Swot Analysis Essay Example for Free

Swot Analysis Essay Top Glove’s strengths and the opportunities available to it outweigh its weaknesses and the threats to its business. Strengths. One of Top Glove’s competitive edge is its size and wide product range. This is in line with group’s strategy of becoming the one-stop glove sourcing centre for glove users. Its size confers on it economies of scale and also the ability to expand upstream. Weakness. We can identify only one weakness in Top Glove. Being an OEM manufacturer, it does not have any products that carry its own brand name. Its size and strong growth could also work against its favour as it makes it more difficult for management to keep a close eye on all its operations. This is demonstrated by the recent illegal labour issue. Opportunities. Opportunities abound for Top Glove. Its expansion plans will enable it to ride on the increasing global demand for rubber gloves and the outsourcing trend by MNCs. Top Glove’s size also places it in a good position to undertake Mamp;As, which are likely given our belief that the local industry will experience more consolidation. Threats. The glove industry has low barriers of entry as only RM1m-1. 5m is needed to start a line. That said, although it is cheap to enter the industry, new players may not be competitive as they have to distinguish themselves from other players and need to compete in terms of volume in order to enjoy economies of scale. Aggressive expansion by the bigger players also poses the threat of an industry glut. Price and availability of latex are also sources of concern given that latex makes up more than 50% of the group’s costs. To mitigate the risk, Top Glove has expanded upstream by acquiring its own latex processing plant.

Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Example for Free

Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr. Essay Martin Luther King Jr. and Malcolm X are very prominent African American individuals throughout history. They fought for what they stood for but in many different ways. As we all know in history there are no two great men that are alike. Their many beliefs may have blossomed from the households they came from and how they grew up. King grew up in a middle class family and was well educated. While, Malcolm X grew up in an underprivileged environment that was very hostile with barely any schooling. Martin Luther King Jr. was always against violence, throughout his entire ministry. He always stood his ground, and he stood out because eventhough he may have been physically attacked, he never reacted with violence. Martin Luther King Jr. followed the Christian faith. Malcolm X was a Muslim, and believed in Muslim principles. His most famous line was â€Å"By any Means Necessary†. He believed in fighting back physically. Whatever had to be done to get freedom he was all for it whether it be violence or nonviolence. Although later in life he visited Jerusalem, and met other Muslims. He changed his views, and became nonviolent. Both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr. had uncompromising love for their people. They both wanted see Black people in the best possible position. They were both religious figures that used religious to provide structure, morality, courage, determination and unity in Black people. They were both killed before they reached their 40th birthday.They both stood 4 freedom,they were both assassinated and they both liked Afro-American women.Different religions but both were men of god. Malcolm X was a Muslim and Martin Luther King jr was a Christian. Malcolm X was a Black nationalists and Garveyite. Malcolm X did not believe in an integrated society between Blacks and Whites. Malcolm X believed that Black people should build a world for themselves controlled by themselves that specifically addressed the needs and desires unique to Black people. MLK wanted his movement to be peaceful, while X was a radical extremist who wanted A.A. rights to be violent..Martin Luther King wanted to get things accomplished without aggression or violence, and Malcolm X did not. Martin Luther King wanted everyone to coexist peacefully and wanted to be counted as an equal, and Malcolm X wanted there to be a clear segregation of the White people and Black people in America, with different areas for each to live, because he felt that they would never get along. Martin Luther King Jr was an integrationist. He believe in one American society based upon the promises of the founding fathers of America that all men were created equal and had the right to life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. He believed that it was Black peoples right to be first class citizens of America and all that it entailed. After Malcolm X left the Nation of Islam he went to Mecca to complete one of the five pillars of Islam which is El Hajj The holy pilgrimage. After that experience he begin to take on a world view against injustice and tyranny everywhere. Martin Luther King jr take on a similar stance sparked by the Vietnam war. He too saw the importance of fighting injustice worldwide.

