This one-day intensive course by CorLeAcc Events provides a crucial deep dive into the distinct legal and practical landscapes of tax planning, avoidance, and evasion in Singapore. Designed to move beyond theory, the program begins by establishing clear, foundational distinctions between these often-conflated concepts. It then progresses to explore practical, legitimate tax mitigation strategies before dedicating significant focus to the evolving legal framework governing tax avoidance, including landmark cases and recent legislative amendments. The session concludes with a sobering analysis of tax evasion, its severe penalties, and real-world case studies. Throughout the day, practical examples and case studies are interwoven to ensure participants can directly relate complex principles to real-life business and client scenarios.
A Highlight of Key Areas:
- Module 1: Demystifying the Terminology
This foundational module establishes the critical legal and practical distinctions between the three core concepts. It will define tax planning (legitimate mitigation), tax avoidance (exploiting loopholes against legislative intent), and tax evasion (illegal concealment), setting the stage for understanding their differing legal consequences and ethical considerations.
- Module 2: Legitimate Tax Planning in Action
Moving from theory to practice, this module explores actionable, compliant strategies for tax optimisation. Key areas include income and expense timing, leveraging double tax agreements (DTAs) and international tax structures, executing tax-efficient corporate reorganisations, and understanding the tax implications of overseas business expansion and foreign-sourced income remittance.
- Module 3: Navigating the Evolving Anti-Avoidance Landscape
A deep dive into Singapore’s General Anti-Avoidance Rule (GAAR) under Section 33 of the Income Tax Act. This module analyses the provision’s recent amendments, its practical application by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS), and guiding principles from key cases. Special focus is given to the post-AQQ legal developments and the pivotal doctrines established in the Wee Teng Yau case, which redefined the “benefit” test and purview of Section 33.
- Module 4: The Severe Risks of Tax Evasion
This concluding module outlines the stark legal boundaries of evasion. It details the specific offences and penalties under the Income Tax Act, including hefty fines, imprisonment, and Wilful Penalty regimes. Through analysis of real-life prosecution cases, it highlights the red flags, investigative approaches of IRAS, and the severe professional and personal repercussions for non-compliance.