With the advent of the Construction Regulations, 2014 (the “regulations”), which are binding in terms of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1993 (“OHASA”), additional duties are now placed on the “client” that did not exist under the previous regulatory regime. For example, the client now assumes the duty to prepare a baseline risk assessment for a construction work project and, depending on the factual circumstances, to apply for a construction work permit ...
Amendments to Zimbabwe’s controversial Indigenisation and Economic Empowerment Act, Chapter 14:33 (the “Act”), were gazetted on 14 March 2018. These far-reaching changes, first announced in the 2018 Budget in December 2017, should pave the way for foreign investors wishing to establish operations in the country and boost the economy ...
Since 1 January 2013, section 19 of the Income Tax Act, 1962 (the “Act”) and paragraph 12A of the Eighth Schedule to the Act (the “Eighth Schedule”) have determined the tax implications where a debt owing by a taxpayer is cancelled, waived, forgiven or discharged for no consideration (or for consideration that is less than the amount of the debt) ...
We have previously reported on the amendments to the Harare Protocol that came into effect on 1 January 2017. One of these changes was that a mandatory request for search and examination must be made to the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization’s (“ARIPO’s”) office within three-years of the ARIPO filing date, along with payment of search and examination fees ...
In February, in an article on the 2017 South African budget review, we wrote that the government had proposed that companies and individuals no longer required approval from the South African Reserve Bank (“SARB”) for “standard intellectual property transactions” and that the “loop structure restriction for all intellectual property transactions” be lifted, provided that such transactions are arm's length and at a fair market price ...
Some brands simply seem to play a major role in our lives – Apple, Facebook, Google, Netflix. These are brands that for many of us have become something of an ever present. One brand that surely belongs on that list is Amazon, one of the most important, influential and high-profile brands in the world. Brand Finance recently declared Amazon to be the world’s most valuable brand, valuing it at USD 50 billion. So, it makes sense to keep abreast of what is going on there ...
Amazon is apparently the world’s most valuable brand, and is one that plays an increasingly important role in our lives. Although most of us know it as an online retailer, a recent BBC documentary describes it as being every bit as much a data-company, one that knows more about us than we know ourselves. We’ve reported on how Amazon is under considerable pressure to deal with the fact that counterfeit goods can be and are sold on its online platform ...
It’s been widely reported that various luxury brand owners have brought legal proceedings in the USA against Alibaba, the Chinese online shopping giant that recently listed on the New York Stock Exchange. The claim is that Alibaba has knowingly made it possible for companies to sell counterfeit products on its platform ...
Artificial intelligence (“AI”) is big news at the moment, so it’s no surprise that lawyers are considering the IP issues relating to AI. Some of the implications are really quite profound. In this article, I will discuss some of the copyright and trade mark implications. The copyright issues of AI have been discussed by a number of people ...
In South Africa, the song Akanamali, sung by the artist Sun-El Musician and featuring Samthing Soweto, was one of the most popular songs of 2017. Towards the end of the year, South African financial services giant First National Bank (“FNB”) ran a campaign to promote its products and services. It called this campaign Akanamali and featured the hook of the song, which was about a lack of money ...
A recent South African court ruling dealing with one company’s use of another’s trade mark on an aggregator website has attracted some interest. The case in question is Car Find (Pty) Ltd v Car Trader (Pty) Ltd and Others (South Gauteng High Court, Judge van Oosten, 12 February 2016) ...
2016 has been a busy year for IP on the African continent, with developments in Liberia, the Cayman Islands, South Africa, Zambia and Namibia, among others. Liberia: Intellectual Property Act and Swakopmund Protocol membership Liberia’s House of Representatives has approved and published the Intellectual Property Act, 2014 (the “new Act”), which repeals the Industrial Property Act of 2003. The regulations are currently being drafted ...
The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (“AfCFTA”)entered into force on 30 May 2019 following the approval by the minimum required 22 countries. The AfCFTA will be the world’s largest free trade zone formed after the World Trade Organization, covering a market of 1.2-billion people ...
COVID-19, also known as the Coronavirus, is an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020. The disease has since been reported in over 190 countries. For more information on COVID-19, or for support and advice should you experience symptoms, please consult the below local resources: Angola:http://www.governo.gov.ao/ Benin:https://www.gouv ...
ANGOLA: Budget Law 2016 adopted by National Assembly The Angolan National Assembly adopted the final version of Budget Law 2016 on 11 December 2015, following its approval of the Program of Economic Diversification on 7 December 2015. The Program includes the introduction of the Special Contribution on Banking Transactions (“SCBT”) and the Special Contribution levied on transfers for the payment of technical assistance or management fees. The SCBT is to be levied at a rate of 0 ...
Africa tax in brief NIGERIA: 2017 Budget presented to National Assembly Highlights of the new treaty include: ANGOLA: Budget Bill, 2017 approved and adopted by National Assembly On 17 November 2016, the National Assembly approved the Budget Bill, 2017. The final version of Budget Law, 2017 was adopted by the National Assembly on 14 December 2016 ...
ANGOLA: Budget Law, 2017 details publishedOn 10 February 2017, the provisions of Budget Law, 2017, enacted on 31 December 2016, were published. In terms of the Budget Law, 2017 the 10% withholding tax on technical services and management fees paid to non-residents for the provision of foreign technical assistance or management services (Contribuição Especial sobre as Operações Cambiais de Invisíveis Correntes), which was introduced by Law No ...
BENIN: Public Procurement Holders to Benefit from a Tax Regime Derogating from Indirect Taxation The 2017 budget law introduced a derogatory tax regime from which certain public procurement holders may benefit by the Benin tax authorities, assuming indirect taxation. This includes customs duties, internal taxes on turnover (mainly value-added tax ("VAT")) on prices and values of goods and supplies acquired or incorporated into the realisation of the contract ...
BOTSWANA: Amending protocol to treaty with France signedOn 27 July 2017, Botswana and France signed an amending protocol to the Botswana/France Income Tax Treaty, 1999 in Gaborone. CAMEROON: VAT refund procedure available onlineThe Cameroonian Minister of Finance issued a communiqué on 14 June 2017, announcing that the value-added tax (“VAT”) refund procedure has been simplified and is available online as from 3 July 2017 for enterprises registered with the Large Tax Unit ...
ANGOLA: Working group for negotiation of investment protection agreements and tax treaties created The Ministry of Economics and Finances and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued Joint Order No.205/17 on 27 April 2017, creating a technical working group to coordinate the negotiation of investment protection and double tax agreements. The working group will be responsible for guiding negotiations and reporting to relevant ministers ...
GHANA: Customs duty on spare parts abolished On 14 June 2017, pursuant to the measures proposed in the 2017 Budget, Parliament passed the Customs Amendment Bill, 2017, which amends the Customs Act, 2015 by abolishing customs duties on the importation of vehicular (including motorcycles and bicycles) spare parts. GHANA: VAT Flat Rate Scheme practice note issued The Ghana Revenue Authority published Practice Note No ...