The Social Problem: Cyber Bullying

The Social Problem: Cyber Bullying Amanda Todd was a teenager that committed suicide because she got cyber bullied. In 7th grade Amanda used to video chat on the internet with new people to hope to make new friends and she got compliment on her looks. Amanda did not realize that talking to someone she does not know is sometimes not so good. One day she was talking to a stranger. She did not know him and hoped to become friends with him. Well she did not realize that she was talking to a cyber-bully. He asked her to show her breast. A couple hours later the creeper black emailed Amanda and said he will publish those pictures in the internet unless she gives him a show. During a Christmas break the police told her that the pictures of her were found on the internet. She was really depressed so she started to use drugs and alcohol and her family moved to a new home. But the stranger knew that she was moving so he sent people of her new school the pictures to the students. So she changed school again. Her old guy friend u sed Amanda for sex while he is within a relationship with another girl. His girlfriend found out and she and a group of other people just beat her up. After the attack decided to committed suicide by drinking bleach but she was rushed to next hospital to get her stomach pumped. While she was in the hospital people were making fun of her failed suicide attempt on Facebook and other social networks. So Todd moved to another school and hoped to restart her life. But her past was not forgotten. People from her old school kept on teasing her on Facebook for 6 more months after she left. Amanda had to go to the hospital because of depression for two days. On her new school students teased her for her bad grades and for going to the hospital for her depressions. Amanda could not take it anymore and posted a video on YouTube of her holding flashcards about her life and depression and showed her arm which had several cuts on it. Amanda Todd was found hanged in her room on October 10th 2012. (Wikipedia) Cyber bullying can ruin somebodys life like Amandas life. She was just a girl who wants to meet new friends with him. But she talked to the wrong guy and she ended up being depressed and committed suicide. This could happen to anybody on this world, because they are tons of people who use Facebook or other social networks to stalk people. In my paper I am going to write about what cyber bullying actually is, how you can stop it, and why people do it. Well what is cyber bullying? Most of the people think it is just teenager just making fun of other people on the internet. It is true that teenagers are making fun of other teenager but there is more about it. The web page stopcyberbullying.org says cyber bullying is when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or otherwise targeted by another child, preteen or teen using the Internet, interactive and digital technologies or mobile phones. (STOPcyberbullying) Internet has become a big influence in our daily life. We use it to shop, to look up information, play online-video games or listen to music. Even our phones have internet now. One of the main reason we use it though is to communicate and meet new friends on social networks like Facebook or Twitter. Zuckerberg announced that they are 500 million daily active users (Protalinski, zdnet.com). Cyberbullying is probably the worst to bully someone. Not only students from their own school will humiliated, embarrassed and many other things that person. Every single teenager or adult could make fun of her or him if they wanted too. To be bullied and alienated from the whole word is not the greatest feeling. It is depressing and the victims feel like that everybody hates them. But they do not only get bullied on the internet. Most of them also get bullied in person and not only on the internet. On October 7, 2006 Ryan Patrick Halligan committed suicide. He was bullied and cyber bullied. Ryan was a sweet, gentle and lanky thirteen year old fumbling his way through early adolescence and trying to establish his place in the often confusing and difficult social world of middle school. His parents said he had the magic ability to bring a smile to anyone that looked his way. Seems like Ryan is great kid and want nothing bad for nobody else. But no human is perfect neither is Ryan. He had problems with his speech, language and motor skills and needed special education from pre-school until fourth grade. The special education team loved Ryan because of his sense of humor. Eventually Ryan had go back to school and knew that he was not academically strong like his class mates are. It bothered him that he is not like his classmates are. One day Ryan thought he finally met a girl that actually likes him. So they started to message each other and having deep conversations and Ryan start ing to like her a lot. The thing is that he did not know that girl just played him for her and her friends amusement. She showed her friends the messages he sent her and the girls just start humiliating and embarrassing him. They called him a loser and other names because of problem with speaking and reading and writing. Ryan could not take it anymore and committed suicide on the October 7, 2006. (Halligan, Ryans story) His parents were so upset about their sons lost; they wanted everybody to know about Ryans story. So they made a web page and travelled from school to school to tell the children about how giving somebody names for and making fun of someone can hurt the victims really bad and make them have thoughts about killing their self. Why do people bully other people on the internet or even person when it is obvious that it hurts them? There are actually two main reasons for teenagers to bully other people. One of them is when somebody is famous and popular at school. They might bully to stay popular. The other students think since the popular kid is doing it they also should start bullying the victim. So the popular teenager has the whole school against one person. Hurting