Asia Pacific Insurance Tax News

PricewaterhouseCoopers Asia Pacific Insurance Tax News is a periodic publication that offers insights into trends and developments in insurance and taxation.

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November 2008

The Asia Pacific region is an exciting place to be. As set out in Swiss Re’s publication sigma 03/2008, based on the results of its 2007 World Insurance Survey, the Asia Pacific region is home to three of the top ten insurance countries in the world by total premium volume. Japan was ranked third, Korea seventh and China tenth. Asia Pacific is also home to India and China, the two most populous countries in the world. Add on to that mix the low insurance penetration rates in countries like Indonesia and Vietnam, and you’ll find that Asia Pacific must be one of the most desirable insurance regions in the world today.

Despite its attraction, the Asia Pacific region is a minefield where taxation is concerned. Quite often, we find that the tax laws are not designed to cater to the special situations of insurers. We also find tax laws struggling to keep up with the innovation and developments in the industry. The rapid proliferation and updates around regulations and accounting standards also pose additional tax challenges.

This is the first issue of the PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Asia Pacific Insurance Tax News. Written by PwC specialists from seven countries, they will share some of the tax issues and challenges facing the insurance industry in their respective markets today.