprise of the other Contracting State,

and in either case conditions are made or imposed between the two enterprises in their commercial or financial relations which differ from those which would be made between independent enterprises, then any income which would, but for those conditions, have accrued to one of the enterprises, but, by reason of those conditions, has not so accrued, may be included in the income of that enterprise and taxed accordingly.

2. Where a Contracting State includes in the income of an enterprise of that State - and taxes accordingly - income on which an enterprise of the other Contracting State has been charged to tax in that other State and the income so included is income which would have accrued to the enterprise of the first-mentioned State if the conditions made between the two enterprises had been those which would have been made between independent enterprises, then that other State, if it agrees with such adjustment, shall, in accordance with paragraph 4 of Article 25, make an appropriate adjustment to the amount of tax charged therein on that income. In determining such adjustment, due regard shall be had to the other provisions of this Convention.

3. A Contracting State shall not change the income of an enterprise in the circumstances referred to in paragraph 1 after the expiry of the time limits provided in its domestic laws and, in any case, after five years from the end of the year in which the income which would be subject to such change would, but for the conditions referred to in paragraph 1, have accrued to that enterprise.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3 shall not apply in the case of fraud, wilful default or neglect.

ARTICLE 10

Dividends

1. Dividends paid by a company which is a resident of a Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. However, such dividends may also be taxed in the Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident and according to the laws 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) except in the case of dividends paid by a non-resident-owned investment corporation that is a resident of Canada, 10 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends if the beneficial owner is a company that controls directly or indirectly at least 25 per cent of the voting power in the company paying the dividends;

(b) 15 per cent of the gross amount of the dividends in all other cases.

The provisions of this paragraph shall not affect the taxation of the company on the profits out of which the dividends are paid.

3. The term "dividends" as used in this Article means income from shares, "jouissance" shares or "jouissance" rights, mining shares, founders' shares or other rights, not being debt-claims, participating in profits, as well as income which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from shares by the laws of the State of which the company making the distribution is a resident.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the dividends, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is a resident, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.

5. Where a company which is a resident of a Contracting State derives profits or income from the other Contracting State, that other State may not impose any tax on the dividends paid by the company, except insofar as such dividends are paid to a resident of that other State or insofar as the holding in respect of which the dividends are paid is effectively connected with a permanent establishment or a fixed base situated in that other State, nor subject the company's undistributed profits to a tax on undistributed profits, even if the dividends paid or the undistributed profits consist wholly or partly of profits or income arising in such other State.

6. Nothing in this Convention shall be construed as preventing a Contracting State from imposing on the earnings of a company attributable to a permanent establishment in that State, or on the earnings attributable to the alienation of immovable property situated in that State by a company carrying on a trade in immovable property, a tax in addition to the tax which would be chargeable on the earnings of a company which is a national of that State, provided that any additional tax so imposed shall not exceed 10 per cent of the amount of such earnings which have not been subjected to such additional tax in previous taxation years. For the purpose of this provision, the term "earnings" means the earnings attributable to the alienation of such immovable property situated in a Contracting State as may be taxed by that State under the provisions of Article 6 or of paragraph 1 of Article 13, and the profits, including any gains, attributable to a permanent establishment in a Contracting State in a year and previous years after deducting therefrom all taxes, other than the additional tax referred to herein, imposed on such profits by that State.

ARTICLE 11

Interest

1. Interest arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. However, such interest may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which it arises and according to the laws 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:

(a) interest arising in a Contracting State and paid in respect of indebtedness of the government of that State or of a political subdivision or local authority thereof shall, provided that the interest is beneficially owned by a resident of the other Contracting State, be taxable only in that other State;

(b) interest arising in Venezuela and paid to a resident of Canada shall be taxable only in Canada if it is paid in respect of a loan made, guaranteed or insured, or a credit extended, guaranteed or insured by the Export Development Corporation;

(c) interest arising in Canada and paid to a resident of Venezuela shall be taxable only in Venezuela if it is paid in respect of a loan made, guaranteed or insured, or a credit extended, guaranteed or insured by the "Fondo de Inversiones de Venezuela (FIV)" or by the "Banco de Comercio Exterior (BANCOEX)" or by any other institution, wholly owned by the government of Venezuela, specified and agreed in letters exchanged between the competent authorities of the Contracting States.

