The legality and effectiveness of waiving the £100 fine for a late tax return is being queried, despite the move receiving a warm welcome from taxpayers. Nearly 900,000 people who missed the 31 January deadline for submitting their tax returns could be let off paying the fine. HM Revenue and… – Continue reading
1. Permanent Establishment 1.1. Subjects and activities that generate a PE Article 64 of the LISH provides that a PE is created whenever ever a resident abroad for tax purposes carries on with activities under the LH in Mexican territory or the exclusive economic zone over which Mexico has jurisdiction…. – Continue reading
A series of recent federal enforcement actions targeting weaknesses in financial institutions’ Bank Secrecy Act/anti–money laundering (BSA/AML) compliance programs continued on June 15, when the Department of Justice (DOJ), Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) announced a coordinated enforcement against West Virginia’s Bank of Mingo…. – Continue reading
Switzerland’s banks will beef up anti-money laundering measures, the Swiss banking association said on Tuesday, weeks after a report by a government-appointed group found the Alpine nation was still vulnerable to financial crime. More transparent rules due to come into force next year will make it harder for criminals to… – Continue reading
New digital identity systems could be used to combat money laundering and terrorist financing risks linked with the use of virtual currencies, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has said. In new guidance (48-page / 622KB PDF) it has issued, FATF said a risk-based approach is required when imposing measures… – Continue reading
Chinese emigration continues to grow as the nation becomes increasingly wealthy. However, a handful of those leaving the country are wanted financial criminals, and they are heading to all corners of the world. While the United States and Canada continue to be popular destinations for corrupt Chinese on the run,… – Continue reading
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought legal assistance from Singapore and Mauritius to take forward its probe in the alleged financial irregularities in the Indian Premier League tournament (IPL) and its former chairman Lalit Modi. New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought legal assistance from Singapore and Mauritius to… – Continue reading
OLDWICK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Proposed U.S. legislation aimed at preventing offshore tax avoidance by closing a tax loophole that allows offshore reinsurers to take advantage of an exception to the passive foreign investment company (PFIC) rules of the U.S. Tax Code will not lead to rating revisions over the near term, according… – Continue reading
The Full Court of the Federal Court has recently removed previous doubts concerning whether Part IVA could be applied to a scheme involving the formation of a tax consolidated group. In the case that was before the Full Court, a company (Subco) joined a tax consolidated group and as a… – Continue reading
British banks have fallen down world league tables for lenders so rapidly that there may soon not be a global-ranked bank in this country, the editor of the industry bible has warned, reports the Independent. “At one time several UK banks were among a handful of truly global players,” said… – Continue reading
June 30 — Taxpayers continue to wrestle with big questions a year after the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act opened for business. Acknowledging that the Internal Revenue Service is doing its best to implement a complex law, issues still remain as the reach of FATCA goes global, practitioners told Bloomberg… – Continue reading
The European Commission has released a working paper that looks at how significant the introduction of the modified nexus approach will be for the tax affairs of multinational companies that use patent box regimes Entitled Patent Boxes Design, Patents Location, and Local R&D, the paper suggests “that in the majority… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs have confirmed to the Australian Treasury that Australian superannuation funds no longer comply with its rules under the new pension age test for them to remain recognised overseas pensions, FTAdviser understands. These funds have the facility to allow recognised overseas pensions. HMRC’s pension age test requires… – Continue reading
A ruling at the First-tier Tribunal has allowed different form of tax credit relief on certain types of offshore dividends taxed in the UK. Overpayment claims for 2010/11 and later years should be considered immediately. Shirley v HMRC A UK resident who benefited from an overseas trust has successfully claimed… – Continue reading
The Dubai International Financial Centre spent the first 10 years of its existence looking to banks in the West. It’s planning to spend the next decade looking East, reports the Gulf Times. DIFC, as the tax-free business park is called, became the Middle East’s biggest financial centre by attracting the… – Continue reading
THE focus of a high-level inquiry into corporate tax avoidance will move to some of the globe’s biggest drug companies during hearings today. After revealing details of the tax minimisation strategies at Google, Apple and Microsoft, the Senate’s Standing Committee on Economics will hear from pharmaceutical executives in Sydney. Among… – Continue reading
A third of local authorities used Bankruptcy Orders last year to recover council tax arrears, new research has revealed. Figures obtained by Moore Stephens show that 32% of local authorities took bankruptcy actions against council tax defaulters, making more than 1,000 tax defaulters bankrupt in 2013/14. Nearly half (48%) of… – Continue reading
