President-elect Donald J. Trump has stated that among his top priorities will be revocation of President Barack Obama’s misguided executive orders. Among the first such items to get the ax should be a series of legally infirm international agreements to implement a monstrosity unfamiliar to most Americans, called the Foreign… – Continue reading
Cayman could find itself on a new EU list of “non-cooperative jurisdictions” in tax matters after the European Council of finance ministers published the criteria for including third countries in the blacklist last week. The provisions emphasize that a jurisdiction “should not facilitate offshore structures or arrangements aimed at attracting… – Continue reading
The same aggressive and uncompromising international effort used to combat terrorism must be employed to eliminate tax havens, says Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz in a report being released Tuesday. In a copy of the report, obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and shared with the Star, Stiglitz… – Continue reading
Social media posts, private school records and immigration data are being used by the Australian Taxation Office as part of an increasingly sophisticated crackdown on tax cheats that yielded nearly $10 billion last year. ATO Commissioner Chris Jordan said the tax office had been investing in data collection analysis of… – Continue reading
Following British Prime Minister Theresa May’s visit to India last week, Patricia Hewitt, chair of the UK-India Business Council, said that Britain is looking to re-balance its commercial links with countries like India post-Brexit. She suggested that the two governments should look at a bilateral tax treaty to boost trade…. – Continue reading
Eighty-five Canadians identified in the Panama Papers leak are now being investigated for tax evasion, the Canada Revenue Agency has revealed. Details of Canada’s enforcement effort were provided to the Star the same week the U.K., which is a major hub of the offshore finance world, said it has launched… – Continue reading
The Indian Government’s dramatic cancellation of large banknotes on the same day as the US election last week looks like the drastic solution to a very Indian problem with tax avoidance and the black economy, but it might turn out to be a harbinger of things to come everywhere. In… – Continue reading
Over the past few years, Apple’s cash hoard has swelled to near unthinkable levels. Per the company’s most recent earnings report, Apple now has more than $237 billion in cash and other securities, anchored of course by the company’s insanely lucrative iPhone. Though the iPhone only has a thin slice… – Continue reading
The European Commission has launched a public consultation on how best to deter promoters of aggressive tax planning schemes. The Commission said it is particularly interested in gathering views on how a mandatory disclosure scheme for tax advisers could be put in place. If implemented, this would require intermediaries to… – Continue reading
While Trump wants to close loopholes, many of them stem from public policy concerns — not “special interests.” After a dramatic upset victory in one of the most bitterly contested presidential races in recent history, Donald Trump now has some serious work to do. His corporate tax policies—which are vital… – Continue reading
Ukraine’s Cabinet of Ministers has approved a draft agreement with the U.S. government to improve the implementation of tax rules and apply the provisions of the U.S. foreign account tax compliance act (FATCA). The decision is outlined in government resolution No. 821-r dated November 9, 2016 posted on the government’s… – Continue reading
Practitioners in the managed funds industry are calling for a zero-rate for withholding tax in Australia amid the government’s proposals for new tax concessions to boost it, saying the proposed measures don’t go far enough. The government released a consultation paper Nov. 3 on non-resident withholding taxes for pooled funds—or… – Continue reading
Multinational companies will still be able to use the controversial “double Irish” tax arrangement after the final end date of 2020, Sinn Féin MEP Matt Carthy has said. A number of tax experts have confirmed this is the case, though they have disputed whether the terms of which they will… – Continue reading
Ninety-eight countries are poised to formally adopt the OECD’s innovative multilateral tax treaty, which will place recommendations from the BEPS project into more than 3,000 bilateral accords, when the ad-hoc group meets later this month. The “Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty-Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting”… – Continue reading
A government taskforce created to analyse the Panama Papers data leak has identified a number of leads that are relevant to a major insider-trading operation, led by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and supported by the National Crime Agency. After acquiring data on offshore activity in Panama, the taskforce has… – Continue reading
The level of cash holdings kept in foreign jurisdictions by US multinationals will continue to increase unless changes to domestic corporate tax rules are introduced, Moody’s Investors Services has said. According to a new report from the ratings agency, US non-financial companies rated by Moody’s will increase their cash holdings… – Continue reading
European Union finance ministers agreed on Tuesday how to screen countries for a blacklist of tax havens across the world, officials said, and said applying zero-rate taxes was not necessarily a factor, prompting an outcry. The bloc committed in May to agree on a common list of tax offenders by… – Continue reading