4. The term "interest" as used in this Article means income from debt-claims of every kind, whether or not secured by mortgage, and in particular, income from government securities and income from bonds or debentures, including premiums and prizes attaching to such securities, bonds or debentures, as well as income which is subjected to the same taxation treatment as income from money lent by the laws of the State in which the income arises. However, the term "interest" does not include income dealt with in Article 10. Penalty charges for late payment shall not be regarded as interest for the purpose of this Article.

5. The provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the interest, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the interest arises, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the debt-claim in respect of which the interest is paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.

6. Interest shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the interest, whether the payer is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the indebtedness on which the interest is paid was incurred, and such interest is borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such interest shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.

7. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the interest, having regard to the debt-claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.

ARTICLE 12

Royalties

1. Royalties arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. However, such royalties may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which they arise and according to the laws 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:

(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties in the case of:

(i) copyright royalties and other like payments in respect of the production or reproduction of any literary, dramatic, musical or other artistic work (but not including royalties in respect of motion picture films nor royalties in respect of works on film or videotape or other means of reproduction for use in connection with television broadcasting) and

(ii) royalties for the use of, or the right to use, computer software or any patent or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience (but not including any such royalty provided in connection with a rental or franchise agreement) where the payer and the beneficial owner of the royalties are not related persons; and

(b) 10 per cent of the gross amount of the royalties in all other cases.

3. The term "royalties" as used in this Article means payments of any kind received as a consideration for the use of, or the right to use, any copyright, patent, trade mark, design or model, plan, secret formula or process or other intangible property, or for the use of, or the right to use, industrial, commercial or scientific equipment, or for information concerning industrial, commercial or scientific experience, and includes payments of any kind in respect of motion picture films and works on film, videotape or other means of reproduction for use in connection with television. The term "royalties" also includes gains derived from the alienation of any such right or property to the extent that such gains are contingent on the productivity, use or disposition thereof.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply if the beneficial owner of the royalties, being a resident of a Contracting State, carries on business in the other Contracting State in which the royalties arise, through a permanent establishment situated therein, or performs in that other State independent personal services from a fixed base situated therein, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively connected with such permanent establishment or fixed base. In such case the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14, as the case may be, shall apply.

5. Royalties shall be deemed to arise in a Contracting State when the payer is a resident of that State. Where, however, the person paying the royalties, whether the payer is a resident of a Contracting State or not, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment or a fixed base in connection with which the obligation to pay the royalties was incurred, and such royalties are borne by such permanent establishment or fixed base, then such royalties shall be deemed to arise in the State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.

6. Where, by reason of a special relationship between the payer and the beneficial owner or between both of them and some other person, the amount of the royalties, having regard to the use, right or information for which they are paid, exceeds the amount which would have been agreed upon by the payer and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationship, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the last-mentioned amount. In such case, the excess part of the payments shall remain taxable according to the laws of each Contracting State, due regard being had to the other provisions of this Convention.

ARTICLE 13

Capital Gains

1. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of immovable property situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. Gains from the alienation of movable property forming part of the business property of a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has or had in the other Contracting State or of movable property pertaining to a fixed base that is or was available to a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent personal services, including such gains from the alienation of such a permanent establishment (alone or with the whole enterprise) or of such a fixed base may be taxed in that other State.

3. Gains from the alienation of ships or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State, or from the alienation of containers and other equipment pertaining to the operation of such ships or aircraft, shall be taxable only in that State.

4. Gains derived by a resident of a Contracting State from the alienation of

(a) shares, other than shares quoted on an approved stock exchange, deriving their value or the greater part of their value directly or indirectly from immovable property situated in the other Contracting State; or

(b) an interest in a partnership or trust, the assets of which consist principally of immovable property situated in the other Contracting State or that derive directly or indirectly their value or the greater part of their value from such immovable property;

may be taxed in that other State. For the purposes of this paragraph, the term "immovable property" does not include any property, other than rental property, in which the business of the company, partnership or trust is carried on.

