BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Thursday November 2, 2017 – The Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) between the Government of Barbados and the Italian Republic has entered into force. The instruments of ratification for the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation with Respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion… – Continue reading
The Chartered Institute of Taxation, the UK tax professionals representative body, has urged lawmakers globally to pause for thought on the direction being taken on the taxation of the digital economy. It is urging that any measures to improve the tax rules covering the digital economy must be developed and… – Continue reading
HMRC has warned convenience retailers to “play by the tax rules” or face the consequences as new stats show a disproportionate amount of tax evasion is committed by convenience stores. While accounting for less than 1% of businesses, convenience stores and newsagents now account more than 6% of all incidents… – Continue reading
LABUAN: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Tan Sri Muhammad Ibrahim says the time has come for a review of Labuan’s current tax framework. He said the review is not only to ensure alignment with international best practices but also confirm the continued relevance of such incentives in catalysing new growth… – Continue reading
T&T faces possible sanctions after the Global Forum recognised this country as the only jurisdiction not considered to have made sufficient progress towards satisfactory implementation of the agreed tax transparency standards. Speaking at a media conference on Friday afternoon, Attorney General Faris Al Rawi said this has negative implications for… – Continue reading
HYDERABAD: Income Tax sleuths on Wednesday conducted simultaneous searches in Hyderabad and Vijayawada on three top businessmen cum-realtors, who were allegedly evading tax, particularly in real estate transactions and unearthed documents pertaining to unaccounted investments running into hundreds of crores of rupees. These are the first big raids after shell… – Continue reading
Inquiry to centre on George Osborne’s 2013 rule change that allows resident multinationals to shift income offshore The EU is to launch an investigation into a British government scheme that may help multinational firms pay less tax, the Guardian has learned. Margrethe Vestager, the EU competition commissioner, will announce on… – Continue reading
French deputies have adopted at first reading the 2018 Finance Bill, which includes several of the Government’s key tax measures. The bill, adopted by the National Assembly on October 24, will reduce compulsory levies by EUR10.3bn (USD12.1bn) by the end of 2018. The bill includes the abolition of the wealth… – Continue reading
The Canadian Government is pressing ahead with plans to cut the small business tax rate. The Government has tabled a Notice of Ways and Means Motion in the House of Commons that proposes phased reductions in the small business tax rate. Under the changes, the rate will fall from 10.5… – Continue reading
Cutting Australia’s company tax rate is “now an urgent matter,” according to Treasurer Scott Morrison. In a speech to CEDA, Morrison said that with the UK, France, and the US each seeking to lower their corporate tax rate, Australian businesses risk “becoming stranded on an uncompetitive tax island if we… – Continue reading
The European Parliament’s PANA Committee has approved draft recommendations calling for increased scrutiny and regulation of emerging technologies, including virtual currencies and FinTech. The committee also approved a report delving into the findings of an 18-month probe into breaches of EU law in relation to money laundering, tax avoidance and… – Continue reading
Paul Chan Mo-po says the city must protect against unforeseen market changes at a tax forum that also featured a warning about the city’s international tax compliance There are no plans to cut Hong Kong’s corporate taxes across the board because the government needs to reserve funds to protect the… – Continue reading
Thirty-eight African tax authorities recently converged in Abuja for the International Conference on Tax in Africa. The group discussed ways to boost revenues in Africa, in particular and how to improve collection of corporate income tax, reports Nduka Chiejina (Assistant Editor) Tax collection has never been a piece of cake… – Continue reading
Shadow assistant treasurer suggests companies consider the image their tax minimisation methods project Andrew Leigh, the shadow assistant federal treasurer, has said companies using offshore tax havens to “get around corporate tax” in Australia risk losing what they save in tax via damage to their reputation. Speaking to Guardian Australia… – Continue reading
New Delhi: Star striker Neymar Jr is fined 3.8 million reais ($1.2 million) by a Brazilian court for attempting to “obstruct the continuity” of a tax evasion case. The penalty applies to the Paris Saint-Germain player, his parents and three companies that manage his finances, according to the federal regional… – Continue reading
EU leaders have not yet made a clear choice about how to make sure digital companies pay their fair share of taxes. At an EU summit in Brussels on Thursday (19 October), they adopted a text that balances the wishes of two groups of countries – and can be interpreted… – Continue reading
NZ’s IRD a global leader in shift to digital, unobtrusive tax administration, Ferguson says Oct. 18 (BusinessDesk) – The Inland Revenue Department is leading the charge in a global shift to digitally-based tax administration that’s unobtrusive and easy to use, says commissioner Naomi Ferguson. The New Zealand tax department is… – Continue reading
