Czechia / Slovakia

This Convention applies to persons resident in one or both Contracting States.

1. This Convention shall apply to income and property taxes payable by each Contracting State, irrespective of the system of its levy.

2. Income and property taxes shall be regarded as taxes on all or any part of the income or property, including taxes on profits resulting from the disposal of movable or immovable property, taxes on the amount of wages or salaries paid by undertakings, and taxes on capital gains.

3. The current taxes to which this Convention will specifically apply are, in particular:

(a) In Spain:

I. Personal income tax;

II. Corporate tax;

III. The property tax (hereinafter referred to as the Spanish tax).

(b) In Czech Republic:

I. Profit taxes (‘odvod ze zisku a dan ze zisku’);

II. The wage ('dan ze mzdy');

III. The tax on income from literary and artistic activities (‘dan z prijmu z literárani a umelecke cinnosti’);

IV. The agricultural tax (‘zemedelska dan’);

V. The income tax of the population (dan z pry mu obyvatelstva);

VI. The housing tax (‘domovni dan’); and

VIL. The capital tax (‘odvod z jmeni’) hereinafter referred to as the Czechoslovak tax.

4. This Convention shall also apply to taxes of an identical or substantially similar nature which are established after the date of signature of the Convention and which are added or replaced to current taxes. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall notify each other of any relevant amendments to their respective tax laws.

1. In this Convention, unless its context indicates a different interpretation:

(a) The term ‘Spain’ means the Spanish State, including any area outside the territorial sea of Spain which, in accordance with international law, has been or may henceforth be designated under Spanish legislation relating to the continental shelf, as an area in which the rights of Spain may be exercised as far as the seabed, the marine subsoil and its natural resources are concerned;

(b) The term ‘Czechoslovakia’ means the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic;

(c) The terms ‘one Contracting State’ and ‘the other Contracting State’ mean Spain and Czechoslovakia, depending on the context;

(d) The term ‘person’ includes natural persons, companies and any other grouping of persons;

(e) the term ‘company’ means any legal person or any entity that is considered a legal person for tax purposes;

(f) the terms ‘undertaking of one Contracting State’ and ‘undertaking of the other Contracting State’ and an undertaking operated by a resident of the other Contracting State;

(g) The term 'national' means:

(i) Any natural person possessing the nationality of a Contracting State;

(ii) Any legal person, corporation and association constituted in accordance with the law in force in a Contracting State.

(h) “International traffic” means any transport carried out by a ship or aircraft operated by an undertaking of a Contracting State in which the effective headquarters of the undertaking is situated, except where the ship or aircraft operates exclusively between points located in the other Contracting State;

(j) ‘competent authority’ means:

(i) In Spain, the Minister of Finance or any other authority delegated by the Minister;

(ii) In Czechoslovakia, the Minister of Finance of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic or his authorized representative.

2. For the purposes of the application of this Convention by a Contracting State, any expression which is not otherwise defined shall have unless a different interpretation, the meaning attributed to it by the law of that Contracting State with regard to the taxes which are the subject of this Convention, is given in its context.

1. For the purposes of this Convention, the term ‘resident of a Contracting State’ means any person who, under the law of that State, is subject to taxation in that State by reason of his domicile, residence, address or any other criterion of a similar nature. However, this term does not include persons who are only subject to taxation by that State for the income they obtain from sources located in that State or because they are assets they hold’ in that State,

2. Where, under the provisions of paragraph 1, a natural person is a resident of both Contracting States, the case shall be settled according to the following rules:

(a) This person shall be considered a resident of the Contracting State in which he has permanent housing. If you have permanent housing in both Contracting States, you will be considered a resident of the Contracting State with which you have closer personal and economic relations (centre of vital interests);

(b) If it cannot be determined that the Contracting State has the centre of its vital interests or that it does not have permanent housing in any of the Contracting States, it shall be considered a resident of the Contracting State in which it habitually lives.

