The European Union, locked in a tax battle with the likes of Apple Inc. and McDonald’s Corp., laid down the law in its bid to rein in governments that woo multinationals with special fiscal deals allowing them to reduce their fiscal liability by booking profits abroad. The European Commission, which… – Continue reading
Tensions between the EU and the US over tax follow investigations into Apple in Ireland The US should be added to a new European blacklist of tax havens being drawn up by the European Commission, according to a report commissioned by the Green group in the European Parliament. The report,… – Continue reading
Australia announced a further crackdown on multinational tax avoidance in its annual budget on Tuesday, including the planned introduction of a UK-style diverted profits tax (DPT), that it expects to raise A$3.9 billion over the next four years. The government is creating a new Tax Avoidance Taskforce of 1,000 specialist… – Continue reading
IT’S ALL COMING TOGETHER: Corporate inversions. The Panama Papers. Those European investigations into big-name companies like Apple. And the BEPS project coming out of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. As Tax Pro Katy O’Donnell reports, tax practitioners and wonks might like to say that some of those things… – Continue reading
The former PwC employee turned whistleblower behind the LuxLeaks scandal that implicated Luxembourg in industrial tax avoidance went on trial in the tiny European duchy on Tuesday. Antoine Deltour, 30, a former auditor at global accounting firm PwC, is accused of stealing documents from his employer before he quit the… – Continue reading
ANALYSIS: Despite some action from both Labor and Coalition governments, multinationals are still using accounting tricks to avoid paying Australian tax.While politicians in Canberra bicker over whether or not to cut company tax, or whether it’s acceptable for effective income tax rates to rise through bracket creep, glaring leaks in… – Continue reading
The European Commission is looking into advance pricing agreements (APAs) given to financing companies and other businesses to see if they constitute illegal state aid, the MNE Tax news site has reported EU competition commissioner Margrethe Vestager told the European Parliament’s TAXE 2 committee that her office has reviewed 1,000… – Continue reading
It’s easy to stoke outrage at multinationals’ low taxes but harder to do something about it. According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) – the so-called rich-countries club – tax avoidance by multinational companies is worth US$100-240 billion a year. That’s 4-10% of total global corporate income… – Continue reading
Global international tax takes from multinational companies will almost certainly increase in the next 5-10 years as governments around the world look to level the taxation playing field. Commenting on the New Zealand Herald’s series examining ‘the tax gap’ – multinationals channelling earnings to lower tax regimes, disadvantaging some of… – Continue reading
Ireland’s 12.5 percent corporate tax rate has encouraged several major U.S. companies like Medtronic, Pfizer, Johnson Controls, and Baxalta to move there in tax inversions in recent months, saving them billions of dollars of taxes and protecting themselves from international competition in the process. The U.S. corporate tax rate, on… – Continue reading
Amazon’s Italy chief tells Bloomberg the company is cooperating with the authorities European Union member states continue their crackdown on American companies that they believe have avoided tax payments. Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) is the latest company under investigation for its tax dealings in Italy, the company’s chief for Italy and… – Continue reading
In the final session of the two day Global Tax Conference at Dublin Castle yesterday, a senior Canadian tax advisor used the analogy of children playing football to describe the relationship between multinationals and government when it comes to tax. In a kids football match, he said, when the ball… – Continue reading
The amount of tax multinational companies pay – and the amount they don’t pay – has become highly controversial, writes RTÉ’s Economics Correspondent Sean Whelan. This is mainly as a result of public outrage over legal tax avoidance schemes that big companies can use to shelter vast amounts of money… – Continue reading
Fortune 500 firms may be avoiding $695 billion in U.S. income taxes on $2.4 trillion held offshore. What do Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump have in common? Both seek an end to the use of offshore tax havens by corporate America. Bernie Sanders’ plan ends the ability of corporations to… – Continue reading
EU countries will exchange information on the tax affairs of multinational companies under new rules backed by EU finance ministers aimed at stopping big companies avoiding paying their fair share into government coffers. The rules, that should take effect later this year, are a response to growing concerns about corporate… – Continue reading
For several years now Google has been facing what appears to be a case of tax avoidance in the UK, at some point in time, the company went as far saying it did not make any money from business in the UK all in a desperate attempt to pay less… – Continue reading
Facebook has caved to the tax pressure. The company is likely to pay millions more in U.K. taxes after making changes to its corporate structure that will stop revenue earned in the U.K. from being routed through Ireland. Facebook had been accused of “profit shifting,” a common practice for multinational… – Continue reading