5. Gains from the alienation of any property, other than that referred to in paragraphs 1, 2, 3 and 4 shall be taxable only in the Contracting State of which the alienator is a resident.

6. The provisions of paragraph 5 shall not affect the right of a Contracting State to levy, according to its law, a tax on gains from the alienation of any property derived by an individual who is a resident of the other Contracting State and has been a resident of the first-mentioned State at any time during the six years immediately preceding the alienation of the property.

7. Where an individual who ceases to be a resident of a Contracting State, and immediately thereafter becomes a resident of the other Contracting State, is treated for the purposes of taxation in the first-mentioned State as having alienated a property and is taxed in that State by reason thereof, the individual may elect to be treated for purposes of taxation in the other State as if the individual had, immediately before becoming a resident of that State, sold and repurchased the property for an amount equal to its fair market value at that time.

8. Where a resident of a Contracting State alienates property in the course of a corporate or other organization, reorganization, amalgamation, division or similar transaction and profit, gain or income with respect to such alienation is not recognized for the purpose of taxation in that State, if requested to do so by the person who acquires the property, the competent authority of the other Contracting State may agree, in order to avoid double taxation and subject to terms and conditions satisfactory to such competent authority, to defer the recognition of the profit, gain or income with respect to such property for the purpose of taxation in that other State until such time and in such manner as may be stipulated in the agreement.

ARTICLE 14

Independent Personal Services

1. Income derived by an individual who is a resident of a Contracting State in respect of professional or similar services of an independent character shall be taxable only in that State unless the individual has a fixed base regularly available in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing the services. If the individual has or had such a fixed base, the income may be taxed in the other State but only so much of it as is attributable to that fixed base.

2. The term "professional services" includes especially independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational or teaching activities as well as the independent activities of physicians, lawyers, engineers, architects, dentists and accountants.

ARTICLE 15

Dependent Personal Services

1. Subject to the provisions of Articles 16, 18 and 19, salaries, wages and other remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment shall be taxable only in that State unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is so exercised, such remuneration as is derived therefrom may be taxed in that other State.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remuneration derived by a resident of a Contracting State in respect of an employment exercised in the other Contracting State shall be taxable only in the first-mentioned State if:

(a) the recipient is present in the other State for a period or periods not exceeding in the aggregate 183 days in any twelve month period commencing or ending in the calendar year concerned, and

(b) the remuneration is paid by, or on behalf of, a person who is not a resident of the other State, and

(c) the remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed base which the person has in the other State.

3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remuneration in respect of an employment exercised aboard a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic by an enterprise of a Contracting State, may be taxed in that State.

ARTICLE 16

Directors' Fees

Directors' fees and other similar payments derived by a resident of a Contracting State for services performed in the capacity as a member of the board of directors of a company which is a resident of the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State.

ARTICLE 17

Artistes and Sportspersons

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, income derived by a resident of a Contracting State as an entertainer, such as a theatre, motion picture, radio or television artiste, or a musician, or as a sportsperson, from that resident's personal activities as such exercised in the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State.

2. Where income in respect of activities exercised by an entertainer or a sportsperson in that individual's capacity as such accrues not to the entertainer or sportsperson but to another person, that income of that other person may, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, be taxed in the Contracting State in which the activities of the entertainer or sportsperson are exercised, unless it is established that neither the entertainer or the sportsperson nor persons related thereto participate directly or indirectly in the profits of that other person in any manner, including the receipt of deferred remuneration, bonuses, fees, dividends, partnership distributions or other distributions.

3. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply to income derived from activities performed in a Contracting State by a resident of the other Contracting State in the context of a visit in the first-mentioned State of a non-profit organization of the other State, provided that the visit is primarily supported by public funds.

ARTICLE 18

Pensions and Annuities

1. Pensions and annuities arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. Pensions and annuities arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may also be taxed in the State in which they arise and according to the law of that State.