Three companies are ultimately owned in the Cayman and British Virgin islands, raising questions about the tax implications of profits generated by solar assets Adani has spread its use of offshore tax havens to its Australian solar projects, providing another avenue that could allow the wealthy Indian family behind the… – Continue reading
OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria has called for a collective effort on the design of temporary, short-term measures to tackle the international tax challenges of the digital economy. Speaking at the Group of Twenty (G-20) Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors meeting held in Washington on October 13, Gurria said: “There… – Continue reading
On 1 July 2017, the “Administrative Measures on Due Diligence of Non-resident Financial Account Information in Tax Matters” (the Measures) came into effect. The Measures were jointly promulgated in May 2017 by the State Administration of Taxation (SAT), the Ministry of Finance, the People‘s Bank of China, the China Banking… – Continue reading
Imagine a world where Indian tax authorities can look at a document to see whether a multinational company is paying taxes commensurate to the profit it generates in India. The genesis of such a world lies in OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project. Back in 2015, the Organisation for… – Continue reading
Kenneth Moyes, brother of Manchester United’s former manager David Moyes, has been disqualified as director for five years after the Insolvency Service found he withdrew cash from his company to avoid paying tax Moyes was the owner of Glasgow-based Professional Pre Season Tours, which was involved in arranging pre-season tours… – Continue reading
The Japanese and Danish governments announced on October 11 that they had signed a new agreement for the avoidance of double taxation in Tokyo. The Japanese Ministry of Finance said: “This Convention wholly amends the existing Convention, which entered into force in 1968, by revising the taxation on business profits,… – Continue reading
THE Attorney General yesterday lamented that “riding behind our competitors” had caused “incalculable” damage to the financial services industry, accusing the former government of failing to act on tax information exchange changes. Carl Bethel QC, addressing the Senate, said the Christie administration had “done nothing’ for three years in relation… – Continue reading
Singaporean lawmakers approved the Income Tax (Amendment) Bill 2017 on October 2, 2017, which provides for numerous changes to income tax policy. Discussing the bill in parliament, Indranee Rajah, Senior Minister of State for Finance, confirmed that the existing corporate income tax rebate for 2017 will be enhanced by raising… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: Since last month, Indians with overseas bank accounts are receiving letters from offshore financial institutions, asking them to disclose ‘tax residency status’ before Christmas. If they don’t, banks holding these accounts would share whatever information they have on such account holders with the Indian government. Many account holders are… – Continue reading
FOREIGN companies can now transfer their registration from their original jurisdiction to Singapore. This will allow foreign companies to re-domicile to Singapore, instead of having to set up a subsidiary here, reducing operational disruption to the company. Such transfers are possible under the new inward re-domiciliation regime that took effect… – Continue reading
Newcastle United are facing a major investigation into possible tax fraud which is suspected to have taken place during some of their transfer dealings, according to The Daily Mirror. Transfer deals between 2011 and 2013 adding up to around £500m are said to be under scrutiny, which include deals for… – Continue reading
The government’s planned changes to the tax law for South Africans working abroad – either permanently or on a long-term contracts – has brought financial emigration into sharp focus. Financial emigration is a formal process with the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) to change your tax status from “resident” to… – Continue reading
The Irish government is inviting businesses and practitioners to provide feedback on its plans to update its international tax strategy, including how Ireland should incorporate the OECD’s transfer pricing guidelines into national law and implement the European Union’s anti-tax avoidance rules. The consultation, which runs until the end of January… – Continue reading
Cisco Korea may have to share its key financial information starting next year as the government aggressively pushes to tackle the lack of transparency and tax-dodging practices by foreign enterprises, according to industry sources, Tuesday. “Though there still is much to be seen about the application of the revision, it… – Continue reading
BEIRUT (Reuters) – Lebanon’s parliament approved contentious taxes needed to finance a public sector pay rise on Monday and Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri warned the alternative was a collapse of the Lebanese pound in six months. “Without taxes it would have been better in popular terms, but six months later… – Continue reading
The Canadian Government has said that it will “act on what it has heard” during its 75-day consultation on the controversial reform of tax planning rules it says are being used by high-income individuals to lower their tax bills. The Government intends to prevent individuals from using private corporations in… – Continue reading
