Mustupha Mosafeer: Demystifying taxation

Mustupha Mosafeer, a popular figure in the world of taxation, launched a book entitled “An insight into Mauritius Tax conventions” at the International Fiscal Association. The book analyses the tax treaties Mauritius has signed with various countries and which are in force. Through a detailed analysis, the author has compared the provisions in those tax treaties with the appropriate provisions put forward by the OECD and UN model conventions. The tax expert then compared those provisions against other treaties in force. According to the author, his book is a locally based product and a first book in taxation for Mauritius. “It is a complete book where a reader can find all the 43 treaties currently in force. It will benefit young professionals, counsellors, global business operators and university students as well. This book will help operatives in the offshore sector to widen their knowledge and understanding of tax treaties and how to apply them. Besides, International Taxation as a subject is reaching new heights. It is a dynamic subject and a developing field,” he says. Mustupha Mosafeer has tried to summarise his 25 years of experience in one book. For him, the only way to share his knowledge dealing with negotiations for around 60 tax treaties was through this book. The tax expert recalls that the first treaty he negotiated was in 1992 with Malaysia. “Over 25 years, I have negotiated various treaties. Writing a book is most beautiful legacy I can leave behind for people. Sharing knowledge is a noble act. My research took two years to compile the book. I did it as a part-time job. Six years ago, the thought of writing this book came to me.”

In a nutshell…

Mustupha Mosafeer is married and has two children. He hails from a small village in Plaine des Papayes. Despite his humble origins, he worked his way up the social ladder. His parents, who were labourers, wanted their eldest son to be educated. After completing his primary schooling, he attended college and dropped out after his School Certificate exams. He started working as a school teacher and then joined in as Extra Clerical Assistant where he earned Rs 8 per day. He attended the University of Mauritius through a scholarship. He even attended Harvard University for training sessions.

One of the interesting features of the book is the introduction written by Professor Philip Baker QC. “It was quite difficult to get the foreword written by Prof Baker. It took him quite long to write it. It means a lot,” he says gratefully. “Practitioners in Mauritius, and in countries that deal frequently with entities in Mauritius, will wish to own and consult this book. It will also be useful to students in Mauritius, who want to understand something of the way in which the tax treaty network operates,” said Prof Baker in his foreword.

A second book

The book has been well appreciated by foreign experts. “I have received very positive reactions. There are some people who encouraged me to write a second book,” shares the expert. “I have thought of a second book but it will not be soon. So far, no one has written about the Mauritian income tax system. So it will be very interesting to dedicate a complete book to this subject. The Income Tax Act is purely legal and not every one can understand legal language. So why not explain the whole system in a layman language. This will surely be in the interest on everyone and mostly investors,” he confides.

Professional Pathway

Mustupha Mosafeer is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA). He is also the holder of a Diplome D’Etudes Superieurs Specialisees d’Admistration Fiscale (DESS) from Université de Paris-Dauphine. He started working in the public sector in 1966 in the Telecommunication Department. In 1971, he moved to the Income Tax Department. During his career at the Income Tax Department, he served in various posts. In 2000, he was appointed Commissioner of Income Tax. With the setting up of MRA in 2006, he was then appointed to lead the Large Taxpayers Department (LTD). In 2013, following his retirement, he served as Technical Advisor for three years. Currently he is at the Financial Services Commission. Mustupha Mosafeer not only participated in treaty negotiations, but also worked on various OECD projects. He played a major role in the implementation of the FATCA which involved the automatic exchange of tax information with the USA.