Tax: Luxembourg among countries helping US firms cut their tax bills by more than a quarter, campaigners say. The abuse of holding company structures in the Grand Duchy, and fiscal regimes in several other countries, allows American firms to avoid paying billions of dollars in corporate profit taxes, two NGOs… – Continue reading
Mexico and Argentina have signed an agreement for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital. The agreement allocates taxing rights to the two countries, to avoid taxation being levied twice on the same income from companies and individuals… – Continue reading
A Chris Christie administration would likely make shareholders at some major U.S. companies very happy. The two-term New Jersey Governor has called for an array of pro-growth, business-friendly reforms as he bids for the Republican nomination. Christie is in favor of lowering corporate taxes so companies earn more profits, raising… – Continue reading
Article by Patrick W Martin and Ashley Fife With a net worth of USD77.1 billion, Mexican telecoms businessman Carlos Slim Helú was ranked the second richest person in the world in a 2015 survey.1 At the end of 2014, 16 of Mexico’s citizens were on Forbes’ billionaires list.2 As for… – Continue reading
On a warm afternoon last month, Mexican central bank Governor Agustin Carstens looked out over sun-drenched piles of dirt and construction equipment near Guadalajara and hailed the groundbreaking of a new currency-printing plant as a sign of a solid economy. There’s one catalyst for rising cash demand that isn’t a… – Continue reading
The aim is that the neighboring country will have greater control over information. Merida, Yucatan. The Tax Compliance Act relating to accounts abroad (FATCA, for its acronym in English) is not a tool to seek to collect more taxes from 65 member countries, said Enrique Hernandez, international tax specialist. “It… – Continue reading
Mexico is experiencing a rough time, economically speaking at the moment, but hopes are high for better times ahead. With new tax laws and a relatively young government, these are interesting times for this country. To find out more about how the recent tax reforms will affect Mexico and the… – Continue reading
(CNS Business): The use of Cayman Islands funds as a wealth management tool for high net worth Latin American families was debated last week at the STEP LatAm Conference in Brazil, where kidnapping is a constant worry for the wealthy and demand for outbound investments is fuelled by privacy and… – Continue reading
Leading family offices in Latin America and the Caribbean are going through a transitional period, says Steven Cantor, managing partner of Cantor & Webb, a Miami-based law firm, reports the Financial Times. “As the world moves to tax transparency, with a crackdown on undisclosed tax savings in Swiss bank accounts,… – Continue reading
A recent Thomson Reuters survey report reveals that European companies are outpacing all others in developing their Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) action plans by Dec. 31, 2017 – the deadline set by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). But most respondents voiced several concerns about BEPS… – Continue reading
Last week’s OECD release of the final package of measures for a coordinated international approach to the reform of the international tax system, under the OECD/G20 base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project, marks the end of the discussion and recommendation phase, and the start of the implementation and practical… – Continue reading
Thanks to an agreement between the Department of Revenue’s Tax Administration Service (SAT) from September 30, all information regarding Mexicans with bank accounts in the United States and American citizens with bank accounts in Mexico agreement is being mutually sent. During the monthly breakfast Coparmex, the tax lawyer Jorge Alberto… – Continue reading
Over 20 multinationals in Mexico should be paying tax, says Finance Secretary It has been dubbed “double non-taxation” and it’s an international practice that was the focus of discussion last week in Lima, Peru. It is also something that Mexico’s finance authorities want to see addressed. It was during a… – Continue reading
To solve the problem of the haze afflicting Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia, extraterritorial action is needed to quench the forest fires in Indonesia that are generating the haze. A cross-border solution is a necessary answer even if it raises questions of national sovereignty. The Singapore Government should implement laws that… – Continue reading
A quarter of companies say they won’t meet the first deadline proposed by the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in its base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) action plan, reports Economia. Globally, 74 per cent said they will complete their country-by-country analysis by the first due date, December… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON — The Texas and Florida Bankers Associations have requested a rehearing before the U.S. Court of Appeals (D.C. Circuit) of its August decision to dismiss their case challenging the validity of 2012 IRS regulations requiring deposit interest income to be reported and setting up an exchange agreement on U.S…. – Continue reading
