Client updates

Because of the coronavirus, many employers have been forced to consider minimizing expenses. In Israel several alternatives are being explored: reducing the scope of employment, lowering salaries, utilizing any available leave days, imposing unpaid leave on employees, reducing manpower, and conducting layoffs.

The Haifa District Court recently held, in a precedential decision, that an employee who received shares in a company held by a trustee in accordance with section 102 of the Income Tax Ordinance has no shareholder rights.

As part of the ISA’s move to make investing in hedge funds more accessible to the public and to develop mechanisms for their oversight, it published a document for public comment that details the core characteristics of two new financial products – an alternative mutual fund of the hedge fund type and hedged mutual fund of funds.

Potential legal exposure when one makes use of a photograph displaying his or her own image without the permission of the photographer.

The Director-General of the Israeli Ministry of Health published a directive on February 4, which states that an employee, volunteer, or service provider who is required to be quarantined under the home quarantine directive shall not be required to arrive at the workplace and shall not be granted entry even if he or she were to request this.

In October 2019, the Council of the European Union adopted new rules to protect whistleblowers through a new directive.

According to the Supreme Court, an employer may stipulate in the employment agreement an employee’s right to royalties for the provision of service, as well as the compensation the employee may be entitled to for an invention.

In an attempt to reduce insurance costs for License Holders, the Israel Securities Authority (ISA) has recently implemented several changes.

The ISA’s commission for examining the regulation necessary for the advancement of digital markets published a report that focuses on platforms for the issuing, trading, and clearing of securities that make use of blockchain technology.

New Israeli regulations allow for customized portfolio management services through on-line platforms.

An amending protocol to the 1962 Israel-UK tax treaty is effective as of January 1, 2020.The protocol includes a long list of significant and fundamental amendments and updates.

The Governmental Cyber Security Unit has published a new directive according to which material service providers to government, infrastructure, and finance bodies will be required to adopt a common and unified standard for cyber protection.

The treaty for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income between the government of Israel and the government of the Republic of Serbia is expected to take effect on January 1, 2020.

The Minister of Finance signed in December 2019 the order bringing the double taxation treaty into effect on January 1, 2020.

In December 2019, an expanded panel of seven Supreme Court justices published a precedential and important decision considering the issue of whether a party seeking to file a class action suit against a government agency must send a demand letter to the agency in advance of filing.

The Bank of Israel recently led several important developments in the Israeli payments market, which are designed to encourage competition and to advance the implementation of innovative technologies.

A recent judgment by the Hadera Magistrate’s Court holds that modifications to an apartment made at a purchaser’s request do not constitute just cause for late delivery and that the purchaser must be compensated for any delay.

The Companies Registrar has recently increased its enforcement efforts when companies failed to submit annual reports, imposing fines amounting to a few thousand shekels on companies that do not comply with the requirements.

The sanction-free voluntary disclosure procedure will come to a close at the end of 2019. Provided the Israel Tax Authority and the State Attorney’s Office decide not to extend this procedure, this may be the last opportunity to declare and report true income, and accordingly pay true taxes, without the disclosure being subject to criminal sanctions.

Earlier this year, Google updated its Google Ads policy on gambling and games and announced that, as part of a limited beta launch, state-licensed gambling advertisers would be permitted to promote sports betting content within the US states New Jersey, Nevada, and West Virginia.