Transfer pricing briefing for November 2013

OECD revised draft on intangibles

The OECD invited interested parties to comment on its Revised discussion draft on transfer pricing aspects of intangibles in July. This paper amends the OECD transfer pricing guidelines and forms part of the BEPS work. Representations from over 60 commentators including my own firm were recently published by the OECD on their website.

In a nutshell the OECD’s approach restates that the arm’s length principle should be applied to price controlled transactions according to how third parties would behave in the same circumstances. Sadly it gives little further guidance on what to do when transfer pricing a transaction that third parties do not enter into. Such ‘internal only’...