Tax Credit (Electronic Business) (Amendment) Rules, 2008

L.N. 55 of 2008

INCOME TAX ACT

(CAP. 123)

Tax Credit (Electronic Business) (Amendment) Rules, 2008

IN exercise of the powers conferred upon him by articles 14(2)

and 96 of the Income Tax Act hereinafter referred to as “the Act”, the

Prime Minister and Minister of Finance has made the following rules>–

(1) The title of these Rules is the Tax Credit (Electronic Title and effective

date.

Business) (Amendment) Rules, 2008, and they shall be read and construed

as one with the Tax Credit (Electronic Business) Rules, 2005, hereinafter L.N.333 of 2005.

referred to as “the principal rules”.

(2) These rules shall apply with effect from year of

assessment 2009 in respect of qualifying expenditure incurred on or after

the 1 st January, 2008.

In the Title and in sub-rule (1) of rule 1of the principal rules for Amends title and

rule 1 of the

the word “business”, there shall be substituted the word “commerce”. principal rules.

Rule 2 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows >

Amends rule 2 of

the principal rules.

(a) the definition “company” shall be deleted<

(b) the definition “content” shall be deleted<

(c) the definition “eligible developer” shall be deleted<

(d) for the definition “eligible user” there shall be substituted

the following>

““eligible user” means a small or medium-sized

enterprise which carries on a trade, business, profession or

vocation and which incurs or intends to incur a qualifying

expenditure for or in connection with a qualifying project<”<

(e) the definition “qualifying company” shall be deleted<

(f) for the definition “qualifying expenditure” there shall be

substituted the following>

“qualifying expenditure” means expenditure incurred in

the carrying out of an approved project for the acquisition of

tangible and intangible assets consisting of computer hardware

or software or website development services for or in

connection with the development of e-commerce systems that

enable the sale of tangible goods or services through business

transactions processed over a publicly accessible electronic

networks<”< and

(g)

the definition “qualifying project” there shall be

substituted the following>

“qualifying project” means a project carried out or to be

carried out by an eligible user for the creation, development or

acquisition of an e-commerce system that enables the sale of

tangible goods or services over publicly accessible electronic

networks<”.

Rule 3 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows >

(a) in sub-rule (1) thereof for the words “a qualifying

company” there shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”<

and

(b) in sub-rule (2) thereof for the word “company” there shall

be substituted the words “eligible user”.

Rule 4 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows>

(a) in sub-rule (1) thereof, for the words “a qualifying

company” there shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”<

(b) in paragraph (b) of sub-rule (2) thereof, for the words

“the company” there shall be substituted the words “an eligible

user”< and

(c) in paragraph (g) of sub-rule (2) thereof, for the word

“company’s” there shall be substituted the words “eligible user’s”,

and for the word “company” there shall be substituted the words

“eligible user”.

Rule 7 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows>

(a) in paragraph (d) of sub-rule (1) thereof, for the words

“aggregate State aid intensity” there shall be substituted the word

“aid”< and

(b) in sub-rule (3) thereof for the words “company’s” there

shall be substituted the words “eligible user’s”.

Amends rule 8 of

Rule 8 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows>

the principal rules.

(a) in sub-rule (1) thereof, for the word “company” there

shall be substituted the words “eligible user”<

(b) sub-rule (2) thereof shall be deleted and sub-rules (3)

and (4) thereof shall be renumbered as sub-rules (2) and (3)

respectively< and

(c) in sub-rule (2) thereof as renumbered, for the word

“company” there shall be substituted the words “eligible user”.

Rule 9 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows> Amends rule 9 of

the principal rules.

(a) in paragraph (a) of sub-rule (1) thereof, for the word

“company” there shall be substituted the words “eligible user”<

(b) in paragraph (d) of sub-rule (1) thereof, for the word

“company” there shall be substituted the words “eligible user”<

(c) in sub-rule (2) thereof, for the words “within the

company” there shall be substituted the words “by the eligible user”

and for the word “five” there shall be substituted the word “three”<

and

(d) in sub-rule (3) thereof for the words “within the company”

there shall be substituted the words “by the eligible user”.

Rule 10 of the principal rules shall be amended as follows>

Amends rule 10 of

the principal

rules.

(a) for sub-rule (1) thereof, there shall be substituted the

following>

“(1) The tax credit due for a year of assessment under

these rules shall be equivalent to 100% of the value of the

eligible expenditure up to a maximum of €12,000 for every

eligible project.”<

(b) for sub-rule (2) thereof, there shall be substituted the

following>

“(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of sub-rule (1),

the total aid due to an eligible user in respect of an approved

project shall not exceed in the aggregate €200,000 over a

rolling three fiscal year period in terms of Commission

Regulation (EC) No. 1998#2006 on the application of Articles

87 and 88 of the EC Treaty to de minimis aid>

Provided that where the eligible user in question has

benefited from any state aid in respect of expenditure incurred

in the carrying out of the project, other than as provided for in

these rules, the said threshold of €200,000 shall be reduced by

the value of that other benefit>

Provided further that the correct calculation of the said

reduction, where applicable, shall be the sole responsibility of

the eligible user.”< and

(c) in sub-rule (4) thereof, for the words “a company” there

shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”.

In sub-rule (2) of rule 11 of the principal rules, for the word

“company”, wherever it may occur, there shall be substituted the words

“eligible user”.

In rule 12 of the principal rules for the words “A company”

there shall be substituted the words “An eligible user”.

Rule 13 shall be amended as follows>

(a) in sub-rule (1) thereof, for the words “a company” and

“that company” there shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”

and “that eligible user” respectively< and

(b) in sub-rule (2) thereof, the words “In addition to the

database kept under the provisions of the Business Promotion

Regulations, 2001,” shall be deleted, and for the words “a company”

there shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”.

In rule 15 of the principal rules, for the words “a company”,

there shall be substituted the words “an eligible user”.

For rule 17 of the principal rules there shall be substituted

the following>

Insofar as these rules provide for and regulate

“Applicability

benefits

for small and medium sized enterprises, they are

prescribed and shall be applied in accordance with

Commission Regulation (EC) No. 1998#2006 on the

application of Articles 87 and 88 of the EC Treaty to de

minimis aid, as subsequently amended.”.

Mitbug[ fl-Istamperija tal-Gvern — Printed at the Government Printing Press

€0.37 (Lm0.16)