other people make them more powerful. The other reason is someone who is less socially successful and wants to be accepted by their peers and cliques. They do not get enough respect from somebody else. So by bullying somebody they are hoping that they will get the respect from others. Also they do not really understand the victim feels when he gets bullied and is just hoping that he or she is not the next one. (Delete cyberbullying) There are other reasons like a student has a problem with his parents so they let their anger out on other students, or that they are depressed because they cannot get what they want. The main reason why they bully is because they want to make them feel better about their self. And it is even easier to cyber bully. You can humiliate somebody on the internet without knowing who the bully is. People make fake accounts or post videos about someone and can be totally animus about it and the whole internet can see it. Here is another example. A beautiful 17 year old girl goes to a high school in a big city and has friends and actually has no problems at school. Well one night she made a bad choice. She went to a high school party. She saw her friends drinking alcohol so out of peer pressure she drinks too. Everything seems to be fine but then she met this guy on that party. He knew that she was drunk so he used her. That girl loses her virginity on that night and some people knew about it. A Couple weeks later the girl finds out that she is pregnant. She gets called bad names at school and everybody is making fun of her. When she comes back from school she starts crying in her room and just wishes that she never even went to that party. Later when she was on the internet she saw people posting a video. In that video a girl was wearing her mask with the face of her and she put stuff under her shirt to look pregnant. The girl on the video says hey my name Elizabeth smith and Im so drunk. Does someon e wants to have some fun with me? the girl just breaks apart and cried for hours and does not come to school anymore because she knows that people will talk bad about her. She saw on Facebook how everybody calls her a slut and other names. So she thinks to commit suicide because she does not see a future in her life. Everybody knows her name and story because it is all over Facebook and other social networks. No matter what she does or goes people will embarrass her about the bad choice she made and call her names. This story is just made up but what it does not mean it could happen in real life. Or maybe it already has. It could happen so easy. How can you stop cyber bullying then? What can you do to avoid things like in cases of Amanda or Ryan or even the story above? One thing you can do is ignore it. If somebody says how ugly or stupid you look on a picture on Facebook then you should just ignore it. Cyber bullies want to grab your attention and they want you to think you are ugly or fat or stupid. If the bully still comments bad things about you then you should talk to someone like a friend or adult and show them what the bully has been saying about you. Ask for their advice and help. Maybe they can talk to the bully and tell him or her to stop. If possible cut the communication with the bully. Delete and block his number and block him from your social networks account. What also may help is if you report the bully on that web site so he might get kicked out. If none of the above helps and he keeps on bullying then you should talk to the police about it. (Delete cyberbullying) Here are the things you should not do. You should never come to the bullys level and try to talk bad about him because that is what he wants. The bully will always find something against you. Also do not forward messages from the bully. It could make the problem worse because you never know how far an email chain can go. One big mistake some victims do is believing the bully and thinking it is true what he says about you. The bully just wants to break your self-esteem. (Delete cyberbullying) It is really important to do the right thing if you are in situation like that. If you do not do anything about it and just take the attacks from someone like that, then you might end up being depressed and do not feel like it is important to live anymore since everybody hates you. What is difference between cyber bullying than just normal bullying? Why is cyber bully so more dangerous? The difference is not only that cyber bully is on the internet or on the cell phone; there is a lot more behind it. Real life bullying usually end when school ends but cyber bullying continues and does not stop. One big factor why it is so dangerous is the anonymity. Now it is a lot easier to be anonym on the internet. Everybody can make an email account and then create a fake account on YouTube, Facebook, twitter and many more. If you a person bullies in person well everybody knows him and in the worst scenario parents can do something about it. But what do you if you have no clue who the bully is? Also it makes it easier for the bully to say things to the victim per message than talk in person and say it in his face. Also once something really embarrassing for the victim is on the internet; it will stay in other peoples mind forever and will not forget about it so easy. Best e xample is Tyler Clementi. He got caught on video by his friends having sex with an older man. Tyler could not hold the stress anymore so he jumped off a bridge and died. So once it gets on public the whole world knows about it. This is another factor that makes cyber bully so dangerous. (Delete cyberbully) So what are the effects of cyber bullying? How bad has it become? 2 13 million 17 year olds were victims of cyber bullying. 