On October 2, 2015, the Internal Revenue Service announced that it had achieved a key milestone in implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), a critical anti-tax evasion law passed by Congress in 2010 but not fully implemented until July 2014. The milestone announced by the IRS was… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON, D.C. — United States authorities have begun the exchange of information with Mexico on all Mexicans with bank accounts or investments in the U.S. who have obtained more than $10 USD in annual interest. With the implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), Mexico plans to deliver… – Continue reading
The 2016 Mexican Economic Package includes a proposal for country-by-country (CbC) reporting of tax information by certain multinational corporations. The Package, which was submitted to Congress by the Government on September 8, 2015, seeks to bring Mexican transfer pricing documentation rules into line with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and… – Continue reading
Malta provides an outstanding opportunity for private equity and venture capital managers. It has a flexible LP structure, an extensive network of double tax treaties, a favourable local tax regime and experienced service providers who can provide a cost-effective solution,” comments Felicity Cole (pictured), Head of the Funds Department at… – Continue reading
Intangible assets in the oil and gas industry have become incredibly valuable. Taxpayers need to understand how to manage compliance to mitigate their transfer pricing risks What do recent Western economic sanctions against Russia; the US’ growing energy independence; and ultra-deepwater oil and gas (O&G) discoveries off the coast of… – Continue reading
International worldwide transactions in Mexico face a weakness as a result of an old and outdated provision which disallows for income tax purposes, the deduction of payments made abroad on a prorated basis with other parties that are not subject to Mexican income tax, such as foreign residents with no… – Continue reading
The multinational companies in Latin America demand security, efficient services, infrastructure and good educational standards, but they are not very willing to contribute themselves by paying their fair share of tax. Honduras is a case in point, and is one of the most unequal countries on the continent. The government,… – Continue reading
Ireland has made “little or no” effort over the past four years to create a corruption-free playing field for global trade, violating its “obligation to combat cross-border bribery”, reports the Irish Times. The Transparency International Exporting Corruption report, released on Thursday, found that Ireland, along with countries such as Russia,… – Continue reading
FATCA was enacted into law by section 501(a) of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employments (HIRE) Act 2010 as a revenue offset to help pay for the continuation of unemployment benefits for workers laid off during the 2008-2010 financial crisis. In July 2008, the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations… – Continue reading
Citigroup’s headache over inquires into its Mexican subsidiaries Banamex and Banamex USA’s alleged lax compliance with U.S. federal anti-money-laundering rules just got worse. Last week, the Department of Justice expanded its money-laundering probe of Banamex, Bloomberg reported on Friday. In January, the Department of Justice issued a subpoena to Banamex,… – Continue reading
With different tax laws, exemptions, double taxation treaties and free trade zones for services exports affecting outsourcing operations across Latin America, gaining a solid understanding of the distinct tax obligations in each country is imperative. In a bid to attract investment, several Latin American countries have introduced double taxation treaties,… – Continue reading
Banamex USA, a Century City unit of Citigroup Inc. that served customers doing business in Mexico and the U.S., has agreed to shut down and pay $140 million in penalties to settle state and federal money-laundering probes. Citigroup said in a news release Wednesday that it would “wind down” Banamex… – Continue reading
LAUSANNE — Julius Baer Group should have cash to purchase rivals even as it prepares to settle a four-year probe into tax evasion by the US justice department. Switzerland’s third-largest wealth manager said last month it set aside $350m to fund a financial agreement over the bank’s role in helping… – Continue reading
Prices for smartphone applications sold in South Korea through Google and Apple platforms rose 10 percent starting this month, industry sources said Friday, as the government started imposing taxes on overseas-based open markets. According to the sources, U.S. tech giants Google Inc. and Apple Inc. rolled out new price policies… – Continue reading
10/07/2015 – The OECD set out a clear path for Lithuania’s accession to the Organisation, reinforcing the OECD’s commitment to further extend its global membership. On 8 July 2015 the 34 OECD Members adopted the Roadmap for the Accession of Lithuania to the OECD Convention setting out the terms, conditions… – Continue reading
A recent report from the U.S. Treasury Department pinpoints U.S. banks as the source for more than $300 billion a year in dirty money. That leads to big fines for banks. But on the U.S.-Mexico border, it’s small business owners who are being blamed. Nearly a quarter million head of… – Continue reading
The FINANCIAL — Tax is firmly under the spotlight and in the global insurance industry, the ramifications for finance and tax teams will be felt in both a new set of business demands and an overhaul of how these functions interact and operate. However, a new report from PwC says… – Continue reading
