Morocco

The main local legislation regulating Transfer Pricing in Morocco is the Moroccan Tax Code (CGI: Direction Générale des Impôts), in particular, Articles 213 (II) and 214 (III).

The Moroccan Finance Law of 2019, issued on December 21, 2018, introduced the obligation for certain Moroccan taxpayers to prepare specific documentation to evidence their Transfer Pricing policies to the tax authorities.

The Finance Law of 2020 introduced Country-by-Country Reporting.

The Moroccan Finance Law of 2021 introduced new Transfer Pricing documentation requirements, as well as filing the documentation during an audit (or within 30 days after request) by companies entering into related-party transactions outside of Morocco.

Arm’s Length Principle

Article 214 of the Moroccan General Tax Code requires Moroccan companies not performing transactions with foreign companies, according to the Arm’s Length Principle, to prepare the Transfer Pricing documentation. This obligation has been in force since January 1, 2020.

This documentation aims to prove that intra-group transactions are at the Arm’s Length.

Related Parties

The Transfer Pricing system in Morocco has the particularity of being equally applicable to both:

Transactions between related Moroccan companies.
Transactions between foreign and local related companies.

A dependency relationship may arise in any of the following cases:

A company owns, directly or through a third party, a majority of shares or voting rights in another company.
A company depends on another one for the raw materials or spare parts supply or for using a trademark or patents necessary to carry out its activities.
The dependence arises from the reciprocal shareholding.
The management of one company influences the management of other companies through its shareholdings in those other companies.

Transfer Pricing Methods

Morocco has not yet introduced Transfer Pricing methodologies, but the law requires related entity transactions to be under the Arm’s Length Principle.

Practically, the Tax Administration determines a price considering the Arm’s Length Principle through:

The Comparable Uncontrolled Price Method.
Direct evaluation under the available information.

Transfer Pricing Documentation

Morocco joined the inclusive BEPS OECD framework, which requires member countries to comply with certain minimum standards on transparency and exchange of information, including Action 13 of BEPS, covering the Transfer Pricing documentation and the Country-by-Country Reports (CbCR).

There is no specific language for drafting the Transfer Pricing documentation. Generally, the documentation filed to the tax administration is drafted in French.

Master File and Local Report

According to Article 214, the Moroccan Transfer Pricing documentation obligation only affects companies with a turnover tax excluded or total gross assets equal to or greater than MAD 50 million.

Country-by-Country Report

Based on Article 154 of the Tax Code, the companies obliged to file CBCRs are as follows:

The ultimate parent company of a Moroccan multinational company, establishing consolidated accounts with an annual consolidated invoicing equal to or exceeding MAD 8,122,500,000 (approximately US$ 812 million) in the previous fiscal year.
Any Moroccan company subject to corporate income tax in Morocco complying with one of the following conditions:
If it is directly or indirectly owned by a company located in a jurisdiction exempt from CbCR filing. Conversely, it would be required to file it if located in Morocco.
If it is directly or indirectly owned by a company located in a state that Morocco has not agreed with provisions relating to the information exchange for tax purposes. Thus, if the company concerned is directly or indirectly owned by a company located in a state where Morocco does not have a CBCR exchange agreement, the company established in Morocco shall be responsible for filing the statement.
If it is designated for this purpose by the multinational group and has been notified to the Tax Administration.

Transfer Pricing Penalties

Penalties apply if a taxpayer fails to provide the Transfer Pricing documentation on time. Specifically, a minimum penalty of MAD 200,000 (0.5%), equivalent to US$ 22,000, per year applies for the relevant related transactions for which no filed documentation.

Article 199 bis of the Moroccan Tax Code provides for cases of non-filing of the CbCR. The Tax Authority notifies the responsible company to file/fill in the CBCR within 15 days from the notification date. Non-compliance entitles the Tax Authority to apply a fine of MAD 500,000 (approx. US$ 50,000) after notifying the company by an official letter.

Source: Morocco Tax Authority (MTA)

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