(c) If he habitually lives in both Contracting States or does not live in either Contracting State, he or she shall be considered a resident of the Contracting State of which he or she is a national.

(d) If he is a national of both Contracting States or is not a national of either Contracting State, the competent authorities of the Contracting States shall decide the case by mutual agreement.

3. Where under the provisions of paragraph 1, a person other than a natural person is a resident of both Contracting States, he or she shall be considered a resident of the Contracting State in which his or her place of effective management is located.

1. For the purposes of this Agreement, the term ‘permanent establishment’ means a fixed place of business in which an undertaking carries out all or part of its activity.

2. The term ‘permanent establishment’ includes, in particular:

(a) A management headquarters;

(b) A branch office;

(c) An office;

(d) One factory;

(e) One workshop;

(f) A mine, quarry or any other place of extraction of natural resources.

3. Construction or assembly works or installation projects constitute a permanent establishment only if their duration exceeds 12 months.

4. The expression ‘permanent establishment’ shall be deemed not to include:

(a) The use of facilities for the sole purpose of storing, displaying or delivering goods or goods belonging to the enterprise;

(b) The maintenance of a warehouse of goods or goods belonging to the enterprise for the sole purpose of storing, displaying or delivering them;

(c) The maintenance of a deposit of goods or goods belonging to the undertaking for the sole purpose of their processing by another undertaking;

(d) The maintenance of a fixed place of business for the sole purpose of purchasing goods or goods or collecting information for the enterprise;

(e) The maintenance of a fixed place of business for the sole purpose of advertising, providing information, carrying out scientific research or other similar activities that are preparatory or auxiliary to the enterprise.

5. A person acting in a Contracting State on behalf of an undertaking of the other Contracting State, except in the case of an independent agent covered by paragraph 6, shall be considered to constitute an independent establishment in the State first mentioned if he or she habitually has and exercises in that State powers to enter into contracts on behalf of the undertaking, unless his or her activities are limited to those referred to in paragraph 4.

6. An enterprise of one Contracting State shall not be considered as having a permanent establishment in the other Contracting State merely because it carries out activities in that other State through a broker, a general commissioner or any other intermediary enjoying an independent status, provided that these persons act within the ordinary framework of their activity.

7. The fact that a company resident of a Contracting State controls or is controlled by a company resident of the other Contracting State or that engages in activities in that other State (and either through a permanent establishment or otherwise) does not in itself render any such corporation permanent or otherwise not in itself a permanent establishment of the other.

1. Income from immovable property, including income from agricultural or forestry holdings, may be taxed in the Contracting State in which such property is situated.

2. (a) Subject to subparagraphs (b) and (c), the term “real property” shall be defined in accordance with the law of the Contracting State in which the property in question is situated.

(b) The term ‘real estate’ shall in any case include attachments to real estate, livestock and equipment used on farms and forestry, rights to which the general law provisions on real estate apply, usufruct of real estate and rights to variable or fixed fees for the exploitation or concession of the exploitation of mineral deposits, sources and other natural resources.

(c) Ships and aircraft shall not be considered as immovable property.

3. The provisions of paragraph 1 apply to income derived from the direct use, lease or any other form of use of immovable property.

4. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 3 also apply to income derived from the real estate of an enterprise, as well as to income from immovable property used for the pursuit of a liberal profession.

1. The profits of an enterprise of one Contracting State may be taxed in this State only, unless the enterprise engages in activities in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein. In the latter case, the profits of the company may be taxed in the other State but only to the extent that they can be attributed to the permanent establishment.

2. Where an undertaking of one Contracting State carries out activities in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment situated therein in each Contracting State, the permanent establishment shall be charged with the benefits it would obtain if it constituted a separate undertaking carrying out the same or similar activities under the same or similar conditions and dealt entirely independently with the undertaking of which it is a permanent establishment.

3. The determination of the benefits of the permanent establishment shall allow the deduction of expenses incurred for the purpose of the permanent establishment, including management costs and general administrative expenses for those purposes, either in the State in which the permanent establishment is located or elsewhere.

