Home Events Tax Audits in Cambodia and the New Tax Audit Manual/SOP of the GDT: What Will Change in Practice?

Events

Tax Audits in Cambodia and the New Tax Audit Manual/SOP of the GDT: What Will Change in Practice?

Event Details

Date:
May 28, 2024

Time:
10AM

Venue:
Online Webinar

Note: All activities, publications, and events mentioned in this post were conducted under the name VDB Loi prior to our transition to Andersen in Cambodia on 18 September 2024.

About this live webinar

The General Department of Taxation in Cambodia (“GDT”) has just released its long awaited Manual on the Methods and Procedures of Tax Audits, also known as “the Tax Audit SOP’s”, as well as guidance on tax crime investigations. Cambodian tax authorities perform roughly 4,000 tax audits per year, and in practice, some audits may take several years to complete. The Tax Audit Manual/SOP is one of several ways how the GDT is reforming the administration of the different tax audits in the country.

In this highly practical webinar we present a sharp factual analysis of the newly published practices and we assess what companies need to know going forward. What is really new here, and how will it actually work?

Highlights

Which companies will be audited less under the Manual/SOP?
Which Limited Audits will be merged with Comprehensive Audits, and how?
Which tax audits will have a maximum time limit in the future?
Which ratios and circumstances will trigger a tax audit in the future?
What changes for protest letters and appeals?
Will the Litigation Bureau’s take over tax disputes faster than before?
Comparing the Manual/SOP with prior audit regulations: what is really new?
How does the new process for Desk Audits work?
Will the MEF’s Committee for Tax Arbitration decide appeals in a new way?
What are the new rules for sharing of copies and documents?
How to use the GDT’s new complaint system

Speakers

Edwin Vanderbruggen

Senior Partner

Andersen in Cambodia

Edwin has over 30 years of experience as a legal and tax professional, academic, author, and government advisor. He has worked in Southeast Asia for nearly his entire career.

Edwin has built up vast experience advising sponsors, financial institutions, oil and gas supermajors, independent power producers, and other multinational enterprises on their projects in the region, including on multibillion dollar energy and infrastructure projects, mergers and acquisitions, and financing transactions.

He is renowned for his expertise in international taxation and investment, regional tax structuring, and tax planning.

He has assisted the governments of Cambodia (2006-2008 as a full-time adviser to the Minister of Finance), Thailand (2001-2005), Vietnam (2010), and Myanmar (2013-2020) on transactions or on issues such as legal reform, public finance, privatization, and taxation. He has also frequently consulted for IFC, ADB, the United Nations, and governmental agencies of Japan, Korea, and the Netherlands.

In his academic career, he has lectured at six prestigious universities in Europe and Asia, and written nine textbooks and over 40 scholarly articles, some of which have won scientific awards.

Laysym Sim

Partner

Andersen in Cambodia

Laysym is an experienced tax professional with a degree in management. He has over 20 years of work experience, including with KPMG in Cambodia, where he was responsible for relations with the tax authorities. Laysym works with a wide variety of clients, both local and international, across a broad range of industry sectors, with a particular focus on the real estate and transportation industries. He has advised on tax planning for large property projects, employee benefits, and has conducted tax due diligence on several major acquisitions in Cambodia.

Laysym heads the firm’s tax compliance and tax disputes teams. He has a long and proven track record of successful defense of multinationals, banks, and property developers. He also leads our transfer pricing practice in Cambodia.