Offshore accounts can keep you up at night. Starting in 2009 with changes in 2011, 2012, and 2014, the IRS has had big success in bringing people into compliance. Over the last 6 years, over 50,000 people have done it, paying about $7 billion in back taxes, interest and penalties…. – Continue reading
Andrew Tyrie MP, chairman of the Treasury select committee, has proposed a variety of ways for the government to strengthen the Office of Tax Simplification, one of which is that the OTS must be “more independent” and should not be a “creature” of the tax man. The Conservative party manifesto… – Continue reading
WILKES-BARRE — The Wilkes-Barre Area School Board approved a property tax increase of 2.7 percent and authorized the official submission to the state of a plan to build a new, consolidated high school. About a dozen critics of the plan to merge Coughlin and Meyers high schools attended Monday’s board… – Continue reading
A common mistake when analyzing the tax implications of a cross border transaction is to jump too quickly to the ramifications of a tax treaty without first having a clear handle on the tax implications under the Income Tax Act (Canada) (“ITA”). A related issue is that even though a… – Continue reading
The UAE ranked 15th in an index rating countries’ residency-in-return-for-investment programmes As global economic growth slackens, a number of countries are offering citizenship or residency permits in return for investment in their markets. According to the latest Global Residency Programme Index by Henley & Partners, Portugal topped the list with… – Continue reading
We consider the retirement options for three top expat destinations – New Zealand, Bahrain and Singapore Retiring overseas is an aspiration for many expats, especially after they have spent much of their working life outside the UK. But while you may think you know what’s involved, there are many things… – Continue reading
A new HMRC taskforce has been launched to go after wealthy tax cheats in Northern Ireland. Investigators from HM Revenue and Customs will use Land Registry and Merchant Acquirer data to identify those with “badges of wealth” such as large houses, aeroplanes, boats and undeclared offshore bank accounts, which are… – Continue reading
FATCA will have an impact on virtually all trusts regardless of whether they have any US connection. Trustees must consider their status under FATCA as soon as possible to ensure that they comply with its provisions. What is FATCA? FATCA is an anti-avoidance measure introduced by the US authorities which… – Continue reading
FATCA will have an impact on virtually all trusts regardless of whether they have any US connection. Trustees must consider their status under FATCA as soon as possible to ensure that they comply with its provisions. What is FATCA? FATCA is an anti-avoidance measure introduced by the US authorities which… – Continue reading
NEW YORK and SHORT HILLS, N.J., June 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Marking the one-year deadline for foreign financial institutions (FFIs) to identify their preexisting entity account base for purposes of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), KPMG LLP, the U.S. audit, tax and advisory firm, and Dun & Bradstreet… – Continue reading
Insurance and financial advisors are being reminded that they will be in the position from time to time to defend Barbados’ reputation as a ‘fine jurisdiction’ in the area of international and financial services, reports the Barbados Advocate. This was pointed out by Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade,… – Continue reading
South Korea will serve as chair of an inter-governmental policymaking body on preventing money laundering starting next month, the country’s financial regulator said Monday. South Korea was appointed as the chair country of the Financial Action Task Force at its plenary meeting in February last year to become the third… – Continue reading
Banks and other financial companies want the new Conservative government to cut the cost of complying with a swath of new regulation, according to a survey by the Confederation of British Industry, reports The Guardian. When the employers’ lobby group asked firms what the government should do to help the… – Continue reading
PIA FORUM with DOREEN KAMBANGANJI Effects of money laundering and terrorist financing Min Zhu, deputy managing director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), made the following expression on the effects of money laundering and terrorist financing: “Money laundering and the financing of terrorism are financial crimes with economic effects. They… – Continue reading
Switzerland’s private banks are close to ridding themselves of undeclared European accounts, a salutary process but one which has undermined efforts to grow their businesses. Following the financial crisis, cash-strapped governments chased accounts hidden at banks in Zurich, Geneva and Ticino where wealthy Europeans had taken advantage of Switzerland’s famous… – Continue reading
Protection from further scrutiny to be limited to foreign income disclosed during compliance window The income tax (I-T) department will take for granted the disclosures of hidden overseas wealth during the limited compliance period to be announced early this week under the new black money law. The persons using the… – Continue reading
By ESTHER MSETEKA, Mazabuka LUSAKA Stock Exchange (LuSE) chief executive officer Brian Tembo says there is need for Government to formulate a capital market policy that links foreign direct investment to listing. Mr Tembo said the country needs to find ways which can help create linkages between companies that invest… – Continue reading
