Bolivia Proposes New Law Against Tax Havens
The new bill is intended to stop tax havens — especially those exposed by the Panama Papers last year.
Bolivian lawmakers have proposed a new bill to help fight tax evasion.
The new bill, “Bill to Combat the Use of Tax Havens,” is intended to stop tax havens — especially those exposed by the Panama Papers last year.
The bill will be sent to Bolivia’s legislative body, Asamblea Legislativa Plurinacional, ALP, for approval. If passed, the law will empower entities to investigate tax haven-related crimes.
The president of the Legislative Committee of the Plurinational Assembly, Manuel Canelas said that after the report is finally approved, the government will take necessary measures to ensure the law is enacted.
Last April, the Panama Papers exposed over 11 million leaked documents implicating several individuals, companies around the world who used illegal means to evade taxes by creating shell companies and other methods.
The law comes as part of a report on the Panama Paper cases in Bolivia.
The joint commission which investigated the cases looked at issues of financial irregularities in cities known to be prominent tax havens like the Bahamas, Virgin Islands and Panama.
According to the report, of the 360 companies registered in Bolivia under investigation, 198 people have opened fresh cases against 76 of them.
In December, the presidents of Latin American countries, Ecuador and Bolivia joined hands to clamp down on offshore havens and tax dodging.
Reports show that money from tax evasion can help lift 32 million people out of poverty in Latin America alone, equivalent to the total population of people in poverty in Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia, El Salvador and Peru.