2.
However, such interest may also be taxed in the Contracting State in which it arises
and according to the laws of that Contracting State, but if the beneficial owner of
the interest is a resident of the other Contracting State, the tax so charged shall
not exceed:
(a)
4 per cent of the gross amount of the interest if the beneficial owner of the interest
is either:
(iii)
an enterprise substantially deriving its gross income from the active and regular
conduct of a lending or finance business involving transactions with unrelated persons,
where the enterprise is unrelated to the payer of the interest. For the purposes of
this clause, the term „lending or finance business” includes the business of issuing
letters of credit, providing guarantees or providing credit card services;
(iv)
an enterprise that sold machinery or equipment, where the interest is paid with respect
to indebtedness arising as part of the sale on credit of such machinery or equipment;
or
(v)
any other enterprise, provided that in the three taxable years preceding the taxable
year in which the interest is paid, the enterprise derives more than 50 per cent of
its liabilities from the issuance of bonds in the financial markets or from taking
deposits at interest, and more than 50 per cent of the assets of the enterprise consist
of debt-claims against unrelated persons;
(b)
5 per cent of the gross amount of the interest derived from bonds or securities that
are regularly and substantially traded on a recognized securities market;
(c)
10 per cent of the gross amount of the interest in all other cases.
For the purposes of subparagraph (a), an enterprise is unrelated to a person if the
enterprise does not have with the person a relationship described in subparagraph
(a) or (b) of paragraph 1 of Article 9.
Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph (a), if interest referred to in that
subparagraph is paid as part of an arrangement involving back-to-back loans or other
arrangement that is economically equivalent and intended to have a similar effect
to an arrangement involving back-to-back loans, such interest may be taxed in the
Contracting State in which it arises but the tax so charged shall not exceed 10 per
cent of the gross amount of the interest in cases provided in subparagraphs (iii)
and (v) of the aforementioned subparagraph; and it shall not exceed 5 per cent of
the gross amount of the interest in cases provided in subparagraphs (i), (ii) and
(iv) of the same subparagraph.
It is understood that the term „arrangement involving back-to-back loans” would cover,
inter alia, any kind of arrangement structured in such a way that a financial institution
which is a resident of a Contracting State receives interest arising in the other
Contracting State and the financial institution pays an equivalent interest to another
person which, if the person received the interest directly from the other Contracting
State, would not be entitled to limitation of tax under subparagraph (a) with respect
to that interest in that other Contracting State.
The rate of 15 per cent shall apply in place of the rate provided in subparagraph
(c) until December 31, 2018.