4. As long as it is customary in a Contracting State to determine the benefits to be attributed to a permanent establishment on the basis of a distribution of the total profits of the enterprise among its various parties, paragraph 2 shall not prevent that Contracting State from determining the benefits to be imposed under that distribution carried out in accordance with the established custom. However, the method of distribution adopted shall be such that the result is in accordance with the principles laid down in this Article.

5. No benefit shall be attributed to a permanent establishment merely because it buys goods or goods for the undertaking.

6. For the purposes of the preceding paragraphs, the benefits to be attributed to the permanent establishment shall be calculated by the same method unless there is a valid and sufficient reason to proceed otherwise.

7. Where profits include income covered separately by other articles of this Convention, the provisions of those articles shall not be affected by those of this article.

1. Profits from operating ships or aircraft in international traffic may be taxed only in the Contracting State in which the effective head office of the company is located.

2. If the seat of the place of effective management of a shipping company is on board a ship, it shall be deemed to be situated in the Contracting State where the base port of that ship is located, or, if there is no such base port, in the Contracting State where the person operating the ship is resident.

3. The provisions of paragraph 1 shall also apply to profits from participation in a pool on a joint holding or in an international operating body.

1. When:

(a) An undertaking of a Contracting State participates directly or indirectly in the direction, control or capital of an undertaking of the other Contracting State; or

(b) The same persons participate directly or indirectly in the direction, control or captainship of an undertaking of one Contracting State and of an undertaking of the other Contracting State, and in either case, where the two companies are linked in their commercial or financial relations, under accepted or imposed conditions, which differ from that which would have been agreed between independent undertakings, the profits which one of the undertakings would have obtained if these conditions did not exist and which in fact have not been obtained because of them, may be included in the profits of this undertaking and subject to the corresponding tax.

2. Where the profits of an enterprise of a Contracting State that have been taxed in this State are also included in the profits of an enterprise of the other Contracting State and are subject to the levy of the corresponding taxes, and such included profits represent profits that would have been realized by the enterprise of the other State if the conditions between the companies had been those agreed between independent companies of the first mentioned State shall make the appropriate adjustment up to the amount of the tax levied on those profits in the first mentioned State in order to determine this adjustment, other provisions of this Convention relating to the nature of the income shall be duly taken into account, and to this effect the authorities of the Contracting States shall consult each other if necessary.

3. A Contracting State shall not adjust the beneficiaries of an enterprise in the cases referred to in paragraph 1 when the limitation period has elapsed in the legislation of that State.

1. Dividends paid by a company resident of one Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

2. However, such dividends may be taxed in the Contracting State in which the company paying the dividends resides, and in accordance with the laws of that State, but if the recipient of the dividends is the beneficial owner, the required tax may not exceed:

(a) 5 per cent of the gross amount of dividends if the beneficial owner is a company (excluding companies of persons) holding at least 25 per cent of the capital of the company paying the dividends;

(b) 15 per cent of the gross amount of dividends in all other cases.

3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall decide by mutual agreement on the modalities for the implementation of paragraph 2.

4. The provisions of paragraph 2 shall not affect the corporation's tax levy on profits from which dividends are paid.

5. The term ‘dividends’ used in this Article covers the income from shares, shares or, enjoyment bonds, parts of mines or other rights that allow participation in profits other than credit, as well as income from other social shares that are subject to: the same tax regime as income from shares under the tax law of the State in which the distribution company resides.

6. The provisions of paragraphs 1 and 2 shall not apply where the beneficial owner of the dividends, resident of a Contracting State, exercises, in the other Contracting State of which the company paying the dividends is resident, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located in that State, or independent work on a fixed basis situated in that State, and where the share generated by the dividends is effectively linked to that permanent establishment or fixed base. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14 shall apply as appropriate.

