Lead Finance Officer - International Tax Planning

Job description / Role

Lead Finance Officer - International Tax Planning - Qatar Airways - Doha

In this role, you will be responsible for effective tax planning to reduce tax risks, ensuring full compliance with the tax laws for assigned countries where Qatar Airways operation exists, keeping a track of Tax Treaties to be entered, ensuring timely payment of tax liabilities and required filing and also other regulatory laws while maintaining confidentiality of Qatar Airways financial information.

Key accountabilities of the role:
- Ensure full compliance with tax laws (both direct and indirect taxes) in destination countries where Qatar Airways operates by closely co-ordinating with station finance-in-charge and appointed advisors.
- Ensuring payment of taxes due is made in accordance with deadlines, planning for job in advance and liaising with local station finance management.
- Ensure Qatar Airways complies with Qatar tax regulations including the deductions and treatment of any withholding tax due.
- Ensure full compliance with foreign exchange regulations and employee related taxes.
- Advising top management on tax planning measures for maximisation of benefits to QR.
- Assisting in negotiating and entering into tax treaties with different countries through the Qatar Ministry of Finance.
- Appointing advisors and statutory auditors for our branches in destination countries to meet the tax compliance requirements by coordinating with Contracts Department, tax firms, local lawyers and station finance management.
- Developing methods of ensuring tax optimisation for Qatar Airways as per law and practices adopted in respective tax jurisdiction.
- Maintain the confidentiality of company information and ensure minimum disclosure while meeting the legal requirements.
- Liaise with key stakeholders to decide the form of registration for new offices to optimise the tax liability and forward planning to meet the compliance requirements
- Preparing Financials extract from ERP for other tax and other regulatory compliance.
- Ensure compliance with Global Transfer Pricing Policy as regards allocation of Head Office costs and preparation of Transfer Pricing Documentation.
- Ensure that all documentation relating to compliance is maintained for reference purposes and maintaining full control of all regulatory compliance obligations.
- Make sure timely compliance to tax laws and other regulatory laws to avoid any consequences to Qatar Airways
- Liaise internally with key stakeholders to begin the process of forward planning for new stations.
- Take initiative to identify tasks (tax payments, tax filings, corporate law compliance to be done before due dates), set achievable target dates and ensure full execution until completion stage
- Liaise with station finance-in-charge, outstation finance managers, consultants and auditors to ensure that all the law compliances are done on a timely basis

Requirements

You will have a Bachelors Degree or equivalent with preferably a CA, ACCA or CPA qualification. In addiyion you will have a minimum 5 years of work experience in both direct and indirect tax and experience working in compliance department handling both direct /indirect tax compliance in a large scale organisation or multinational organisation. The preferred candidate will have 10 years of experience both in direct and indirect tax from the airline industry.

In addition, you will have the following job specific knowledge, skills and experience:
- Sound understanding of tax principles governing compliance of Direct Taxes and Indirect Tax laws.
- Able to correctly interpret the provisions of tax/corporate laws to comply with the provision of laws.
- Understanding of provisions relating to computation of taxable income, assessment, appeal procedures.
- Understanding of DTAA’s (Double Tax Treaty Agreements) to ensure effective utilisation of tax relief’s granted as per DTAA’s.
- Knowledge of Transfer Pricing regulation shall be added advantage.
- Good communication skills to effectively communicate the message to all stakeholders.
- Candidates possessing the above requisites from airline industry is preferred
- Exposure to Foreign Exchange Regulation, Corporate Laws and allied laws.

About the Company

Qatar Airways is proud to be one of the youngest global airlines to serve all six continents, and thanks to our customers’ response to our offerings, we are also the world’s fastest-growing airline. We connect more than 150 destinations on the map every day, with a fleet of the latest-generation aircraft, and an unrivalled level of service from our home and hub, the Five-star airport, Hamad International Airport in Doha, the State of Qatar.

Travel today involves a mix of short, medium and long-haul segments, with more people travelling than ever before. With the breadth of network coverage today, virtually no destination is unreachable. This is why the commitment to service is paramount; as our guests are travelling farther and more frequently than ever before, the experience on board is an important part of the journey itself.

Since our launch in 1997, Qatar Airways has earned many awards and accolades, becoming one of an elite group of airlines worldwide to have earned a 5-star rating by Skytrax. Voted Airline of the Year by Skytrax in 2011, 2012, 2015 and most recently in 2017, Qatar Airways has won the confidence of the travelling public. We have accomplished these goals by focusing on the details – how we run the business, and how you experience our airline.