8 percent of them affected by cyber bullying try to commit suicide. (Chacha) Those are only the facts about one age group. The movie Cyberbully is probably a good way to show cyber bullying. Taylor Hillridge a teenage girl iss a cyber-bullying victim and the cost it nearly takes on her and her family. Taylor is a pretty 17-year-old high school student but she is a little awkward, and she knows it. When her mom gives her a computer for her birthday, Taylor is excited by the prospect of freedom and the independence of going online without her mother always looking over her shoulder. Taylor soon finds herself the victim of bullying on a social website, and afraid to face her peers at school, including her best friend, she is pushed to a breaking point. Its only after this life-changing event that Taylor learns that she is not alone meeting other teens, including a classmate, who has had similar experiences. Taylors mom, Kris, reels from the incident and takes on the school system and state legislation to help prevent others from going through the same harrowing ordeal as her daughter. The movie is not a true story. ABC made that movie to show people what cyber bullying is and what it can do to people. It is a warning to people and they were hoping that by making the movie that at least some people stop it. Nearly 43% of kids have been bullied online. 1 in 4 has had it happen more than once. Almost half of American teens and kids have been cyber bullied and to some people it has happened more than once. It gets worse. 70% of students report seeing frequent bullying online. If so many people see cyber bullying, why dont they do something about it? Why cant just anybody tell the bully to stop because he is hurting the victims feelings? The answer is because they are too scared to get also bullied because he is helping the victim. So the bystander just watches how one person ruins the other persons life. The best thing about it is that 68% teens agree that cyber bullying is a serious problem but they dont do anything about it. But there are people who tell bullies to stop. 90% of teens who have seen social-media bullying say they have ignored it. 84% have seen others tell cyber bullies to stop. (Dosomething.org). It is obvious that cyber bullying is a big problem. Most people are too scared to help or stop it because they do not want to become the next victim and the victims dont ask for help because they dont want to make it worse. Only 1 in 10 victims will inform a parent or trusted adult of their abuse. But a lot of people are bullying. 54% teens admit that have bullied some online or through text message or said something that hurt the victims feelings. Since the victims are sometimes too scared to tell their own parents. How do you know that your own child is getting cyber bullied? There some symptoms. One of them is that maybe your child acts differently and does not is own routine anymore like waking up too late or too early, sleep longer or less, or the teen does not want to hang out with his friends so much anymore. Also if the parents know that their kid is being bullied at school could be a sign of cyber bullying because like above bullies dont just stop bullying when school is over. Nowadays most kids have phones and internet and have Facebook or twitter account. So they can harass the victim 24/7. Another sign is low-esteem. If the parents or teacher see that the kid has low-esteem and he thinks bad about them self the whole time, then the parents should start thinking about what is wrong with their child. When the teenager gets really aggressive all off sudden is also a sign. One other symptom is low grades. The victim los es focus on school and his grades are getting worse. (Cyberbullyingfacts) Of course there are more signs and symptom for cyber bullying. Like use of alcohol and drugs, skipping school, depression. But those are the main once. Parents need to make sure that their children can trust you with anything and then they will open up to you and tell what their problem is. Over all cyber bullying became a big problem in America and other countries. It hurts people and makes them feel bad about them self and it is the worst way to harass and humiliate somebody. Even celebrities notice it or had experience of it. Demi Lovato was cyber bullied in middle school. People were harassing her in middle school. Demi created a web page that helps teens who have problem with cyber bullying. But also other famous people are against it and helping. Cyber bullying can get so bad that some teenager get depressed and sometimes kill them self because they dont see an end in this. There is not much you can do about it because of the anonymity in the internet. But there are some things a victim and friends and adults can do to help the victim and to stop the cyber bullying. The victim can block the bully and ignore the harassment. Friends can help them by telling the bully to stop and that their friend is not what the bully tells him. Parents, teachers and other adults ca n tell the bully to stop and threating him with telling the police about his bullying. Those are the main points of stopping it. But people are actually need to do it and dont be scared of the consequences if they tell an adult or a friend for help. If they dont do anything about it early then it might be too late and the victim has already thoughts of suicide or other things. Words can hurt more than physical bullying because bruises from a fight will stay wont last long but those words stays in the victims mind for a long time. Work cited 11 Facts About Cyber Bullying. Do Something. 26 Jan. 2013 . Amanda Todd. Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Dec. 2012. Web. 12 Dec. 2012. How Many People Die Because of Cyber Bullying? Questions Answers. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2013. Delete Cyberbullying. Why Do People Cyberbully? N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Jan. 2013. Latest PostsCyber Bullying Facts. Cyber Bullying Facts. 26 Jan. 2013 . Ryans Story. Ryans Story Presentation. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2013. STOP Cyberbullying: What Is Cyberbullying, Exactly? STOP Cyberbullying: What Is Cyberbullying, Exactly? N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Dec. 2012. Zuckerberg: 500 Million Daily Active Users on Facebook. ZDNet. N.p., n.d. Web. 21 Jan. 2013.