“THE decision by a group of European Union (EU) Member States to blacklist Barbados as being non-cooperative and further claim that Barbados and 29 other countries, mostly small islands, do not meet its standards of transparency, exchange of information and fair tax competition, is hypocritical and on the face of… – Continue reading
The accusation that Hong Kong is a tax haven is unfounded and unfair, says Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Ceajer Chan Ka-keung. Chan wrote in his blog that the European Commission should review its inclusion of Hong Kong in the list of non- cooperative tax jurisdictions in mid-June…. – Continue reading
Belize’s banking sector has caught up with the standards and regulations set by the US and European Union for accountability and transparency in our offshore sector. That’s what the new Director of the Financial Intelligence Unit had to say at press conference rarely called by the stat. Unless you’re a… – Continue reading
When it comes to the topic of offshore corporations, some people immediately think of illegal tax shelters, but that is not the case. Currently, the IRS is working tirelessly to track down U.S. citizens and residents with unreported offshore income or assets and the new FATCA regulations make it virtually… – Continue reading
VAM Funds has entered into a partnership with UK-based Close Brothers Asset Management (CBAM) to meet a rising demand for discretionary fund management services from international advisers. The tie-up will see three of CBAM’s products, which are normally available only in the UK, become available internationally through VAM Discretionary Funds…. – Continue reading
Transnational agrochemical and seed giant Monsanto has reiterated its desire to merge with fellow chemical-producing behemoth Syngenta, a company that has already rebuffed three previous purchase attempts by Monsanto. Announcing unexpectedly positive third quarter earnings late last week, Monsanto said that it is still seeking ways to woo Switzerland-based Syngenta… – Continue reading
The “wall of Chinese capital” hitting property markets in Sydney and Melbourne will not ease up until the government introduces its anti-money laundering legislation, says an expert in ‘flight capital’. James Tee, an ethnic Chinese property developer whose business specialises in “capital expatriation” – that is, getting money out of… – Continue reading
The U.S. Justice Department said on Friday it reached a resolution with the Swiss regional bank Ersparniskasse Schaffhausen AG (EKS) on possible tax-related criminal offenses. According to terms of the agreement, EKS will cooperate in any related criminal or civil proceedings, show implementation of controls to stop misconduct and pay… – Continue reading
The Baltic republic of Latvia has pulled Bermuda off its blacklist of uncooperative tax jurisdictions supplied to the European Commission. And the move means the Island has dropped below the ten-nation threshold for inclusion on the EU hitlist — leading Finance Minister Bob Richards to demand Bermuda be taken off… – Continue reading
Multinational drug companies are presenting a united front ahead of their appearance at the Senate’s corporate tax avoidance inquiry, insisting they are honest, ethical and pay their fair share of tax. Nine pharmaceutical companies, which between them receive billions of dollars in taxpayer-subsidised sales via the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, will… – Continue reading
Mara could have set up an Australian subsidiary but instead chose to construct an elaborate network in several countries. KUALA LUMPUR: National Oversight & Whistleblowers (NOW), an NGO headed by Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli, has alleged that the nature of Mara property purchases overseas was camouflaged through various offshore companies… – Continue reading
The US Administration has put more of its hoped-for, but perhaps poltically difficult, tax reforms into the Fact Sheet that was issued after the 2015 United States-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue held in Washington on June 23-24. In the 2014 Fact Sheet, the Administration had merely stated that it was… – Continue reading
The UK’s Supreme Court has ruled that a KPMG scheme to enable dealer group Pendragon to recover VAT on demonstrator cars sold as used cars was “abusive” of the law. Its decision earlier this month has overturned a previous Court of Appeal ruling on the scheme, which Pendragon used on… – Continue reading
Fijians who have assets overseas now have time until October 15 to declare them. Government had announced in the 2015 budget an amnesty period for all Fijians to declare the assets they have offshore. Since then $13.5million worth of overseas assets owned by Fijians had been declared. Attorney-General and Minister… – Continue reading
Bank Leumi was found to have failed to fulfill reporting requirements. The Banking Corporations Sanctions Committee that oversees the prohibition on money laundering and terror financing yesterday imposed a NIS 4.2 million fine on Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI) for violations of regulations under the Prohibition on Money Laundering Law. Bank… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON – An international money laundering watchdog says member states should pay “special attention” to financial transactions with North Korea. The Paris-based Financial Action Task Force last week reaffirmed its earlier decision to put the community country on its watch list because of North Korea’s “failure to address the significant… – Continue reading
