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Taxation is a vast and evolving field in which it is necessary to keep a closed eye on the latest standards and legislation. Belgium is a country with a high tax burden, which does not always make it a very attractive territory. Therefore, the tax authorities put in place certain tax incentives to attract investors, international companies, and highly qualified personnel. 
In 1983, a circular was issued to encourage the arrival of qualified personnel by implementing a special tax regime for foreign executives and specialists. This regime will introduce a set of advantages for these executives so that they find their professional presence on the Belgian territory quite attractive. They will be able to reduce their tax base by a system of non-taxable allowances targeting the differences related to the costs of living, housing and the difference in taxation compared to their country of origin. Another important advantage is the application of a travel exclusion which will allow this executive to not be taxed in Belgium on his business trips abroad directly related to his activity and proven by relevant evidences. Moreover, this will be a win-win situation for both parties as the employer will see its costs related to an employee reduced by the application of the regime.
The major problem with this kind of regime is that it is entirely based on the principle of a circular that has not evolved in the context of nowaday's life and tax law. There is a legal vagueness on certain notions that leaves too much to interpretation by the tax authorities. 
In this work, we were able to explore through a practical case the real impact that this regime could have on foreign executives who choose to come and work temporarily in our country. In the end, the result is that they gain a substantial advantage which could be described as discriminatory towards Belgian executives who cannot enjoy such benefits even though they work in their own country. 
In the end, this special regime is a boon in a context of internationalization, but it is considered too obsolete today. In the future, it would be wise to review the regime in depth and to adapt it to the economic and fiscal context of our society today.

special tax regime, foreign executives, tax law, discriminatory, internationalization --- Droit, criminologie & sciences politiques > Droit européen & international --- Droit, criminologie & sciences politiques > Droit fiscal

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The social discount rate measures the rate at which a society would be willing to trade present for future consumption. As such it is one of the most critical inputs needed for cost-benefit analysis. This paper presents estimates of the social discount rates for nine Latin American countries. It is argued that if the recent track record in terms of growth in the region is indicative of future performance, estimates of the social discount rate would be in the 3-4 percent range. However, to the extent that the region improves on its past performance, the social discount rate to be used in the evaluation of projects would increase to the 5-7 percent range. The paper also argues that if the social planner gives a similar chance to the low and high growth scenario, the discount rate should be dependent on the horizon of the project, declining from 4.4 percent for a 25-year horizon to less than 4 percent for a 100-year horizon.

Achieving Shared Growth --- Debt Markets --- Discount rate --- Discount rates --- Economic Theory & Research --- Finance and Financial Sector Development --- Inequality --- International bank --- Opportunity cost --- Poverty Reduction --- Private investment --- Public investment --- Public sector borrowing --- Rate of return --- Tax --- Tax regime

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In April 2014, the Government of Benin launched the entreprenant status, a simplified and free legal regime offered to small informal businesses to enter the formal economy. This paper presents the short-term results of a randomized impact evaluation testing three different versions of the entreprenant status on business registration decisions, each version including incremental incentives to registration: (i) information on the new legal status and its benefits, (ii) business training, counseling services, and support to open a bank account, (iii) tax mediation services. The study included 3,600 informal businesses operating with a fixed location in Cotonou, Benin, which were randomly allocated between three treatment groups and one control group. One year after the program launch, all versions of the program had significant impact on formalization rates. The impact was 9.1 percentage points in the first treatment group; 13 percentage points in the second group; and 15.8 percentage points in the last group. The program had a higher impact on male business owners, with more education, operating outside Dantokpa Market, in sectors other than trade, and that before being offered the incentives to formalization had characteristics similar to businesses that were already formal. Data from a second follow-up survey, which is expected to take place in March 2016, will explore the impacts on other outcomes, like business performances or access to banking.

Access to bank --- Account --- Accounting --- Administration --- Administrative process --- Advertising --- Artisans --- Bank account --- Bank financing --- Bank loan --- Banking system --- Beneficiaries --- Bookkeeping --- Budget --- Business --- Business activity --- Business entry --- Business environment --- Business facilitation --- Business in development --- Business management --- Business performance --- Business plan --- Business registration --- Business regulation --- Business services --- Business training --- Cash transfers --- Certificate --- Chamber of commerce --- Check --- Collateral --- Commerce --- Commercial bank --- Commercial law --- Communication --- Competitiveness --- Competitiveness and competition policy --- Contact information --- Contract --- Cost --- Customers --- Data --- Database --- Debit card --- Debt markets --- Deposit --- Developing countries --- Direct costs --- Dummy variable --- E-business --- Economic activity --- Electricity --- Enabling environment --- Enterprise development --- Exchange --- Finance --- Finance and financial sector development --- Financial products --- Financial statements --- Firm performance --- Future --- Good --- Human capital --- ID --- Impact evaluation --- Impacts --- Implementation --- Implementing agencies --- Information --- Information banks --- Information services --- Inspection --- Institution --- International bank --- International development --- International finance --- Legal environment --- Levy --- Liability --- License --- Limited liability --- Link --- Loan --- Market --- Medium enterprises --- Microenterprises --- Mobile phone --- Monitoring --- Network --- New markets --- One-stop shop --- Open access --- Option --- Ownership --- Performance --- Phone --- Phone number --- Private sector development --- Productivity --- Profit --- Protocol --- Quality --- Quality of services --- Registration process --- Registration system --- Result --- Returns --- Sales --- Selling --- Share --- Small business --- Tax --- Tax exemption --- Tax forms --- Tax obligations --- Tax rate --- Tax regime --- Tax system --- Technical assistance --- Trade sector --- Trading --- Transparency --- Turnover --- Unfair competition --- Uses --- Web