7. Where a company that is a resident of one Contracting State obtains profits or income from the other Contracting State, that other State may not receive any tax on dividends paid by the company to the residents of the State first mentioned, nor shall it tax any tax on undistributed profits, undistributed profits of the company, even if dividends paid or undistributed profits consist in whole or in part of profit, or income from that other State.

1. Interest from one Contracting State paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed only in that other State.

2. The term ‘interest’ used in this Article means income from claims of any kind, whether or not with a mortgage guarantee, entitled or not to participate in the debtor's profits, and in particular income from public funds and income from bonds or bonds, without specific guarantee including premiums and lots attributed to such bonds or bonds.

3. Paragraph 1 shall not apply where the beneficiary of the interest, resident of a Contracting State, exercises in the other Contracting State from which the interest originates, either an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located in that State, or professional services on a fixed basis situated in that State, and the credit for which the interest is paid is effectively linked to that permanent establishment or fixed base. In this case, the provisions of Article 1 or Article 14 shall apply as appropriate.

4. Where, due to special relations between the debtor of the interest and the beneficiary of the interest, or between the two and any other person, the amount of interest paid, having regard to the customer of the claim for which it is paid, exceeds the amount that would have been agreed between the debtor and the beneficiary in the absence of such relations, the provisions of this Article shall apply only to the latter amount. In this case, the excess may be imposed in accordance with the law of each Contracting State, taking into account the other provisions of this Convention.

1. Fees from one Contracting State and paid to a resident of the other Contracting State may be imposed in that other State.

2. However, such fees may be subject to taxation in the Contracting State from which they come and in accordance with the law of that other State, but the tax thus required shall not exceed where the fees are taxable in the other Contracting State of five per cent of the gross amount of the fees.

3. Notwithstanding paragraph 2, royalties paid for copyright and other similar payments in respect of the production or reproduction of literary, theatrical, musical or artistic works (not including royalties for cinematographic films and works relating to films or videotapes for use in connection with television) from a Contracting State received by a resident of another Contracting State who is required to pay the corresponding taxes may only be taxed in that other State.

4. The term ‘royalties’ used in this article includes quantities of any kind paid for the use or granting of copyright on literary, artistic or scientific works, including cinematographic films, patents, trademarks, designs or models, plans, formulas or secret procedures, as well as for the use or granting of industrial, commercial or scientific equipment and for information relating to commercial or scientific industrial experiences.

5. The provisions of paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 shall not apply where the beneficiary of the royalties, resident of a Contracting State, exercises in the other Contracting State from which the royalties come, an industrial or commercial activity through a permanent establishment located in that State, or provides professional services through a fixed base situated in that State, and the right or property in respect of which the royalties are paid is effectively linked to that permanent establishment or fixed base. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14 shall apply as appropriate.

6. The fees shall be deemed to come from a Contracting State where the debtor is the same State, one of its political subdivisions, a local entity or a resident thereof. However, where the debtor of the royalties, whether resident or not of a Contracting State, has in a Contracting State a permanent establishment to which the benefit for which the royalties are paid is linked, and the charge of which is the payment of those royalties, it shall be considered that they come from the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment is situated.

7. Where, due to special relations between the debtor of the royalties and the beneficiary of the royalties or between them and any other person, the amount of the royalties paid in the light of the use, right or information for which they are paid exceeds the amount that would have been agreed between the debtor and the beneficial owner in the absence of such relationships, the provisions of this article shall apply only to the latter amount. In this case, the excess may be imposed, in accordance with the law of each Contracting State, taking into account the other provisions of this Convention.

1. Profits obtained by a resident of a Contracting State from the disposal of immovable property, as defined in article 8, which are located in the other Contracting State, may be taxed in that other State.

2. Gains from the disposal of movable property forming part of the assets of a permanent establishment held by an Enterprise of one Contracting State in the other Contracting State or from movable property belonging to a fixed basis available to a resident of one Contracting State in the other Contracting State for the provision of professional services, including gains from the disposal of that permanent establishment (only or with the Enterprise as a whole) or from that fixed base, may be taxed in the other State. However, gains from the disposal of movable property of the kind referred to in article 22, paragraph 3, may be taxed only in the Contracting State where such movable property is taxable in accordance with that article.