The City of London is the money-laundering centre of the world’s drug trade, according to an internationally acclaimed crime expert. UK banks and financial services have ignored so-called “know your customer” rules designed to curb criminals’ abilities to launder the proceeds of crime, Roberto Saviano warned. Mr Saviano, author of… – Continue reading
Before the 2008 financial crisis, Mexican banks had a big problem: too many dollars. Tourism and businesses in the northern border areas near the US, as well as remittances, brought greenbacks flowing into Mexico. This left Mexico awash with dollars — a massive US$14bn in surplus US bank¬notes — which… – Continue reading
He has distorted the facts about the nation’s current tax system. Chris Christie repeatedly has said that U.S. corporations are taxed twice on income earned abroad, claiming in one speech that IRS officials “don’t recognize the tax you paid to a foreign country.” That’s false. It’s true that the U.S…. – Continue reading
Investments Derived From Structural Reforms The approved structural Reforms are an unprecedented opportunity for a transformational economic growth in Mexico, being the most relevant from an investment point of view the reforms related to Energy, Telecommunications and Antitrust, which have put Mexico in the radar of Multinational companies seeking to… – Continue reading
THE BJP-led National Democratic Alliance government, which had made a lot of noise about black money and the illegal stashing of funds abroad in the run-up to general elections last year, finally got down to some serious work to tax ill-gotten wealth and curb its growth. Last week, the government… – Continue reading
With the Transcontinental Trusts Bermuda Forum taking place next week, it is timely to reflect on some of the attractive features and structuring alternatives that Bermuda’s trusts and related law provides and to consider some recent exciting developments. Bermuda provides a flexible, cost effective regime for the formation and administration… – Continue reading
In This Issue: • It’s Stifling in Here! SEC Rules That Companies Can’t Put Restrictive Language in Confidentiality Agreements That Could Potentially Stifle Whistleblowers • An Opinion on Opinions: U.S. Supreme Court Decision in Omnicare • Is OFAC the New Black? Schlumberger and PayPal—The Rise in the Enforcement of Sanctions… – Continue reading
The OECD Mutual Agreement Procedure Statistics for 20131 (MAP Statistics), released on November 25, 2014, show a dramatic surge in the inventory of mutual agreement procedure (MAP) cases among OECD member countries. The MAP Statistics confirm that the potential for double taxation is increasing. This is reflected most starkly in… – Continue reading
Taxes on wages have risen by about one percent for the average worker in OECD countries between 2010 and 2014, even though the majority of governments did not increase statutory income tax rates, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD’s) Taxing Wages 2015 report. According to the… – Continue reading
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development formally invited Costa Rica to apply as a candidate for membership this week, five years after it began its push to join the exclusive club of developed economies. The news of Costa Rica taking one more step closer to joining the league of… – Continue reading
Cross border tax fraud and tax evasion by High Net Wealth Individuals (HNWI) are serious problems for many jurisdictions. For many years exchange of information between countries has been solely upon request. In practise this procedure is not efficiently working as it requires foreseeable relevance, thus ‘fishing’ for information is… – Continue reading
Government questions dividend imputation and company tax rate Australian investors appear to have dodged a bullet, with the government’s first paper on tax reform discussing the dividend imputation system but falling short of attacking it outright as an idea that has outlived its usefulness. David Murray’s inquiry into the Australian… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Australia’s medicine subsidies, Canadian films and culture, and capital controls in Chile would be carved out from investment protection rules being negotiated in a Pacific trade pact, according to a draft text released by Wikileaks on Wednesday. An investment chapter, dated Jan. 20, from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership… – Continue reading
There are over 100 countries around the world that are now “FATCA-compliant.” Mexico is one of the earlier Latin American countries to comply. This means that Mexican banks will be sending to the IRS specific information regarding accounts held by U.S. persons. In this article, we discuss how FATCA is… – Continue reading
Irish eyes are smiling in corporate America. The Emerald Isle has emerged as the world’s top recipient of U.S. foreign direct investment, according to a report from the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland. In the first nine months of 2014, Ireland beat the likes of Canada, Mexico, the U.K. and… – Continue reading
Things just got worse for HSBC. Its private banking arm faces new criminal charges after a French magistrate officially requested that the Swiss bank be brought to trial over a suspected tax-dodging scheme for wealthy customers, the Guardian reports. The request for trial comes after a series of allegations against… – Continue reading
[NEW YORK] Citigroup Inc said additional government authorities have started probes of possible breaches of anti-money laundering laws at its Banamex USA unit. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, a unit of the US Treasury, and the California Department of Business Oversight have asked the company for information on its compliance… – Continue reading