The recently proposed US tax reform package would benefit the rich but see some middle-class households face higher tax rises, says a new state-by-state analysis from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP). Released on October 4, the report found that the new framework would benefit the wealthiest taxpayers… – Continue reading
Survey respondents cite high marginal rates and lack of staff reward schemes as negatives More than half of Irish business owners view the State’s tax code as a barrier to growth rather than a support, according to a survey by accounting and professional services firm Deloitte. Respondents cited Ireland’s high… – Continue reading
KUWAIT CITY, Oct 7: The Ministry of Finance has sent the first official list of names of Americans and Kuwaitis who also hold the US citizenship to the US Department of Revenue in compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) based on agreement signed between the countries, reports… – Continue reading
BASSETERRE, St Kitts — Chief executive officer (CEO) of the St Kitts and Nevis Citizenship by Investment Unit (CIU), Les Khan, gave some insight into the current due diligence process of the citizenship by investment (CBI) programme, implemented after 2015. “Due diligence is an area that we take really seriously… – Continue reading
Multinational companies establishing their regional operating headquarters (ROHQs), a subsector under the business processing outsourcing (BPO) sector, in the country starting January 2018 will no longer be entitled to tax incentives under the current Senate Bill on tax reform. Senate Bill No. 1592 or the proposed Tax Reform for Acceleration… – Continue reading
The latest changes in Australia’s housing affordability laws are likely to have an effect on property sales tax liabilities for Australian citizens and associated property taxes for expats living and working in the country as well as property investors. Firstly, Aussie citizens living overseas may lose their Capital Gains Tax… – Continue reading
Last year $128 million was identified for possible tax evasion and $81 million as funds available for possible laundering in and through the Fijian financial system. Fiji Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) investigated and profiled more than 1,000 individuals and 388 businesses. This was presented by FIU director Razim Buksh to… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS — European competition regulators on Wednesday mounted a push against tax avoidance by Silicon Valley giants, announcing plans to take Ireland to court for failing to collect back taxes from Apple and ordering Luxembourg to claim unpaid taxes from Amazon. The effort, which comes as the European Union considers… – Continue reading
The Internal Revenue Service released guidance Wednesday to give tax relief to residents of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands who have evacuated the islands or were unable to return because of Hurricanes Irma or Maria. The relief extends the typical 14-day absence period to 117 days (starting Sept…. – Continue reading
The Russian President and the Japanese Prime Minister signed the Convention for the Elimination of Double Taxation with respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Tax Evasion and Avoidance (the “Convention”) on 7 September 2017. The Convention will replace the existing treaty signed in 1986 by the Soviet… – Continue reading
On 30 September 2017, the Criminal Finances Act came into force. The Act, billed as the British response to the Panama Papers cyber breach scandal, aims to take the profit out of tax evasion. Under the Act, your business could be criminally liable for the actions of your employees. The… – Continue reading
Parliament yesterday passed changes to the law to allow more people to get property tax notices digitally. This is part of Singapore’s move to becoming a Smart Nation, Senior Minister of State for Finance and Law Indranee Rajah told MPs. Existing regulations require taxpayers to explicitly consent before the Comptroller… – Continue reading
The 30 September 2017 is an important date for HMRC and its “relentless” clampdown on global tax evasion. First, it marks the coming into force of the landmark corporate offence of failure to prevent tax evasion under Part 3 of the Criminal Finances Act 2017. Secondly, it is the commencement… – Continue reading
The abolition of a scheme allowing Dutch taxpayers to fess up to their tax sins and avoid criminal charges is likely to discourage high-net worth individuals from ever disclosing money hidden abroad to local authorities, practitioners say. Deputy Minister of Finance Eric Wiebes announced that it was time to draw… – Continue reading
The European Commission is preparing a new directive on the cross-border transfer of company headquarters, a move that could have far-reaching implications for other areas of corporate governance, including tax planning and cross-border mergers, EURACTIV has learned. With Brexit on the horizon, UK companies are busy weighing their options for… – Continue reading
President Trump on Wednesday this week announced a sketchy Republican tax reform plan that covered just 9 pages and he proposed that the headline federal corporate rate should be cut from 35% to 20%. However, there is a risk to Ireland’s low 12.5% corporate tax advantage. The average rate of… – Continue reading
Gulf states are planning to introduce value-added tax starting next year following the hit faced by the energy-rice countries due to a drop in oil prices. Gulf states are planning to introduce value-added tax starting next year following the hit faced by the energy-rich countries due to a drop in… – Continue reading