3. Gains from the disposal of any property other than those referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 may be taxed only in the Contracting State in which the transferor resides.

1. Income earned by a resident of a Contracting State for the provision of professional services or other independent activities of a similar nature may only be taxed in that State unless that resident normally has a fixed basis in the other Contracting State for carrying out his or her activities. If it has such a fixed base, the income obtained may be taxed in the other Contracting State, but only to the extent that it is attributable to that fixed base.

2. The term “professional services” includes, in particular, independent scientific, literary, artistic, educational and training activities, as well as independent activities of Physicians, Lawyers, Engineers, Architects, Dentists and Accountants.

1. Without prejudice to articles 16, 18 and 19, salaries, wages and other similar remuneration received by a resident of a Contracting State on account of employment may be subject to taxation in that State only, unless the employment is exercised in the other Contracting State. If the employment is exercised here, the remuneration derived therefrom may be subject to taxation by that other State.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 1, remunerations received by a resident of a Contracting State on the basis of employment in the other Contracting State may be subject to taxation in the former State only if:

(a) The beneficiary remains in the other State for one or more periods not exceeding a total of one hundred and eighty-three days in the course of the calendar year concerned; and

(b) Remuneration is paid by or on behalf of an employer who is not a resident of the other State: and.

(c) Remuneration is not borne by a permanent establishment or a fixed basis which the employer has in the other State.

3. Notwithstanding the preceding provisions of this Article, remunerations obtained on account of employment on board a ship or aircraft operated in international traffic may be taxed in the Contracting State where the place of effective management of the Enterprise is located.

Similar participations and remunerations which a resident of a Contracting State receives as a member of a Board of Directors or of another similar body of a Company resident of the other Contracting State may be taxed in that other State.

1. Notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 14 and 15, the rents obtained by the professionals of the spectacle, such as theatre, cinema, radio or television artists, and musicians, as well as sportsmen for their personal activities in that capacity, may be subject to taxation in the Contracting State where they act.

2. When they are rented from personal activities carried out by a professional of the spectacle or by an athlete in such qualities, they are received not by the staff themselves or by sportsmen but by another person, this income may be taxed, notwithstanding the provisions of Articles 7, 14 and 15, in the Contracting State in which the professional of the spectacle or sportsman acts.

Without prejudice to the provisions of article 19, paragraph 1, pensions and other similar remuneration paid to a resident of a Contracting State for the performance of an earlier employment may only be subject to taxation in that State.

1. (a) Remuneration, except for pensions, paid by a Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local entities to a natural person, for services rendered to that State, political subdivision or local entity, may be subject to taxation only in that State.

(b) Such remuneration may, however, be subject to taxation in the other Contracting State only if the services are provided in that State and if the beneficiary of the remuneration is a resident of that State who:

(i) Possession of the nationality of that State; or

(ii) Has not acquired the status of resident of that State for the sole purpose of providing such services.

2. (a) Pensions paid by a Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local entities to a natural person for services rendered to that State, political subdivision or local entity may be subject to taxation only in that State;

(b) However, such pensions may be subject to taxation only in the other Contracting State if the natural person is a resident and a national of that State.

3. The provisions of articles 15, 16 and 18 shall apply to remuneration and pensions for services rendered within the framework of an industrial or commercial activity carried out by a Contracting State or one of its political subdivisions or local entities.

The amounts which a student or a traineeship who is temporarily present in a Contracting State for the sole purpose of continuing his studies or training and which is or would have been immediately prior to such a resident visit of the other Contracting State, receive for maintenance, studies or training, shall not be subject to taxation in the Contracting State referred to above, provided that such amounts paid come from sources outside that State.

1. The income of a resident of a Contracting State, whatever the source of the income, not referred to in the preceding articles of this Convention, may be taxed only in that State.