3. Notwithstanding anything in this Convention, war pensions and allowances (including pensions and allowances paid to war veterans or paid as a consequence of damages or injuries suffered as a consequence of a war) arising in a Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be exempt from tax in that other State to the extent that they would be exempt from tax if received by a resident of the first-mentioned State.

ARTICLE 19

Government Service

1. (a) Salaries, wages and similar remuneration, other than a pension, paid by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof to an individual in respect of services rendered to that State or subdivision or authority shall be taxable only in that State.

(b) However, such salaries, wages and similar remuneration shall be taxable only in the other Contracting State if the services are rendered in that State and the individual is a resident of that State who:

(i) is a national of that State; or

(ii) did not become a resident of that State solely for the purpose of rendering the services.

2. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall not apply to salaries, wages and remuneration in respect of services rendered in connection with a business carried on by a Contracting State or a political subdivision or a local authority thereof.

ARTICLE 20

Students

Payments which a student, apprentice or business trainee who is, or was immediately before visiting a Contracting State, a resident of the other Contracting State and who is present in the first-mentioned State solely for the purpose of that individual's education or training receives for the purpose of that individual's maintenance, education or training shall not be taxed in that State, provided that such payments arise from sources outside that State.

ARTICLE 21

Other Income

1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 2, items of income of a resident of a Contracting State, wherever arising, not dealt with in the foregoing Articles of this Convention shall be taxable only in that State.

2. However, if such income is derived by a resident of a Contracting State from sources in the other Contracting State, such income may also be taxed in the State in which it arises, and according to the law of that State.

IV. TAXATION OF CAPITAL

ARTICLE 22

Capital

1. Capital represented by immovable property owned by a resident of a Contracting State and situated in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. Capital represented by movable property forming part of the business property of a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State or by movable property pertaining to a fixed base available to a resident of a Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the purpose of performing independent personal services, may be taxed in that other State.

3. Capital represented by ships and aircraft operated by an enterprise of a Contracting State in international traffic and by movable property pertaining to the operation of such ships and aircraft, shall be taxable only in that State.

4. All other elements of capital of a resident of a Contracting State shall be taxable only in that State.

V. METHODS FOR ELIMINATION OF DOUBLE TAXATION

ARTICLE 23

Elimination of Double Taxation

1. In the case of Canada, double taxation shall be avoided as follows:

(a) subject to the existing provisions of the law of Canada regarding the deduction from tax payable in Canada of tax paid in a territory outside Canada and to any subsequent modification of those provisions - which shall not affect the general principle hereof - and unless a greater deduction or relief is provided under the laws of Canada, tax payable in Venezuela on profits, income or gains arising in Venezuela shall be deducted from any Canadian tax payable in respect of such profits, income or gains;

(b) where in accordance with any provision of the Convention income derived or capital owned by a resident of Canada is exempt from tax in Canada, Canada may nevertheless, in calculating the amount of tax on other income or capital, take into account the exempted income or capital.

2. When a resident of Venezuela derives income that, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention, may be taxed in Canada, Venezuela shall allow a relief to such resident. Such relief shall be allowed in accordance with the provisions and subject to the limitations of the law of Venezuela, as they may be amended from time to time without changing the principle hereof. The relief shall consist in a credit against the Venezuelan tax on income.

3. For the purposes of this Article, profits, income or gains of a resident of a Contracting State which are taxed in the other Contracting State in accordance with the Convention shall be deemed to arise from sources in that other State.

VI. SPECIAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 24

Non-Discrimination

1. Nationals of a Contracting State shall not be subjected in the other Contracting State to any taxation or any requirement connected therewith which is more burdensome than the taxation and connected requirements to which nationals of that other State in the same circumstances, in particular with respect to residence, are or may be subjected. This provision shall, notwithstanding the provisions of Article 1, also apply to individuals who are not residents of one or both of the Contracting States.

2. The taxation on a permanent establishment which an enterprise of a Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be less favourably levied in that other State than the taxation levied on residents of that other State carrying on the same activities.

