PHNOM PENH: The General Department of Taxation (GDT) has been negotiating the establishment of Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) with seven countries, namely the Philippines, Laos, Myanmar, France, Japan, Morocco and the United Arab Emirates.

The Kingdom currently implements DTAs with Singapore, China, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Indonesia, China’s Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Malaysia, and South Korea, while DTAs with China’s Macau Special Administrative Region and Turkey are in the process of ratification.

DTAs give confidence and certainty to foreign investors through many benefits, the GDT said in a statement issued recently.

“DTAs not only avoid double taxation, but also play an important role in attracting foreign direct investment and increasing international competitiveness,” it said.

DTAs also prevent or eliminate tax discrimination between local and foreign companies, providing mechanisms for resolving tax disputes, as well as mechanisms for exchanging information between state parties on tax evasion.

The country has two institutions, under the Ministry of Economy and Finance, responsible for collecting taxes. One is the GDT, which focuses on interior taxes such as income tax, salary tax, value-added tax and property tax.

The other is the General Department of Customs and Excise (GDCE), which collects taxes on goods entering and leaving the country.