ARTICLE 28

Miscellaneous

1. This Convention shall not restrict in any manner any exclusion, exemption, deduction, credit, or other allowance now or hereafter accorded

a) by the laws of either Contracting State; or b) by any other agreement between the Contracting States.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of subparagraph 1 b):

a) Notwithstanding any other agreement to which the Contracting States may be parties, a dispute concerning whether a measure is within the scope of this Convention shall be considered only by the competent authorities of the Contracting States, as defined in subparagraph 1 f) of Article 3 (General Definitions) of this Convention, and the procedures under this Convention exclusively shall apply to the dispute.

b) Unless the competent authorities determine that a taxation measure is not within the scope of this Convention, the nondiscrimination obligations of this Convention exclusively shall apply with respect to that measure, except for such national treatment or most-favored-nation obligations as may apply to trade in goods under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. No national treatment or most-favored-nation obligation under any other agreement shall apply with respect to that measure.

c) For the purpose of this paragraph, a “measure” is a law, regulation, rule, procedure, decision, administrative action, or any other form of measure.

3. For the implementation of paragraphs 1 and 2 of Article 7 (Business Profits), paragraph 5 of Article 10 (Dividends), paragraph 3 of Article 11 (Interest), paragraph 3 of Article 12 (Royalties), paragraph 3 of Article 13 (Gains), paragraph 2 of Article 14 (Independent Personal Services), and paragraph 2 of Article 21 (Other Income), any income, gain or expense attributable to a permanent establishment during its existence is taxable or deductible (under otherwise applicable principles) in the Contracting State where such permanent establishment is situated even if the payments are deferred until such permanent establishment has ceased to exist.

4. In determining the taxable income for purposes of taxation in a Contracting State of an individual who renders personal services and who is a resident, but not a national, of that State, contributions paid by, or on behalf of, such individual to a pension or other retirement arrangement that is established and maintained and recognized for tax purposes in the other Contracting State shall be treated in the same way for tax purposes in the first-mentioned State as a contribution paid to a pension or other retirement arrangement that is established and maintained and recognized for tax purposes in that first-mentioned State, provided that:

a) the individual was not a resident of that State, and was contributing to that pension or other retirement arrangement immediately before he began to exercise employment in that State; and

b) the competent authority of that State agrees that the pension or other retirement arrangement in the other Contracting State generally corresponds to a pension or other retirement arrangement recognized for tax purposes by that first-mentioned State. The benefits of this paragraph shall extend for a period not exceeding five taxable years beginning with the individual's first taxable year during which the individual rendered personal services in the first-mentioned Contracting State. For purposes of this paragraph, a pension or other retirement arrangement is recognized for tax purposes in a Contracting State if the contributions to, or earnings of, the arrangement would qualify for tax relief in that State.

5. The appropriate authority of either Contracting State may request consultations with the appropriate authority of the other Contracting State to determine whether amendment to the Convention is appropriate to respond to changes in the law or policy of either Contracting State. If these consultations determine that the effect of the Convention or its application have been unilaterally changed by reason of domestic legislation enacted by a Contracting State such that the balance of benefits provided by the Convention has been significantly altered, the authorities shall consult with each other with a view to amending the Convention to restore an appropriate balance of benefits.