3. Nothing in this Article shall be construed as obliging a Contracting State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State any personal allowances, reliefs and reductions for taxation purposes on account of civil status or family responsibilities which it grants to its own residents.

4. In this Article, the term "taxation" means taxes which are the subject of this Convention.

ARTICLE 25

Mutual Agreement Procedure

1. Where a person considers that the actions of one or both of the Contracting States result or will result for that person in taxation not in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, that person may, irrespective of the remedies provided by the domestic law of those States, address to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which that person is a resident or, if that person's case comes under paragraph 1 of Article 24, to that of the Contracting State of which that person is a national, an application in writing stating the grounds for claiming the revision of such taxation. To be admissible, the said application must be submitted within two years from the first notification of the action resulting in taxation not in accordance with the Convention.

2. The competent authority referred to in paragraph 1 shall endeavour, if the objection appears to it to be justified and if it is not itself able to arrive at a satisfactory solution, to resolve the case by mutual agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State, with a view to the avoidance of taxation not in accordance with the Convention.

3. A Contracting State shall not, after the expiry of the time limits provided in its domestic laws and, in any case, after five years from the end of the taxable period in which the income concerned has accrued, increase the tax base of a resident of either of the Contracting States by including therein items of income which have also been charged to tax in the other Contracting State. This paragraph shall not apply in the case of fraud, wilful default or neglect.

4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve by mutual agreement any difficulties or doubts arising as to the interpretation or application of the Convention. In particular, the competent authorities of the Contracting States may agree to the same allocation of income, deductions, credits or allowances between persons.

5. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may consult together for the elimination of double taxation in cases not provided for in the Convention and may communicate with each other directly for the purpose of applying the Convention.

6. If any difficulty or doubt arising as to the interpretation or application of the Convention cannot be resolved by the competent authorities pursuant to the preceding paragraphs of this Article, the case may be submitted for arbitration if both competent authorities and the taxpayer agree and the taxpayer agrees in writing to be bound by the decision of the arbitration board. The decision of the arbitration board in a particular case shall be binding on both States with respect to that case. The procedure shall be established in an exchange of notes between the Contracting States.

ARTICLE 26

Exchange of Information

1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange such information as is necessary for carrying out the provisions of this Convention or of the domestic laws of the Contracting States concerning taxes imposed by that State insofar as the taxation thereunder is not contrary to the Convention. The exchange of information is not restricted by Article 1. Any information received by a Contracting State shall be treated as secret in the same manner as information obtained under the domestic laws of that State and shall be disclosed only to persons or authorities (including courts and administrative bodies) concerned with the assessment or collection of, the enforcement in respect of, or the determination of appeals in relation to, the taxes in that State. Such persons or authorities shall use the information only for such purposes. They may disclose the information in public court proceedings or in judicial decisions.

2. Nothing in paragraph 1 shall be construed so as to impose on a Contracting State the obligation:

(a) to carry out administrative measures at variance with the laws or the administrative practice of that or of the other Contracting State;

(b) to supply information which is not obtainable under the laws or in the normal course of the administration of that or of the other Contracting State;

(c) to supply information which would disclose any trade, business, industrial, commercial or professional secret or trade process, or information, the disclosure of which would be contrary to public policy (ordre public).

3. If information is requested by a Contracting State in accordance with this Article, the other Contracting State shall endeavour to obtain the information to which the request relates in the same way as if its own taxation was involved notwithstanding the fact that the other State does not, at that time, need such information. If specifically requested by the competent authority of a Contracting State, the competent authority of the other Contracting State shall endeavour to provide information under this Article in the form requested, such as depositions of witnesses and copies of unedited original documents (including books, papers, statements, records, accounts or writings), to the same extent such depositions and documents can be obtained under the laws and administrative practices of that other State with respect to its own taxes.