2. Paragraph 1 shall not apply to income other than precedents for immovable property as defined in article 6, paragraph 2, where the beneficiary of such income, resident of a Contracting State, engages in industrial or commercial activity in the other Contracting State through a permanent establishment located in that State, or provides professional services through a fixed base situated in that State with which the right or ownership for which the income is paid is effectively linked. In this case, the provisions of Article 7 or Article 14 shall apply as appropriate.

1. Property constituted by immovable property, referred to in article 6, which is owned by a resident of one Contracting State and situated in the other Contracting State, may be subject to taxation in that other State.

2. Property consisting of movable property forming part of the assets of a permanent establishment of an Enterprise or of movable property belonging to a fixed base used for the provision of independent work may be subject to taxation in the Contracting State in which the permanent establishment or fixed base is situated.

3. Assets made up of ships and aircraft operating in international traffic and movable property attached to the operation of such ships or aircraft may be subject to taxation only in the Contracting State in which the effective headquarters of the Enterprise is located.

4. All other assets of a resident of a Contracting State may only be subject to taxation in that State.

1. In Spain, double taxation will be avoided as follows:

(a) Where a resident of Spain obtains income or owns property which, in accordance with the provisions of this Agreement, could be taxed in Czechoslovakia, Spain, subject to subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, shall exempt such income or property from taxation, but when calculating the taxable basis for the rest of the income from that person's assets, he may apply the tax rate which would have been applicable if the exempt income or wealth had not been exempted.

(b) Spain, when fixing the taxes of its residents, may include in the tax base of such taxes the income elements which, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 10 and 12 of this Convention, could also be subject to taxation in Czechoslovakia. But Spain will deduct from the amount of the tax calculated on that basis an amount equal to the tax paid in Czechoslovakia. However, the amount deducted shall not exceed the part of the Spanish tax, calculated before deduction, corresponding to the income which, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 10 and 12 of this Agreement, could have been taxed in Spain.

2. Double taxation will be avoided in Czechoslovakia as follows:

(a) Where a resident of Czechoslovakia obtains an income, or is the owner of a property which, in accordance with the provisions of this Convention, could be taxed in Spain, Czechoslovakia, subject to subparagraph (b) of this paragraph, he shall exempt such income or property from taxation, but, when calculating the taxable base for the rest of the income or property of that person, he may apply the tax rate which would have been applicable if the exempted income or property had not been exempted.

(b) Czechoslovakia, when fixing the taxes of its residents, may include in the tax base of such taxes the income elements which, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 10, 12, 16 and 17 of this Convention, could also be taxed in Spain. But Czechoslovakia will deduct from the amount of the tax calculated on that basis an amount equal to the tax quoted in Spain. However, the amount deducted shall not exceed the part of the Czechoslovak tax, calculated before deduction, corresponding to income, which, in accordance with the provisions of Articles 10, 12, 16 and 17 of this Convention, could have been taxed in Spain:

1. Nationals of one Contracting State shall not be subject in the other Contracting State to any tax or obligation relating thereto which is different or more burdensome than those to which nationals of the latter State are or may be subject in the same circumstances:

2. Stateless persons resident in a Contracting State shall not be subject in any of the two Contracting States to any tax or obligation relating thereto which is more burdensome than those to which the nationals of the State concerned who are in the same circumstances are or may be subject.

3. A permanent establishment which an Enterprise of one Contracting State has in the other Contracting State shall not be subject to taxation in that State in a less favourable manner than the Enterprises of the latter State carrying out the same activities.

This provision may not be interpreted as obliging a Contracting State to grant to residents of the other Contracting State the personal deductions, reliefs and tax reductions it applies to its own residents on account of their marital status or family burdens.

4. Companies of one Contracting State, whose assets, in whole or in part, are owned or controlled, directly or indirectly, by one or more residents of the other Contracting State, shall not be subject in the Contracting State referred to above to any tax or obligation relating thereto other than or more burdensome than those to which similar undertakings of the State referred to in the first instance are or may be subject.

