Foreign nationals have several options in choosing which business entity will provide the most advantages. However, not all structures are created equal and although some may present well initially, further analysis shows the potential pitfalls associated with those structures.  A client came to us with some questions regarding Hybrid Entities. Please see below for the conversation.     I. Question We are foreign nationals of foreign country (“Country X”) planning on starting in a business in the…

An unnecessary and harmful clause was added to the Finnish Limited Liability Companies Act   A new clause was added to the Companies Act, according to which the purpose of a limited liability company is to generate profits for shareholders. The topical question is, is such a clause necessary in law at all? Or is the phrase purely harmful? Historically, a limited liability company is one of the types of companies that can conduct business. A special feature…

When is it appropriate to sue? Attorneys and others working in the legal industry are used to being asked this question, not just from clients, but from friends and even family members. Individuals may want to sue for a variety of reasons. Maybe a company collected money from them and did not render the promised service, perhaps they ate contaminated food or sustained an injury on someone’s property, maybe they were lied to, or feel…

  North America and Europe are two of the most popular regions for Foreign Direct Investment because of their economic and political stability. Since 2006, investment from China was on the rise, going from $25 Billion in 2006 to $94 Billion in 2016. However, in the last two years, North America and Europe have seen a sharp decline in Chinese FDI due to the new Chinese outbound investment regulations. In addition, these new restrictive policies…

U.S.- P.R.C. Income Tax Treaty Alert. Proposed Amendment to U.S.- P.R.C. Income Tax Treaty May Impact Chinese Investment in the U.S. On August 21, 2018, Sen. Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis and Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduced legislation that would disallow application of treaty reduced withholding rates for Chinese individuals and entities. Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Sections 871(a)(1)(A) and 881(a)(1) impose a flat tax of 30% on the gross FDAP income of foreign individuals and entities, respectively. Sections…

Law 27,349 known as the “Venture Capital Support Law” (the “Law”) promises to revolutionize the daily practice of corporate law and business affairs.   First filing of the Articles and Bylaws and subsequent filings. In the City of Buenos Aires, the Business Entities’ Controlling Body (“IGJ”) is the entity in charge of the incorporation of the SAS. The filing will be made through a Management System of Digital Documentation (“GDE”) and the system of Remote…

Many countries levy a so called “exit tax”, which is realised in situations where a country would lose its right to tax assets that are being transferred to another country. The purpose of exit taxes is to collect a tax on such assets before they would be out of reach of the national tax authority. Currently, Finnish law does not mandate a general exit tax for companies or assets leaving the country. However, there are…