ARTICLE 27

Members of Diplomatic Missions and Consular Posts

1. Nothing in this Convention shall affect the fiscal privileges of members of diplomatic missions or consular posts under the general rules of international law or under the provisions of special agreements.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 4, an individual who is a member of a diplomatic mission, consular post or permanent mission of a Contracting State which is situated in the other Contracting State or in a third State shall be deemed for the purposes of the Convention to be a resident only of the sending State if the individual is liable in the sending State to the same obligations in relation to tax on total income as are residents of that sending State.

3. The Convention shall not apply to international organizations, to organs or officials thereof and to persons who are members of a diplomatic mission, consular post or permanent mission of a third State or group of States, being present in a Contracting State and who are not liable in either Contracting State to the same obligations in relation to tax on their total income as are residents thereof.

ARTICLE 28

Miscellaneous Rules

1. The provisions of this Convention shall not be construed to restrict in any manner any exemption, allowance, credit or other deduction accorded:

(a) by the laws of a Contracting State in the determination of the tax imposed by that State; or

(b) by any other agreement entered into by a Contracting State.

2. Nothing in the Convention shall be construed as preventing Canada from imposing a tax on amounts included in the income of a resident of Canada with respect to a partnership, trust, or controlled foreign affiliate, in which that resident has an interest.

3. The Convention shall not apply to any company, trust or other entity that is a resident of a Contracting State and is beneficially owned or controlled directly or indirectly by one or more persons who are not residents of that State, if the amount of the tax imposed on the income or capital of the company, trust or other entity by that State is substantially lower than the amount that would be imposed by that State if all of the shares of the capital stock of the company or all of the interests in the trust or other entity, as the case may be, were beneficially owned by one or more individuals who were residents of that State.

4. Contributions in a year in respect of services rendered in that year paid by, or on behalf of, an individual who is resident of one of the Contracting States or who is temporarily present in that State, to a pension plan that is recognized for tax purposes in the other Contracting State shall, during a period not exceeding in the aggregate 60 months, be treated in the same way for tax purposes in the first-mentioned State as a contribution paid to a pension plan that is recognized for tax purposes in that first-mentioned State, provided that:

(a) such individual was contributing on a regular basis to the pension plan for a period ending immediately before that individual became a resident of or temporarily present in the first-mentioned State; and

(b) the competent authority of the first-mentioned State agrees that the pension plan generally corresponds to a pension plan recognized for tax purposes by that State.

For the purposes of this paragraph, "pension plan" includes a pension plan created under the social security system in a Contracting State.

5. With respect to paragraph 3 of Article XXII of the General Agreement on Trade in Services, the Contracting States agree that, notwithstanding that paragraph, any dispute between them as to whether a measure relating to a tax to which any provision of this Convention applies falls within the scope of this Convention may be brought before the Council for Trade in Services, as provided by that paragraph, only with the consent of both Contracting States and after the mutual agreement procedure has been exhausted.

6. Where under any provision of the Convention any income is relieved from tax in a Contracting State and, under the law in force in the other Contracting State a person, in respect of that income, is subject to tax by reference to the amount thereof that is remitted to or received in that other Contracting State and not by reference to the full amount thereof, then the relief to be allowed under the Convention in the first-mentioned Contracting State shall apply only to so much of the income as is taxed in the other Contracting State.

VII. FINAL PROVISIONS

ARTICLE 29

Entry into Force

Each of the Contracting States shall take all measures necessary to give this Convention the force of law within its jurisdiction and shall notify the other through diplomatic channels of the completion of such measures. The Convention shall enter into force on the date on which the later notification is made and its provisions shall thereupon have effect:

(a) in respect of tax withheld at the source on amounts paid or credited to non-residents, on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the Convention enters into force; and

(b) in respect of other taxes, for taxation years beginning on or after the first day of January in the calendar year next following that in which the Convention enters into force.

ARTICLE 30

Termination

This Convention shall continue in effect indefinitely but either Contracting State may, on or before June 30 of any calendar year after the year of the entry into force of the Convention, give to the other Contracting State a notice of termination in writing through diplomatic channels; in such event, the Convention shall cease to have effect:

(a) in respect of tax withheld at the source on amounts paid or credited to non-residents, on or after the first day of January of the next following calendar year; and

(b) in respect of other taxes, for taxation years beginning on or after the first day of January of the next following calendar year.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorized to that effect, have signed this Convention.