A quiet revolution is taking place across Europe. It isn’t playing out on the streets of capital cities or in the debating chambers of national parliaments. It has been slowly happening with every newspaper headline about how little corporation tax some companies pay relative to their size. It is also… – Continue reading
Apple has sold $12billion in bonds as part of another scheme to lower its tax bill. The tech giant got itself further into debt even though it has $215billion in the bank, more than the US Treasury. California-based Apple sold the bonds under a complicated scheme which is reportedly designed… – Continue reading
Google’s top global tax executive told U.K. lawmakers that a new U.K. tax provision dubbed “the Google Tax” will not actually apply to the U.S. technology giant. The law, officially the Diverted Profits Tax, was introduced last year amid concerns that Google parent Alphabet Inc. and other global tech companies… – Continue reading
Just when you thought the banksters had done all they could to rig the game against people that bail them out, you hear another tale of industrial-strength greed. This time, the scam is so ironic it’s almost absurd. For almost a decade the U.S. government has been going around the… – Continue reading
Australian Treasurer Scott Morrison says overseas companies selling digital products to Australians will not be able to avoid paying the GST. The so-called Netflix Tax that would see overseas-based businesses selling digital products to Australians collect 10 percent GST has entered the House of Representatives. Introduced by Treasurer Scott Morrison,… – Continue reading
When Tim Cook and his two senior Apple colleagues were questioned by a US Senate sub-committee back in May 2013, the headlines generated in the world’s business press were unsettling. Some lawmakers repeatedly characterised Ireland as a tax haven, saying behemoth Apple channelled billions of dollars of global revenues generated… – Continue reading
Large multinational corporations such as Amazon.com, Apple, Google and Starbucks with operations in Europe have long been able to keep the tax rate they pay in one country secret, not only from neighboring nations but also from their competitors. Critics say this lack of transparency has allowed companies to unfairly… – Continue reading
A collective of unions has slammed the latest proposals by the European Commission to stamp out elaborate tax plans used by multinational companies to move vast profits around the EU in an effort to reduce their corporate tax bills in member states. The European Commission last week published a series… – Continue reading
McDonald’s Australia was able to more than halve its tax bill last year after routing payments via the low-tax nation of Singapore. Each year McDonald’s reduces its profit, and thus its local tax bill, by paying McDonald’s Asia Pacific based in Singapore, and registered in Delaware, a “service fee” amounting… – Continue reading
The brands are known worldwide, and even though global companies like Google, Amazon, and Starbucks make billions — they pay little or no taxes at all in the UK and other markets where the firms make a majority of revenue and profits. Companies like Microsoft, Twitter, and Apple don’t set… – Continue reading
Revenue spike sees tech firm’s parent company, Alphabet, valued at $568bn – surpassing Apple’s valuation of $535bn Google has become the world’s most valuable listed company after announcing that its global revenues rose 13% to $75bn (£52bn) last year, and the group’s tax rate fell to just 17%. The group… – Continue reading
JOHANNESBURG – A data sharing agreement signed by 31 countries – including South Africa – in a bid to enhance transparency by multinational enterprises, is unlikely to have an immediate impact on mining companies. Through the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on the Exchange of Country-by-Country Reporting, signed by members of… – Continue reading
Australia is one of 31 countries to sign an agreement in Paris to confidentially share tax information on multinational companies in a bid to stamp out tax avoidance. The deal comes as Apple has taken advantage of accounting rules in its local business that could allow it to pay virtually… – Continue reading
x The government plans to exchange financial information on multinational firms doing business here with members of the OECD and G20 countries in order to make them pay appropriate taxes to countries where profits are generated, officials said Thursday. The Ministry of Strategy and Finance said that it will follow… – Continue reading
Over the last two decades, an increasing number of companies have chosen to register or establish subsidiaries in offshore financial centres. OFCs are characterized by low taxation, flexible regulations, and secrecy policies (see Fig 1 for the list of OFCs, ranked by Offshore Attitude Index). Many companies with subsidiaries offshore… – Continue reading
Could you be one of the lucky expats who qualifies for tax free living in the Seychelles? Or would you have to pay the Seychelles flat tax on personal income? At first glance it looks as though the Seychelles levies a flat rate of personal income tax, and at only… – Continue reading
