(March 18, 2015) 

On March 18, 2015 the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) published the IRAS e-Tax Guide “GST: Guide for the Fund Management Industry (Second Edition)”.

According to the e-Tax Guide the aim of the Guide is to explain the GST treatment of the services provided or received by fund managers in the fund management industry.

Fund management services provided by a fund manager (“FM”) to his client generally include research, investment advice and the preparation of reports, in return for which the FM is paid a ‘fund management fee’. In general the FM’s duties are set out in the investment agreements, mandates or trust deeds.

The e-Tax Guide “GST: Guide for the Fund Management Industry (Second Edition)” discusses the GST treatment of the following scenarios:

• Fund management services provided to clients other than unit trusts;

• Fund management services provided to unit trusts;

• Distribution services in respect of unit trusts;

• Brokerage services received by FM; and

• Soft dollar commission.

The e-Tax Guide defines a unit trust as: “a pool of money held by a trustee on behalf of the unit holders, constituted by way of a trust deed”. 

For further information click here to be forwarded to the text of the e-Tax Guide as published on the website of the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore.

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