Director, Income Tax Advisory

Air Canada•Dorval, QC

About The Position

Being part of Air Canada is to become part of an iconic Canadian symbol, recently ranked the best Airline in North America. Let your career take flight by joining our diverse and vibrant team at the leading edge of passenger aviation. The Director, Income Tax Advisory provides enterprise-wide leadership on complex international tax strategy, corporate structuring, and major transformational transactions. This role is accountable for shaping Air Canada’s long-term tax position in support of global expansion, financing initiatives, acquisitions, and other new business initiatives. The Director, Income Tax Advisory acts as the principal international tax advisor to senior leadership, on strategic initiatives. The Director is accountable for the development and execution of tax strategies supporting Air Canada’s global growth, and operational transformation. Although the role has no direct reports, it exercises significant leadership through enterprise influence and governance. Key accountabilities for the Director, Income Tax Advisory include leading tax strategy for major transactions including global financings and refinancings, defining the tax implications of international expansion, new routes, new products and non-air initiatives launch, and other special projects. Additionally, the incumbent is accountable for designing and implementing an efficient corporate structure, providing executive-level counsel on tax risks and long-term fiscal impacts, optimizing corporate structures to minimize effective tax rate and cash tax while ensuring regulatory compliance. The Director, Income Tax Advisory represents Air Canada in negotiations with governmental and regulatory authorities, leading the organization’s response to emerging international tax regimes (such as International Digital Services Taxes and Pillar Two), as well as exercising independent judgment on strategic business models. In addition, this position requires a thorough understanding of the airline industry (or to acquire rapidly this understanding), and its constantly changing environment in order to keep pace with the long-term business plan and take the necessary steps to mitigate tax risks. Director, Income Tax Advisory will collaborate with the Director, Income Tax to coordinate the implementation of new tax developments and/or new business initiatives from a compliance perspective. It is incumbent on the Director, Income Tax Advisory to be pro-active by developing relationships and networking with other departments at Air Canada and its subsidiaries to stay on top of new business opportunities.

Requirements

Chartered Professional Accountant or Law degree.
Master’s degree (or equivalent) in tax is required.
Minimum eighteen (18) years of experience in international income tax, with a strong preference for experience in a tax planning role.
Solid technical expertise in corporate income tax (Canadian and foreign).
Demonstrated experience in business support activities and special projects.
Demonstrated experience and comfort dealing with high level governmental authorities, Canadian and foreign.
Superior executive presentation, analytical and project management skills.
Build strategic and tactical plans while navigating an evolving business environment.
Proven ability to work in a highly dynamic environment and under pressure.
Strong analytical skills combined with a demonstrated ability to handle multiple files.
Viewed as a highly credible professional; ethically uncompromising exhibiting the highest level of integrity
Exceptional judgment, organizational and decision-making skills.
Strong business acumen.
A result driven, dedicated team player who possesses a strong work ethic.
Excellent interpersonal and communication skills (oral and written).
Strong leadership, people management, and coaching/mentoring skills, as well as providing guidance, support and training for direct reports and broader team.
To succeed in this role, the incumbent must be engaging, flexible, perseverant and capable of handling pressure situations with tight deadlines and rapidly with changing environment.
Demonstrate punctuality and dependability to support overall team success in a fast-paced environment.

Nice To Haves

Experience in the air transportation and/or travel industry is an asset.
Significant knowledge and experience with Tax Treaties and Bilateral Agreements is an asset.
Knowledge of US income tax is an asset.
Bilingual (English and French) is an asset.

Responsibilities

Acts as the primary strategic tax authority for executive leadership and major business units.
Partners and collaborates with cross-functional teams involving Finance, Legal, Network Planning, Commercial, Loyalty, Operations, IT, and external advisors.
Selects, mandates, and supervises international tax advisors to support international initiatives.
Evaluates tax impacts and leads international tax planning and influence senior decision-makers for financings, international expansion, new products launch and other business initiatives.
Leads the Company’s global international tax planning framework.
Establishes governance models for international tax compliance and risk management.
Monitors and assesses tax legislative developments worldwide.
Provides early-stage strategic tax input on proposed initiatives.
Guides business units on structuring activities to minimize tax costs and risks.
Manages exposure related to permanent establishment.
Leads negotiations with foreign tax authorities.
Provides support for audits, objections, appeals, and settlement processes.
Engages with international organizations and industry forums on tax policy.
Identifies and mitigates emerging tax risks.
Proactively assess and recommend optimal structure for the group.
Ensures alignment between business strategy and tax compliance.
Principal SME for income tax audits and litigation, shaping defensibility, positioning, and resolution strategies for the group.
Support the Senior Director, Taxes with Canadian income tax matters.