Directive follows a series of high-profile tax cases involving Google, Apple and others. Rampant corporate tax dodging and sweetheart deals that cheat governments and skew markets, have prompted the European Commission to unveil a new directive Thursday. The proposed legislation follows a quick succession of tax rulings, settlements and investigations… – Continue reading
DAVOS, Switzerland—Google said Friday that it has struck a deal with U.K. authorities that will settle a tax dispute and boost its corporate taxes in Britain, part of a broader effort by European governments to wring more out of big firms in the tech sector. As part of the settlement,… – Continue reading
GE division makes millions in sales to health service, and is net beneficiary from UK Exchequer One of the biggest suppliers of equipment and testing services to the NHS pays barely any corporate tax in the UK, despite receiving hundreds of millions of pounds a year from medical sales to… – Continue reading
Multinational companies are facing severe constraints on their ability to avoid taxes on their activities in Europe as regulators seek to close loopholes laid bare by the LuxLeaks scandal Pierre Moscovici, the EU’s tax policy chief, will set out plans next week to curb practices such as using debt interest… – Continue reading
While most computer users are likely familiar with Adobe products, they are probably not aware of the company’s tax-dodging practices. The maker of the ubiquitous PDF reader and Flash software earlier this week released its annual report, which revealed the company is rapidly diverting profits offshore. Its stash of “permanently… – Continue reading
Apple Inc. is pushing back against an European tax investigation that could force the iPhone maker to pay more than $8 billion in back taxes. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook met with the European Commission’s antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager in Brussels on Thursday to press the company’s case. After the… – Continue reading
Having companies pay their tax where they make their profits is the best way to resolve unfair tax competition between member states, Competition Commissioner Margarita Vestager said yesterday. She was responding to a European Parliament reporting calling for countries to forfeit tax that the Commission say companies should pay when… – Continue reading
The proceeds from illegal tax breaks brokered between an EU state and a multinational company, known as clawbacks, should be returned either to the EU budget or to the coffer of other states unfairly deprived of the money, according to MEPs. The idea was endorsed by the European parliament in… – Continue reading
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), the world’s company by market capitalization, may face more than $8 billion tax bill in connection with the investigation of the European Commission regarding its tax policies, according to Bloomberg. Matt Larson, a litigation analyst Bloomberg Intelligence analyzed the European Commission’s investigation against Apple, which was accused… – Continue reading
European Commission is due to rule on Apple’s tax affairs in March But recent rulings suggest that report is likely to go against tech giant Probe investigating if firm negotiated low tax rate with Irish authorities If taxes are recalculated at higher rate, Apple could end up owing $8bn Apple… – Continue reading
The Netherlands will be at the forefront of efforts to combat multinationals’ tax avoidance, its finance minister has said. The comments come amid a dispute with the European Commission over his country’s tax treatment of Starbucks. The Commission, the EU’s executive arm, will propose a new set of binding rules… – Continue reading
The European Commission has ordered Belgium to recover €700 million from 35 large companies in back taxes in the EU executive’s biggest move yet to crack down on tax avoidance by multinationals. The Commission said Belgium’s “excess profit” tax system, whereby multinationals’ economies of scale can enable them to reduce… – Continue reading
‘We’re not a tax haven, we have never been involved in any kind of tax malpractice’ – Michael Noonan, Irish Minister for Finance 5th October 2015 ‘Nobody is using Ireland as a tax haven’ – Minister for Agriculture, Simon Conveney, The UN’s Philip Aston says, ‘When lists of tax havens… – Continue reading
Tax inversions and corporate tax rate cuts would be huge for these stocks Certain politicians are decrying a tax move known as an “inversions,” which allow a U.S. company to merge with a foreign one with a more favorable tax rate. Yet, it’s the politicians who created the necessity for… – Continue reading
‘We’re not a tax haven, we have never been involved in any kind of tax malpractice’ – Michael Noonan, Irish Minister for Finance 5th October 2015 If your top political figures need to constantly state that your country is not a tax haven, then the chances are it probably is… – Continue reading
U.S.-based multinational corporations are allowed to play by a different set of rules than small and domestic businesses or individuals when it comes to the tax code. Rather than paying their fair share, many multinational corporations use accounting tricks to pretend for tax purposes that a substantial portion of their… – Continue reading
AB InBev says it’s `disappointed’ and is assessing its options Vestager lashes out at `double non-taxation’ schemes BRUSSELS – The European Union ordered Belgium to recover about 700 million euros ($763 million) in illegal tax breaks given to at least 35 companies, including Anheuser-Busch InBev and BP, as regulators continued… – Continue reading
