Transfer Pricing

International business operations require consistent approach to transfer pricing issues across national borders. Allocating profits between jurisdictions based on a solid transfer pricing (TP) analysis will support the taxpayer in potential audits and disputes with tax authorities. If used proactively, it can grant legal certainty through unilateral TP rulings or advance pricing agreements. Moreover, a comprehensive TP strategy can help in identifying roles and contributions of each member of the corporate group and enhance its operational effectiveness. In November 2022 Malta followed suit, by introducing TP documentation obligations on certain intragroup, cross-border arrangements. 

Our Transfer Pricing Team boasts specialized expertise in the field of transfer pricing combined with over 20 years of experience in international taxation. We can assist you at every stage of your business’ TP risk management and compliance cycle. 

Transfer Pricing Solutions Tailored to your Needs

Forget about TP solutions that boil down to mechanic calculations or a formal tax compliance review. We will design for you a transfer pricing strategy that can effectively manage TP risks, align the results with your business aims and maximise your operational efficiency.

Our team of transfer pricing specialists will conduct an in-depth analysis of your operations and identify where and how the value is created. We will consider, among others, your supply chain, manufacturing and/or servicing arrangements, distribution channels and valuable tangible/intangible assets employed in the group’s activities. Having the full picture, we will be able to map out and evaluate transfer pricing risks and opportunities specific to your business and propose a holistic TP policy for your intragroup transactions. 

Your business is unique and faces very specific transfer pricing challenges and requirements. And it deserves a well-elaborated, custom-tailored transfer pricing strategy.

Transfer Pricing Documentation

Transfer pricing documentation plays a crucial role in ensuring tax compliance across borders. Over the past decades, numerous jurisdictions have introduced or strengthened their requirements regarding TP documentation. In November 2022 Malta followed suit, by introducing TP documentation obligations on certain intragroup, cross-border arrangements.

Preparing transfer pricing documentation is a thorough exercise that requires a systematic analysis of the business model, intragroup transactions, and the application of appropriate transfer pricing methods. It involves the preparation and maintenance of detailed records and analyses to support the pricing of transactions between related entities in line with the overarching TP policy of the group.

Based on relevant financial and operational data and functional interviews with your key personnel, our Transfer Pricing Team will prepare a robust TP documentation for your business. It will serve in future as a point of reference and strengthen your position in potential TP audits, controversies, or dispute resolution processes. 

Transfer Pricing Controversy 

In recent years we have been observing an increased focus on transfer pricing in tax audits worldwide. They often result in TP adjustments whereby tax authorities, by disallowing deductions or increasing the taxable income, impose additional tax on participants to intragroup transactions. One way to mitigate these risks is to obtain unilateral TP rulings or advance pricing agreements (APAs). Another is to prepare effective TP defence file and/or design robust audit strategies. 

TP rulings and APAs allow the taxpayer and tax authorities to agree on a set of transfer pricing conditions that will apply to an intragroup transaction. Our Transfer Pricing team can help you to obtain tax certainty by preparing a request for a unilateral TP ruling or an APA and subsequently represent / support you in negotiations with tax authorities. 

Moreover, we can devise operational strategies for handling transfer pricing audits. In an actual audit scenario, we can support you at each stage of the process to minimise the impact on the functioning of your group. We can also advise on communications with tax authorities to reduce the chances of a negative transfer pricing outcome. Lastly, should it come to that, we can also handle your domestic or international dispute resolution processes including tax appeals, litigation, or mutual agreement procedures. 

Our Transfer Pricing Services

We can support your business with the following transfer pricing services:

• Designing a comprehensive transfer pricing policy,
• Reviewing and preparing transfer pricing documentation,
• Benchmarking analyses and asset valuation,
• Assistance with obtaining unilateral TP rulings or advance pricing agreements,
• Assistance in tax audits, litigation and mutual agreement procedures.