The College of Law at the University of Baghdad Discusses a Master’s Thesis on Mechanisms for Subjecting Commercial Activities Conducted Through Social Media Platforms in Iraq to Taxation under the Provisions of the Amended Income Tax Law No. (113) of 1982.

The discussion committee consisted of the following professors:

1. Prof. Dr. Shaimaa Fares Mohammed — Chairman
2. Prof. Dr. Musaddaq Adel Talib — Member
3. Assist. Prof. Dr. Safaa Ali Hussein — Member
4. Assist. Prof. Dr. Ammar Fawzi Kadhim — Member and Supervisor

The thesis aimed to highlight the challenges associated with the tax treatment of commercial activities conducted through social media platforms and to propose the enactment of tax legislation addressing the imposition of taxes on entities engaged in commercial activities through social media, while expanding the scope of taxpayers subject to taxation.

The thesis consisted of three chapters. The first chapter examined the legal nature of the concept of commercial activities conducted through social media platforms in Iraq under the provisions of the amended Iraqi Income Tax Law No. (113) of 1982. The second chapter addressed tax evasion in relation to commercial activities conducted through social media in Iraq, as well as the positions of legal scholarship and legislation concerning the imposition of taxes and the determination and proof of income under the provisions of the amended Iraqi Income Tax Law No. (113) of 1982.

The third chapter examined the mechanisms for tax assessment and accounting in relation to commercial activities conducted through social media platforms under the provisions of the Iraqi Income Tax Law.

The thesis concluded with several recommendations, the most important of which are:

1. The Iraqi legislator should intervene to amend the provisions of the Iraqi Income Tax Law No. (113) of 1982 in line with modern digital developments, by expressly providing for the taxation of electronic commercial activities conducted through social media platforms.
2. The tax exemptions stipulated in the Iraqi Income Tax Law are exhaustive and may not be expanded through analogy or broad interpretation. This means that profits generated from electronic commercial activities conducted through social media platforms are subject to the provisions of the Income Tax Law unless there is an explicit statutory provision exempting them from taxation.

3. The Iraqi legislator has not yet established a comprehensive legal framework governing the evidentiary value of electronic evidence and the proof of income generated from electronic commercial activities conducted through social media platforms for income-tax purposes. This creates practical difficulties for both the tax administration and the judiciary.