The United Arab Emirates’ tax-free perks could soon come to an end as the OECD group of wealthy nations lays down the pressure to tackle global tax-evaders. The Gulf state’s hesitation to sign up to a world treaty to assist in the exchange of information on tax evaders is a… – Continue reading
Network of foreign subsidiaries reported key to €923 million windfall over five years German chemicals manufacturer BASF has been accused of avoiding close to €1 billion of tax. In a report published on Monday, the company is alleged to have used aggressive tax-planning strategies in the Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland and… – Continue reading
American multinational corporations are apparently dodging nearly $700 billion in U.S. taxes they owe on profits stockpiled offshore, according to a new “corporate tax chartbook” from Americans for Tax Fairness (ATF) and the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). Last year, Fortune 500 companies had $2.4 trillion in untaxed offshore profits, on… – Continue reading
Many kinds of U.S. multinational companies, including S-corporations, REITS, and financial services companies apparently dodged a bullet last month when the U.S. Treasury Dept. issued its final, substantially revised rules aimed at curtailing “earnings stripping.” The revised regulation represents an attempt by Treasury to help “narrow the rule and avoid… – Continue reading
Global governments battling tax avoidance increasingly are pushing multinational corporations for a bigger picture of how and where they pay taxes, leading to increasingly narrow questions from company tax officers. “We have a number of entities that are disregarded for U.S. tax purposes. When I fill out the country-by-country form,… – Continue reading
The row between commercial banks in the Caribbean and the larger ones on the American mainland just would not go away. In the past week, finance officials from across the globe and from multilateral institutions such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) flew to Antigua for a conference on the… – Continue reading
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble wants to force Germans to disclose their dealings with offshore firms in tax havens and make banks liable for lost tax income if they conceal their clients’ business with such firms, a draft law shows. Tax havens were thrown into the limelight in April when… – Continue reading
The Philippines is eyeing to seal tax treaties with all nine other Asean member-states, according to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR). The country already has effective double taxation agreements (DTAs) with Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, BIR Assistant Commissioner Marissa O. Cabreros noted in a presentation at last… – Continue reading
In guidance provided to the Association of Charitable Foundations, it says charitable grant-makers will not have to carry out due diligence on bodies they fund Incorporated charitable grant-makers will not be required by the new Common Reporting Standard to carry out due diligence on organisations they fund, according to the… – Continue reading
The British arm of McDonald’s paid £123m for “franchise rights” last year, as part of a controversial structure that is under investigation for enabling unfair tax avoidance. The European Commission launched a probe last year into whether Luxembourg’s tax arrangements for McDonald’s amounted to illegal state aid, as part of… – Continue reading
The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) on Wednesday refused to share tax details of offshore companies owned by Mariam Nawaz, Hassan Nawaz, Imran Khan and Jehangir Khan Tarin with National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance. The National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance, which met under the chairmanship of Qaiser Ahmed… – Continue reading
With the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the tax-collection arm of the United States government, stepping up its global sweep to catch American individuals and corporations hiding their overseas earnings, the American Chamber of Commerce in Cambodia yesterday held a presentation for investors and financial institutions to make sure they are… – Continue reading
The European Commission has unveiled its latest plan to harmonise corporate tax. After two past failures, the executive hopes the recent flurry of tax scandals will give the project a new lease of life. The EU has revived its tax crusade with a new attempt to establish a Common Consolidated… – Continue reading
Panama will take a big step towards ending its status as an offshore tax haven on Thursday by signing a multilateral convention to share foreign taxpayer details with other governments, the OECD‘s head of tax said. Panama’s role as a major offshore tax haven came into the public spotlight earlier… – Continue reading
Days of underpaying taxes to end soon as China takes part in worldwide scheme on swapping information on foreign residents’ financial assets The mainland tax agency wants to collect the financial information of non residents who live in China as it takes part in a multilateral scheme to crack down… – Continue reading
A new EU corporate tax proposal could fundamentally change how multinationals pay their tax bills in Ireland. It comes at a sensitive time for the State, following so closely after the commission ruled phone giant Apple tapped illegal tax breaks worth around €13bn. In proposals to be unveiled tomorrow, the… – Continue reading
