Food Lion 2007 Annual Report Download - page 115

Financial Calendar
Press release - 2008 first quarter results May 7, 2008*
Final date for depositing shares
for the Ordinary General Meeting May 16, 2008**
Ordinary General Meeting May 22, 2008
ADR dividend record date May 30, 2008
Dividend for the financial year 2007
becomes payable to owners of ordinary shares May 30, 2008
Dividend for the financial year 2007 becomes
payable to ADR holders June 11, 2008
Press release - 2008 second quarter results August 4, 2008*
Press release - 2008 third quarter results November 6, 2008*
** You are kindly invited to listen to the related conference call. See www.delhaizegroup.com for further details
on the conference call and the webcast.
**
Holders of bearer or dematerialized shares are informed that May 2, 2008 is a bank holiday and May 12, 2008
is a public holiday in Belgium. Therefore, they are advised to contact their bank or broker in due time.
Type of Delhaize Group Shares
Delhaize shares are either held in dematerialized form, bearer shares, or regis-
tered shares. Bearer shares are shares held either in a securities account or in a
printed form. Dematerialized shares are shares that can only be represented by
entries into an account in the book of a depositary institution. Registered shares
are shares that can only be represented by entries into a shareholder register
held by the Company. On request, shareholders may convert their shares into
another form at their own expense. The ownership of registered shares can be
transferred by informing the Company and returning the certificate of record in
the shareholder register to the Company. Pursuant to new legistlation on the
dematerialization of securities, as from January 1, 2008, bearer shares booked
into a securities account have been automatically converted into dematerialized
shares. Bearer shares not yet booked in a securities account shall be automati-
cally converted into dematerialized shares as from the time they are booked into
a securities account. All remaining bearer shares that shall not have been depos-
ited in a securities account shall be converted at the choice of their holder into
dematerialized or registered shares by December 31, 2013.
Information for ADR Holders
ADSs (American Depositary Shares), each representing one ordinary share of
Delhaize Group, are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol
DEG. ADSs are evidenced by American Depositary Receipts (ADRs). The Delhaize
Group ADR program is administrated by:
The Bank of New York
Shareholder Relations
P.O. Box 11258
Church Street Station
New York, N.Y. 10286-1258
U.S.A.
Toll free telephone number for U.S. callers: 1-877-853-2191
Non-U.S. callers can call: 1- 212 815 3700
e-mail: [e-mail]
website: www.stockbny.com
The Bank of New York has put in place a Global BuyDIRECT Plan for Delhaize
Group, which is a direct purchase and sale plan for depositary receipts, includ-
ing a dividend reinvestment plan (DRIP). For further information on ADRs or
Global BuyDIRECT, please see the ADR section on Delhaize Group’s website
www.delhaizegroup.com or call The Bank of New York.
Taxation of Dividends of Delhaize Group Shares
It is assumed that, for the application of domestic Belgian tax legislation and the
U.S.-Belgian tax treaty, owners of Delhaize Group ADRs are treated the same as
owners of Delhaize Group shares and that the ADRs are treated as Delhaize Group
shares. However, it must be noted that this assumption has not been confirmed or
verified with the Belgian Tax Authorities.
For Belgian income tax purposes, the gross amount of all distributions made by
Delhaize Group to its shareholders (other than repayment of paid-up capital in
accordance with the Belgian Company Code) is generally taxed as dividends.
Dividends that are attributed or paid on the shares are in principle subject to a
25% Belgian withholding tax.
For non-Belgian residents - individuals and corporations - Belgian withholding
tax is retained also at the rate of 25% subject to the reductions or exemptions
provided by Belgian tax law or by the tax treaty concluded between Belgium and
the country of which the non-Belgian beneficiary of the dividend is a resident.
Such withholding tax is normally the final tax in Belgium.
For dividends paid by Delhaize Group to a U.S. holder of ADRs, beneficial owner
of the dividends, who is not holding the shares through a permanent establish-
ment or a fixed base in Belgium and is entitled to claim benefits under the
U.S.-Belgian tax treaty, the withholding tax is reduced from 25% to 15%. If the
beneficial owner is a company that owns directly at least 10% of the voting stock
of Delhaize Group, a reduced withholding tax rate of 5% is applicable. No with-
holding tax is however applicable if the beneficial owner of the dividends is i) a
company, resident of the U.S. that has owned directly shares representing at least
10% of the capital of Delhaize Group for a 12-month period ending on the date
the dividend is declared, or ii) a pension fund, resident of the U.S., provided that
the dividends are not derived from carrying on a business by the pension fund or
through an associated enterprise.
Although there are exceptions, in general the full 25% Belgian withholding tax
must be withheld by Delhaize Group or the paying agent, and the non-Belgian
holder of Delhaize Group shares or ADRs may file a claim for reimbursement for
amounts withheld in excess of the treaty rate. The reimbursement claim form
(Form 276 Div.-Aut.) can be obtained from the AFER - Bureau Central de Taxation,
Bruxelles-Etranger, Tour North Galaxy B7, Boulevard Albert II 33, B –1030 Brussels,
Belgium. (phone: [phone], fax: [phone], email: bct.cd.bruxelles.
[email protected]).The form should be completed in duplicate and sent to the
relevant Tax Office in the residence country of the non-Belgian holder with the
request that one copy be appropriately stamped and returned to the sender.
DELHAIZE GROUP / ANNUAL REPORT 2007 113