5. Except where the provisions of article 9, paragraph 1, article 11, paragraph 4, or article 12, paragraph 7, apply, the interest, royalties and other payments paid by an Enterprise of one Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be deductible, for the purpose of determining the taxable profits of that Enterprise, on the same terms as if they had been paid to a resident of the State referred to first. Similarly, debts owed by an Enterprise of one Contracting State to a resident of the other Contracting State shall be deductible, for the purpose of determining the taxable assets of that Enterprise, were the same conditions as if they had been contracted by a resident of the State mentioned first.

6. By way of derogation from Article 2, the provisions of this Article shall apply to all taxes irrespective of their nature or name.

1. Where a resident of a Contracting State considers that the measures taken by one or both Contracting States imply or may entail for him a charge that does not comply with this Convention, he may, irrespective of the remedies provided for by the domestic law of those States, submit his case to the competent authority of the Contracting State of which he is a resident.

2. This competent authority, if it finds the complaint well founded but is not in a position to adopt a satisfactory solution, shall make every effort to resolve the matter through an amicable agreement with the competent authority of the other Contracting State in order to avoid an imposition that is not in conformity with this Convention.

3. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall endeavour to resolve, by amicable agreement, difficulties or to dispel doubts arising from the interpretation of the application of this Convention. They may also be consulted to avoid double taxation in cases not covered by this Convention.

4. The competent authorities of the Contracting States may communicate directly with each other in order to reach the agreements referred to in the preceding paragraphs. Where it is considered that such an agreement may be facilitated by personal contacts, the exchange of views may take place through a Commission composed of representatives of the competent authorities of both Contracting States.

1. The competent authorities of the Contracting States shall exchange the information necessary to implement the provisions of this Convention and of the domestic law of the Contracting States relating to the taxes referred to in this Convention, to the extent that the taxation required by this Convention is not contrary to the Convention. The information thus exchanged shall be kept secret and shall not be disclosed to any person or authority, including those holders of justice, who are not responsible for the settlement or collection of the taxes covered by this Agreement.

2. The provisions of paragraph 1 may not, in any case, be interpreted as imposing on either Contracting State the obligation:

(a) To take administrative measures contrary to the legislation or administrative practice of one or another Contracting State.

(b) To provide details that could not be obtained under the normal law or administrative practice of either Contracting State.

(c) To provide information revealing trade, industrial, professional or commercial or industrial secrets or information whose communication is contrary to public policy.

The provisions of this Convention shall not affect the tax privileges enjoyed by diplomatic or consular officials in accordance with the general rules of international law or under special agreements.

1. This Convention shall be ratified and instruments of ratification shall be exchanged in Prague as soon as possible.

2. The Convention shall enter into force after the instruments of ratification have been exchanged and its provisions shall take effect:

(a) In respect of taxes withheld at source, the amounts accrued on or after the calendar year immediately following the year in which the Convention enters into force;

(b) For other income and property taxes, taxes payable in the fiscal year from 1 January or after the calendar year immediately following the year in which the Convention enters into force.

This Convention shall remain in force until it is denounced by one of the Contracting States. Either Contracting State may denounce this Convention by diplomatic means by written notice of denunciation at least six months before the end of any calendar year, three years after the date of entry into force of this Convention. In such a case, the Convention shall cease to have effect:

(a) With respect to withholding tax on amounts accrued on or after 1 January of the calendar year following the year in which the notification was made;

(b) With regard to other taxes on income and property taxes, with regard to taxes due in any fiscal year from 1 January or after the calendar year following the year in which the notification was made.

In faith of which, the Infrascripts, duly authorized for this purpose; have signed this Convention.

Done in duplicate in Madrid, 8 May 1980, in Spanish and Czech, both texts being equally reliable.

In accordance with its Article 28.2, this Convention entered into force on 5 June 1981, the date of the Exchange of Instruments of Ratification in Prague.

What is made public for general knowledge.

Madrid, June 25, 1981.—The Technical Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, José Cuenca Anaya.