language evaluation :: essays research papers

Speech and Language Evaluation Background History Sally A. S., a three year, two month old female was seen on September 15, 2004 for a speech and language evaluation at the University of Washington Speech and Hearing Clinic. It was requested that Sally be seen by the Snowside County Children’s Services because of her speech and language delay. Mary Doe was the caseworker. She was taken into a foster home at the age of eighteen months. At that time, she was said to be non-communicative. It took several weeks for the foster parents to get her to smile and at 23 months of age she said â€Å"mommy†. Up until the age of 18 months, it was noted that Sally hadn’t received the proper nutrition for a developing child. Her mother passed away, from the cause of a stroke when she was 13 months old. Informally, it has been ascertained that the mother’s health was quite poor during pregnancy. The cause of death was a stroke so we might get some hint of some of the problems that she had from this. Evidently the home situation was terrible. She has been seen at Snowside Medical Center and they have stated that she has delayed bone age. However, according to the foster mother, she has been progressing nicely as of late. The foster mother seems to be quite quick to explain Sally’s slowness as functional and is quite adamant about the fact that she is not retarded. At present, she is beginning to put words together. Her intelligibility is quite poor. Therefore, I could not obtain much in the way of an articulation sample. I was able to obtain a raw score of 25 on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test- Third Edition (PPVT-III) (Form B). She obtained a standard score of 75 and a percentile rank of 5 which converted to a language age of 18 months. It is felt that Sally can hear well since no history of ear infections has been reported. The hearing screening that we did was essentially normal. Certainly, from the history that we obtained, it seems as though we are dealing with a case of delayed speech and language acquisition that may certainly be explained in part or in its entirety by the very poor situation in which this child found herself for the first 18 months of her life during which the linguistic foundation should have been built.

Symbols in The Scarlet Letter Essay examples -- essays research papers

Symbols in "The Scarlet Letter" In The Scarlet Letter, symbols appear everywhere. Hawthorne uses several different concrete objects to represent something of deeper meaning. Among these symbols is the scarlet letter "A" itself. It is made of red cloth and beautifully embroidered. It is a literal symbol of the sin of adultery. The letter "A" appears in several places and several forms. It is the letter that appears on Hester's heart that she is condemned to wear for the remainder of her life. At Governor Bellingham's mansion it is magnified in the breastplate. It seems as though she is hidden behind it. On the night that Dimmesdale stands on the scaffold with Hester and Pearl, a huge letter A appears in the sky. Later, while in the forest, Pearl arranges a letter a on her heart that is made of eel grass. One of the most dramatic of the A's that appear in the book is the A that appears on Dimmesdale's chest. Not only does the "A" symbolize adultery, but it also has several other meanings to the different characters a s well. To the community, it is simply a mark of punishment. To Hester, it is a mark of embarrassment and humiliation. To Dimmesdale, the scarlet letter is a reminder of his own guilt. To Pearl, the mark is a mysterious curiosity. To Chillingworth, the "A" is his chance to get revenge on Dimmesdale. Later, the letter symbolizes "Able" when Hester wins some respect from the townspeople. The scarlet letter is meant to be a symbol of shame, but instead it becomes a powerful symbol of identity to Hester. The letter's meaning shifts as time passes. Originally intended to mark Hester as an adulterer, the â€Å"A† eventually comes to stand for â€Å"Able.† Finally, it becomes indeterminate: the Native Americans who come to watch the Election Day pageant think it marks her as a person of importance and status. Like Pearl, the letter functions as a physical reminder of Hester's affair with Dimmesdale. But, compared with a human child, the letter seems insignificant, and thus helps to point out the ultimate meaninglessness of the community's system of judgment and punishment. The child has been sent from God, or at least from nature, but the letter is merely a human contrivance. Additionally, the instability of the letter's apparent meaning calls into question society's ability to use symbols for ideological reinforcement. More often than not, a symbol becomes. .. ... opposed to the strict Puritan community and laws. However, it is also a place where the witches come and sign their souls to the devil. Therefore, the forest can also symbolize darkness and evil Forest One of the most integral parts of the book, when Hester Prynne speaks to the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale about their predicament, takes place in the forest. When reading the novel, it becomes increasingly apparent that there is a contrast between the forest and the town, as settings. The forest symbolizes a dark and mysterious place where impulses and urges reign and also where the goings-on are to be kept a secret. The forest is described as dismal, gloomy and full of shadows with an imposing, cloudy sky that is filled with threatening storms. When Dimmesdale and Hester first see each other, Hawthorne describes them as being "in the world beyond the grave, of two spirits who had intimately connected in their former life, but now stood coldly shuddering, in mutual dead". Also in the forest, Hester undid the clasp that fastened the scarlet letter, and, taking it from her bosom, threw it to a distance among the withered leaves....[and] took off the formal cap that confined her hair.