DONE in duplicate at Caracas, this 10th day of July 2001, in the English, French and Spanish languages, each version being equally authentic.

Allen J. Stewart

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Luis Alfonso Davila Garcia

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA

PROTOCOL

At the moment of signing the Convention this day concluded between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal avoidance and evasion with respect to taxes on income and on capital, the undersigned have agreed upon the following provisions which shall be an integral part of the Convention.

1. It is understood that the taxes levied by municipalities in Venezuela are not taxes covered by the Convention.

2. For the purpose of computing the time limits in paragraph 3 of Article 5:

(a) it is understood that if an enterprise (general contractor), that has undertaken the performance of a comprehensive project, subcontracts parts of such a project to other enterprises (subcontractors), the period spent by a subcontractor must be considered as time spent by the general contractor. The subcontractor has a permanent establishment only if its activities continue for a period or periods aggregating more than 183 days in any twelve month period commencing or ending in the taxable year concerned;

(b) the 183 day period begins as of the date on which the construction activity itself begins; it does not take into account time spent solely on preparatory activities such as obtaining permits.

3. It is understood that, in order for paragraph 4 of Article 5 to apply, the activities listed in subparagraphs 4 (a) through (f) and conducted by the resident of a Contracting State must each be of a preparatory or auxiliary character. Therefore, maintaining sales personnel in a Contracting State would not be an activity excepted under paragraph 4 and, subject to paragraphs 1, 5 and 6 of Article 5, would constitute a permanent establishment.

4. Where an enterprise of a Contracting State sells goods or merchandise or carries on business in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein, the profits of that permanent establishment shall not be determined on the basis of the total amount received by the enterprise, but shall be determined only on the basis of the income which is attributable to the actual activity of the permanent establishment for such sales or business. In particular, in the case of contracts for the survey, supply, installation or construction of industrial, commercial or scientific equipment or premises, or of public works, when the enterprise has a permanent establishment, the profits of such permanent establishment shall not be determined on the total amount of the contract, but shall be determined only on the basis of that part of the contract which is effectively carried out by the permanent establishment in the State where the permanent establishment is situated. The profits related to that part of the contract which is carried out by the head office of the enterprise shall be taxable only in the State of which the enterprise is a resident.

5. Notwithstanding the provisions of Article 7, profits derived by an enterprise of a Contracting State from a voyage of a ship or aircraft where the principal purpose of the voyage is to transport passengers or property between places in the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

6. It is understood that the reference to an "additional tax" in paragraph 6 of Article 10 includes the tax that may be imposed by Venezuela pursuant to the provisions of Article 72 of Presidential Decree No. 307 published on October 22, 1999, in so far as those provisions were in force on, and have not been modified since, the date of signature of the Convention or have been modified only in minor respects so as not to effect their general character. Furthermore, for the purposes of subparagraph (a) of paragraph 1 of Article 23, the tax so imposed by Venezuela will be considered to have been paid by the company on its own behalf.

7. In the event that, pursuant to an agreement or convention concluded with a country that is a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development after the date of signature of the Convention, Venezuela agrees to a rate of tax on dividends referred to in subparagraph (a) of paragraph 2 of Article 10 that is lower than 10 per cent, the greater of such new rate and a rate of 5 per cent shall automatically apply for the purposes of that subparagraph as well as for paragraph 6 of the same Article.

8. It is understood that nothing in Article 24 shall be construed as preventing a Contracting State from imposing an additional tax as referred to in paragraph 6 of Article 10 or paragraph 6 of this Protocol.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the undersigned, duly authorized to that effect, have signed this Protocol.

DONE in duplicate at Caracas, this 10th day of July 2001, in the English, French and Spanish languages, each version being equally authentic.

Allen J. Stewart

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA

Luis Alfonso Davila Garcia

FOR THE GOVERNMENT OF THE BOLIVARIAN REPUBLIC OF VENEZUELA