Note: This Treaty may be impacted by the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent BEPS (MLI). MLI impact on Tax Treaties is available with the Orbitax International Tax Research & Compliance Expert.
ARTICLE 3
General Definitions
(1) In this Convention, unless the context otherwise requires:
- (a) The term "Sri Lanka" means the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
- (b) The terms "a Contracting State" and "the other Contracting State" mean the Federal Republic of Germany or Sri Lanka, as the context requires, and when used in a geographical sense, the territory in which the tax law of the State concerned is in force.
- (c) The term "person" means an individual and a company.
- (d) The term "company" means a body corporate, and any other body of persons or entity which is subject to tax as such.
- (e) The terms "enterprise of a Contracting State" and "enterprise of the other Contracting State" mean respectively an enterprise carried on by a resident of a Contracting State and an enterprise carried on by a resident of the other Contracting State.
- (f) The term "international traffic" means any transport by a ship or aircraft operated by an enterprise which has its place of effective management in a Contracting State, except when the ship or aircraft is operated solely between places in the other Contracting State.
- (g) The term "national" means:
- (aa) In respect of the Federal Republic of Germany, any German within the meaning of Article 116, paragraph (1), of the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany and any legal person, partnership and association deriving its status as such from the law in force in the Federal Republic of Germany;
- (bb) In respect of Sri Lanka, all natural persons who, under the law in force in Sri Lanka, are citizens of Sri Lanka and any legal person, partnership and association deriving its status as such from the law in force in Sri Lanka.
- (h) The term "competent authority" means in the case of the Federal Republic of Germany the Federal Minister of Finance and in the case of Sri Lanka the Commissioner-General of Inland Revenue.
(2) As regards the application of this Convention by a Contracting State any term not defined therein shall, unless the context otherwise requires, have the meaning which it has under the laws of that State relating to the taxes which are the subject of this Convention.