Harshness and Cruelty in Streetcar Named Desire :: Tennessee Williams, A Streetcar Named Desire

One of the main themes expressed by Tennessee Williams in his play, A Streetcar Named Desire, is to condemn those who display cruelty and harshness in their treatment of others, especially those who are weak and vulnerable.   Three characters who demonstrate these insensitive qualities are Blanche, Mitch, and Stanley.   Whether the cruelty is deliberate or not, it results in the destruction of others, both physically and mentally. Blanche Dubois, the central victim of mistreatment in the play, was herself, dealing out her share of insensitivities during her younger days.   When Blanche was 16, she had a very handsome lover named Allan Gray.   She was very much in love with him and decided to marry him.   But by total surprise one night, Blanche found her lover in bed with another man.   She tried to pretend that nothing had happened.   However, she was unable to hold what she saw inside, and told Allan "I saw,   I know, you disgust me†¦"( p.96). To Allan, Blanche seemed to be a person who accepted him for who he was in a society where homosexuals are discriminated against. What Blanche said completely devastated Allan and he found no reason to continue living.   Although Blanche had no intentions of hurting Allan, enough damage was done to prompt Allan to shoot himself, his mind and body destroyed. The harsh treatment dealt by Mitch to Blanche near the end of the play is strikingly similar to Blanche's treatment of Allan Gray.   Mitch is a friend of Stanley's whom Blanche falls for during her visit to New Orleans.   The relationship between Blanche and Mitch had been developing steadily.   Both characters felt the need to settle down in life and both saw the image of marriage at the outcome of their relationship.   It did seem as though the image would become reality, until Stan interfered.   Stan filled Mitch's mind with unfavourable stories of Blanche's checkered past and the relationship quickly turned sour.   Mitch had not believed Stan at first, but when he received confirmation of the truth to Stan's accusations, he became heart-broken and enraged.   Mitch goes to confront Blanche personally and accuses her of being a prostitute and lying to him.   Mitch also says that Blanche is hiding something, as he has never seen her in broad daylight.   He then tears the paper lantern off the light bulb, representing a tearing away of Blanche's shield from realism. Blanche admits to the accusations but reasons that she has changed her ways and never did lie in her heart.   Mitch appears to forgive her as he goes to kiss Blanche.   But in the midst of the embrace, Mitch blurts out, "You're not clean

Italy Tax System

Faculty of Business and Management, Brno University of Technology INTERNATIONAL AND EUROPEAN BUSINNES LAW Tax system in Italy 2009/2010 Taxation in Italy The taxation system in Italy is administered by the Agenzia delle Entrate (Revenue Agency) which is the national legal authority for taxation. Taxation of an individual's income in Italy is progressive. In other words, the higher the income, the higher the rate of tax payable. There are reduced rates of tax and tax exemptions available to certain income earners. The liability for Italian income tax depends on where a person is domiciled. A domicile is usually the country we regard as the permanent home and where we live most of the year. A foreigner working in Italy for an Italian company who became resident in Italy and has no income tax liability abroad is considered to have a tax domicile in Italy. A person can be resident in more than one country at any time, but can be domiciled only in one country. The country of domicile is important regarding inheritance tax, as there’s no longer any inheritance tax in Italy. Generally, person is considered to be an Italian resident and liable to Italian tax if any of the following applies: †¢The person has permanent home in Italy; †¢He/She stays at least 183 days in Italy during any calendar year †¢Person carries out paid professional activities or employment in Italy, except when secondary to business activities conducted in another country; †¢The centre of person’s economic interest in in Italy If the person is registered as a resident in a comune, he/ she is liable to pay income tax in Italy. If a person moves to Italy to take up a job or start a business, he/she must register with the local tax authorities soon after the arrival. This is done at a local tax office. An individual is also liable for tax on his income as an employee and on income as a self-employed person. Tax will be payable on