Mr Ong Sim Ho
Advocate and Solicitor, Singapore
Barrister-at-law, Lincoln's Inn
Fellow Chartered Accountant of Singapore
Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax & GST)
LL.B (Hons)(London)(1993)
B.Acc (Hons)(Nanyang Technological University of Singapore), 1993

Sim Ho has practised tax law for the past 16 years with extensive experience in tax litigation and dispute resolution. Before private practice, he was a legal counsel with the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore. His forte lies in his multi-disciplinary approach where he incorporates legal, finance, risk governance, and accounting perspectives.

Clients appreciate his willingness to make judgment calls when it comes to grey areas as well as his extensive industry experience and commercial perspective. He stays in touch with developments in business and commerce through his various board roles, including serving as chairman of a life insurance company and on the Advisory Board of the School of Accountancy at the Singapore Management University.

The Court of Appeal recently handed down its decision on BFC v Comptroller of Income Tax [2014] SGCA 39. Whilst its decision to uphold the disallowance of the specific borrowing costs in the case was uncontroversial and, with respect, not surprising given the facts of the case, the Court laid down a groundbreaking interpretation of the relationship between sections 14(1) and 15(1)(c). This decision fundamentally altered our understanding of deduction of expenses in general. In particular there is arguably an unjustifiable paramountcy of the income production element as a criterion for deduction. Come and engage in a robust discussion with Accredited Tax Advisor (Income Tax & GST) Mr Ong Sim Ho on the fundamental legal principles on the deduction of expenses in the light of the BFC decision.