Egypt - Apply For a Company Tax Clearance Certificate

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Procedure

Apply In-Person:

1. To apply for a company tax clearance certificate the first step is to approach the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA) Contact Link and register your company there.
2. The Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA) usually maintains offices in almost every local government area. So, if your office is located in Cairo, you will have to register with the Cairo Office.
3. Once you’re registered, the ETA will give a Tax Identification Number (TIN).
4. For the further steps you can either do it by yourself or hire a consultant.
5. The applicant needs to incorporate their company.  A company may be incorporated but yet to commence business. Incorporation simply means you have registered your company with the corporate affairs commission. Commencement means the date you started using the company you registered for business. Then open up a bank account that shows inflow and outflow of money.
6. If your company commenced business for a period of time then you will be asked by your consultant to provide an audited Financial Statement (FS) or Statement of Affairs. An FS is a document that contains the financial state and performance of your business for the period under consideration. It includes things like your Balance Sheet and Profit and loss account.
7. Once the Financial Statement is prepared and signed by the representative of the company and the auditors hand it over to your consultant. The Financial Statement for a company in operation also includes your estimated tax payable. Your estimated tax payable is the amount of tax you are telling the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA) that you are liable to pay. However, this is not usually acceptable by the authorities as they often make their own computation. But you should do yours and make it as conservative as possible.
8. The next step is to fill the clearance forms. Your consultant will give you several forms to fill. You will be guided as you fill the forms. However, it is important that you read through the forms as most of the information you reveal in it are confidential and so you will not want to give out something that might implicate you because it is wrong.

   • You will also be told to provide copies of your letter head. These copies are used for correspondences with the tax authority which will typically include your application for tax clearance certificate. You will also need to give your consultant your Certificate of Incorporation and Memorandum and Articles of Association (often called MEMAT). You will also give the tax consultant a copy of the personal tax clearance certificate of your MD or/and any Director which you will obtain from the Inland Revenue service.

9. Your tax consultant will then submit your documents with the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA).
10. You will be given a Tax Clearance Certificate that is signed by an Inspector of Taxes. The tax clearance certificate is usually for the 3 years preceding your application. So, you will be given a certificate reflecting the years in the following sequence for example 2010, 2009, and 2008.
11. The cost of a tax consultant differs for small businesses. However, it can fall between EGP 5,000k to EGP 10,000 depending on the peculiarity of your area.
12. The applicant must then approach the consulate and collect the Company Tax Clearance Certificate within the stipulated processing period.

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Required Documents

• A sale and purchase agreement (“SPA”) that indicates the exact value of the transaction, or other similar document(s) to prove the value of the transaction;
• Financial securities purchase invoice (i.e. to confirm the acquisition cost);
• In case the seller is one of the company founders, the company’s articles of incorporation should be attached to the invoice;
• Fair market value valuation report, or other documents which may be requested by the ETA to verify the capital gains realized
• An official power of attorney.
• Tax Identification certificate
• Proof of income
• Business registration certificate
• Articles and Memorandum of Association

Office Locations & Contacts

Egyptian Tax Authority
El- Basatin Sharkeya,
El Basatin,
Cairo Governorate, Egypt
Contact link: Link

Eligibility

• Applicants who carry out a taxable transaction are eligible for the tax clearance certificate.
  

Fees

• The fees are EGP 5,000 to EGP 10,000.
  

Validity

• The validity of tax clearance certificate is 3 years.
  

Documents to Use

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Sample Documents

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Processing Time

• The process takes up to 40 days.
  

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
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Instructions

• Any foreign documents submitted to the ETA to obtain the tax clearance certificate should be authenticated in the relevant jurisdiction beforehand.
  

Required Information

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1. Date of Birth.
2. City or Country of Birth.

Need for the Document

• A tax clearance certificate is a document that is issued by the Commissioner General of the Egyptian Tax Authority (ETA) to a person liable to pay tax under any of the Acts administered by the Egyptian Revenue Authority. The certificate is issued upon request to a person whose tax affairs are up-to-date or has made satisfactory tax compliance arrangements with ERA.
  

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Other uses of the Document/Certificate

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External Links

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Others

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