With the exception of British Antarctica, the U.K.’s overseas territories and offshore dependencies are all surrounded by sun-winking ocean water. But that’s not their only common feature—they are all under increasing political pressure to become more transparent with their financial information. In a parliamentary report on tackling overseas corruption, the… – Continue reading
Aiken City Council unanimously approved the first of two votes to maintain the City’s tax rate of 62 mills and seek other funding sources to cover a millage shortfall due to decreased city property values during its Monday meeting. City leaders had considered raising taxes by 1.7 mills to cover… – Continue reading
Pakistan’s authorities are making efforts to seek information about tax details of 270 offshore companies from nine known tax havens around the globe where 444 individuals have invested billions of dollars, and, finally, their names appeared through PanamaLeaks, The News has learnt. The cases of 444 individuals involving nine jurisdictions… – Continue reading
Governments of Pakistan and Mauritius on Friday signed a number of trade deals which included the Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) – an agreement on avoidance of double taxation – which have a great potential for enhancing their bilateral trade. These agreements were signed during discussions held at the Mauritius Board… – Continue reading
The narrowing figure of £36bn roundly condemned for ignoring estimated tens of billions lost in profit shifting and tax avoidance by multinationals Tax experts warned that HM Revenue & Customs was underestimating the size of Britain’s tax avoidance problem after the agency claimed that Britain’s annual tax shortfall was only… – Continue reading
An extensive tax treaty that would shield Chinese businesses operating in the Kingdom from double taxation, and vice versa, has been drafted and is expected to be approved imminently, according to a senior Cambodian tax official. Experts said yesterday the double taxation agreement (DTA) would create a clear legal framework… – Continue reading
FATCA disclosure agreement takes effect, worrying some Israeli-Americans Dual American-Israeli citizens finally need to pay up. After years of the US Internal Revenue Service gradually baring down on American citizens living in Israel who evaded reporting income or paying taxes and numerous rounds of amnesty for those belatedly coming forward,… – Continue reading
Several Swiss banks have received a letter from the United States Ambassador to Bern, Suzan LeVine, asking them not to shun US citizens who want to open accounts in Switzerland. Many Swiss banks have frozen out US clients, and even closed down existing accounts, in the wake of a damaging… – Continue reading
In order to put an end to illicit financial flows including tax havens like offshore accounts, a United Nations human rights expert urged António Guterres, the Secretary-General-designate, as well as the UN General Assembly, to consider liquidating tax havens and summoning a world conference on the matter. Alfred de Zayas,… – Continue reading
Proposed legislation is designed to curb the profit-shifting multinationals use to reduce tax liabilities on their income in Europe The European commission will redouble its crackdown on multinational tax avoidance next week with the relaunch of proposals to create an overarching corporation tax regime across all member states. The proposed… – Continue reading
Talks on a data exchange agreement have progressed following Panama President Varela’s state visit to Berlin. Panama is looking to clean up its reputation in the aftermath of the “Panama Papers” leak earlier this year. Germany and Panama moved a step closer towards signing an information-sharing agreement, German Chancellor Angela… – Continue reading
Turkmenistan in a bid to expand its bilateral ties with Germany in the trade sphere ratified an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation with respect to income and property taxes, the Turkmen government reported. The document signed with Germany was approved at the regular meeting of Parliament this week…. – Continue reading
Individuals and entities that have accounts at the Vatican bank and are subject to taxation in Italy will have until mid-April to report to Italian authorities the income earned by their Vatican accounts. As part of ongoing efforts by the Vatican to increase financial transparency and accountability, an agreement between… – Continue reading
One of the most common ways multinationals take advantage of current laws to reduce their tax bill is through what’s known as transfer pricing. Former Treasurer Wayne Swan last week accused mining giant BHP of “aggressive transfer pricing,” denying the Australian government A$5.7 billion in tax revenue. For most companies,… – Continue reading
Former Labor treasurer Wayne Swan has accused one of Australia’s biggest companies of evading taxes for more than a decade, and for lying to the former Labor government during the height of the mining tax debate. Swan used parliamentary privilege on Wednesday to claim BHP Billiton had been “gaming the… – Continue reading
European Union plans to regulate tax advisers in an effort to clamp down on aggressive tax planning and tax avoidance could prove excessive, ineffective and trigger unfair competition, accountants and lawyers warn. The caution comes after EU finance ministers moved Oct. 11 to authorize the European Commission to draw up… – Continue reading
In July 2016 the then Indonesian finance minister Bambang Brodjonegoro, in conjunction with the launch of the widely publicized tax amnesty program (TAP) for undeclared offshore assets, also laid out less publicized plans for a new tax haven on the islands of Bintan and Rempang (Proposed Tax Haven). A key… – Continue reading