income earned in Italy and overseas by an individual who meets the test of a â€Å"permanent resident† of Italy. A foreign resident who is employed in Italy pays tax only on income earned in Italy. It is important to point out as regards taxable income from outside Italy, that a â€Å"tax credit† is granted for tax deducted outside Italy. In the case of income from a salary, the employer is obligated to deduct the amount of tax payable on a monthly basis. A self-employed person must prepay income tax that will be offset on filing an annual return. The advance payment is determined on the basis of the return made for the previous year. In the event of a new business, the advance will be calculated on the basis of estimates made by the owner of the business. The taxation system in Italy is divided into two categories: Direct taxes * IRPEF or IRE: Imposta sui Redditti delle Persone Fisiche ( Personal Income Tax) * IRPEG or IRES: Imposta sur Redditi delle Persone Giuridiche (Corportation Tax on the Income of limited liability and joint-stock companies – SRL or SpA) * IRAP: Imposte Regionale sulle Attivita Produttive (Regional Tax which applies to the value of goods and services) Italy Personal Income Tax rates in year 2009 * 23%0 – 15,000(EUR) * 27%15,001-28,000(EUR) * 38%28,001-55,000(EUR) * 41%55,001-75,000(EUR) 43%75,001 and over (EUR) Capital Gains Tax in Italy For individuals capital gains are generally added to the regular income. †¢The rate of tax payable on capital gains from shareholding is 12. 5% for non-qualifying shareholding of up to 25% in a company. †¢For the purpose of calculating a capital gain, the gain is decreased in line with the rate of increase in inflation, from the date of purchase to the da te of sale. In regard to capital gains in a corporation, identical relief is allowed at the rate of increase in the Index. †¢Companies pay 27. 5% tax on capital gains. In sale of participation, 95% is tax exempt, subject to certain conditions. Italy Reporting Dates and Payment The tax year in Italy ends on December 31st. Advance payments of tax are made on the following basis. †¢ An Individual – An individual whose only income is from a salary is not obligated to file an annual tax return. His employer deducts tax from the employee and transfers the payment immediately to the tax authorities on a monthly basis. †¢ A Self-Employed Individual is obliged to pay 100% of the tax forecast for a year, or an amount that is the equivalent of 98% of the tax paid in the previous year. The pre-payment is made in two installments. 40% of the total is paid by June 20th and the remaining 60% is paid on November 30. The date for filing an annual return for an individual is July 31. Fines are imposed for arrears in filing an annual return at the rate of 120% – 240% of the tax, depending on the length of time that the return is in arrears. †¢ A Limited Company – A limited company is obligated to submit Financial Statements within 30 days of the date of approval of the Statements. Up until the date of approval of the Statements, the Company is obligated to pay the amount of tax due for the previous year as well as 40% of the advance on account of the tax forecast for the current year. Italy Deduction of Tax at Source Italy Taxation of Employees As regards employed persons, the employer is obligated to deduct tax at source from an employee and to make additional contributions to social security. Italy Social Security †¢An employed person – th e employer's contribution is around 30% of the salary and the employee's contribution is around 10% of the salary. A self-employed person – the rate of payment is between 17%-25. 7% with an upper limit that changes from year to year. Indirect taxes * IVA (VAT) * Imposta di Registro (Registration Tax) * Imposte Ipotecarie e Catastali (Mortgage and Land Registration) * Imposta di Bollo (Revenue Stamps) * Accise o Imposte di Fabbricazione e consumo (Inland Duties) IVA (VAT) * Standard Rate 20% (since Oct 1997) Reduced Rate 10% Italy VAT Recovery Time: 18 months Italy VAT Registration Threshold Non-Resident: Nil Inheritance Tax ; Gift Tax There is no longer any tax on inherited property, regardless of its value and the relationship between the deceased and the heirs. On immovable property and real property rights, the catastral tax (imposta catastale) and land registry tax (imposta ipotecaria) must be paid at the rates of one percent and two percent, respectively, of the cadastral value of the property or the real property rights included in the inheritance. If one of the beneficiaries satisfies the conditions for the main or only residence (prima casa), the cadastral and land registry taxes due on an inheritance or a gift are a fixed amount of â‚ ¬168 each. In relation to gifts, the rules vary depending on the degree of kinship and the value of the gift. There are no taxes payable on gifts in favour of a spouse, descendants or other relatives up to the fourth degree. Gifts in favour of persons other than those mentioned above are subject to taxes on the transfer if the value of the share due to each beneficiary is greater. Other Taxes There are other taxes payable to central, regional, provincial or local governments. These are usually paid once a year. Bollo Auto (Car Tax), which includes the tax on your car radio and the stamp duty on your Italian driving licence * Bollo Moto (Motorbike Tax) * Bollo Motorino (Scooter Tax) * Canone RAI (TV Tax) * Tassa Rifiuti (Garbage Tax) * Imposta Comunale Sugli Immobili – ICI (Municipal Property Tax) Deductible Burdens and Tax Allowances Tax allowances include the so-called â€Å"no-tax area†, (a deduction of between â‚ ¬3,000 and â‚ ¬7,500 to avoid taxing those on low incomes), as well as allowances for dependant family members (dependant wife and/or children). Some deductible burdens (oneri deducibili) are expenses which can be used to reduce the total income. For example: some types of medical expenses, national insurance contributions, donations to religious institutions, donations to universities, research bodies and associations for the protection of assets of artistic interest, the cadastral income (income deriving from the value of any land owned) of the main residence are considered to be deductible burdens. Some deductible burdens are expenses which can be used to reduce the amount of the gross tax due. Again by way of example: medical expenses, passive interest on mortgages, education expenses, donations to Bodies or Foundations for research, for performing arts, for social purposes, donations to political parties. Each type of expense has its own rules for the deductions. For example: from rental property income a fixed amount of 15 percent of the income is deducted for expenses, while from business and self-employed income the expenses sustained for the carrying out of the activity are deducted. Some unearned incomes are taxed only on 40 percent of the amount. The majority of these burdens are not deductible from the income of non-residents. Other deductions in Italy Deductions must be made from the following payments to nonresidents according to this table: * Dividend27 (1. 375% to EU and EEA residents) * Royalties22. 5% * Interest12. 5 / 27% * Director's Remuneration20% Deduction at source in the case of a dividend, royalties and interest paid to foreign residents is subject to the Double Taxation Prevention Treaty. Double Taxation Treaties Double taxation treaties contain rules that determine in which country an individual is resident. Italian residents are taxed on their world-wide income, subject to certain treaty exceptions. Non-residents are normally taxed only on income arising in Italy. Citizens of most other countries are exempt from paying taxes in their home country when they spend a minimum period abroad, e. g. a year. Double taxation treaties are designed to ensure that income that has already been taxed in one treaty country isn’t taxed again in another treaty country. The treaty establishes a tax credit or exemption on certain kinds of income, either in the country of residence or the country where the income was earned. Where applicable, a double taxation treaty prevails over domestic law. Italy has double taxation treaties with over 60 countries, including all members of the EU, Australia, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Iceland India, Israel, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, the Philippines, Poland, Romania, RSA, Russia, Singapore, the Slovak Republic, Sri Lanka, Switzerland, Turkey, and the US. Bibliography: SOCR. CZ. Pravidla pro volny pohyb sluzeb a svobodu usazovani v  EU- Italie. [online]. [cit. 2010-04-12]. URL:http://www. ocr. cz/images/prirucka/pdf/it. pdf, cit. 1 BUSINESSINFO:CZ. Italie: Financni a danovy sektor [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. URL:http://www. businessinfo. cz/cz/sti/italie-financni-a-danovy-sektor/5/1000683/ ANGLOINFO. COM. Personal Taxes – Income Tax, Capital Gains & Inheritance Tax – in Italy. [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. URL: http://rome. angloinfo. com/countries/italy/tax. asp CANAD INTERNATIONAL. GC:CA. Income and Other Taxes in Italy. [online]. [cit. 2010 012]. http://www. canadainternational. gc. ca/italy-italie/consular_services_consulaires/tax_italy-italie_taxes. aspx? lang=eng