Multinational corporations that use complicated schemes to avoid paying tax in Australia are set to be targeted, with Treasurer Joe Hockey demanding the Commissioner of Taxation “double his efforts”. Mr Hockey has also warned Australians with offshore investments to once again disclose their unreported foreign income to tax authorities before… – Continue reading
Australian banks are stalling on a deal that will help expose tax evaders to global authorities. The information sharing deal, part of the G20 talks in Australia this year, requires banks to pass on information about their customers to the Australian Tax Office. The deal has been signed by more… – Continue reading
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has been in force for a month and still more countries are joining the tax network. So far, 101 countries and financial jurisdictions have either signed or agreed to join FATCA. FATCA is aimed at identifying US taxpayers with offshore bank accounts and investments. Overseas… – Continue reading
Potential inversion deal highlights dropping corporate taxes in Canada, now the lowest among 10 countries, with the U.S. in 5th place. Fast-food giant Burger King faced anger from both Washington and average Americans Monday, a day after it announced that it was in talks to buy Tim Hortons and relocate… – Continue reading
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has launched an investigation regarding the income and property that members of the Greek Diaspora have in Greece. Greek-Australians have a deadline until December 2014 to voluntarily declare all their homeland assets in order to avoid being considered as tax evaders and paying the full… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: G-20, a group of developed and developing nations, is likely to press for adoption of “rapid timelines” by different countries for automatic sharing of information with a view to curb tax evasion. The issue of automatic sharing of tax information would figure prominently during the meeting of G-20… – Continue reading
MONTREAL • Eugene Melnyk, the billionaire owner of the Ottawa Senators and founder of drug maker Biovail Corp., is waging war against the company that now controls his one-time business. Mr. Melnyk alleges that Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. is masquerading as a Canadian company to make use of this country’s… – Continue reading
Tax reform is squarely on the agenda for the G20 Brisbane summit in November. The current international tax regime is broken and it’s going to take significant effort on a global scale to fix it. In a recently released CEDA Report on securing the G20’s future, I recommended the role… – Continue reading
The country’s largest biotechnology manufacturer, CSL, says government and community complacency puts Australia at risk of missing out on future jobs as companies invest where workers are more productive, tax rates are lower and governments are more supportive. The $33 billion blood plasma and vaccine maker said Australia urgently needs… – Continue reading
The sharemarket has settled into a consolidation phase at between 5400 and 5600 index points, mirroring changes in overseas markets. While analysts are confident the current reporting period will not produce unexpected changes to their forecasts, international political instability makes further upward movement in prices unlikely. Compared with overseas markets… – Continue reading
Australians who have dodged tax outside Australia have less than five months to voluntarily disclose or face going to jail, a law firm warned. Mills Oakley Lawyers said evaders can voluntarily disclose tax evaded through false deductions and offshore undeclared income through the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) initiative Project DO… – Continue reading
JEMIMA WHYTE AND BIANCA HARTGE-HAZELMAN Institutional investors are increasingly open to the merits of Australian companies expanding offshore, as local growth looks set to be outpaced by foreign economies. “There’s no doubt that there have been plenty of Australia companies that have gone offshore in search of new revenue opportunities…. – Continue reading
David Murray’s financial system inquiry should push to remove withholding tax on non-residents’ deposits in Australian banks to help diversify the funding base of local banks and create more competition from foreign institutions. Next week’s report from the inquiry should also drive the development of a corporate bond market, back… – Continue reading
Treasurer Joe Hockey has said that he will improve the structural integrity of Australia’s tax system to address international tax avoidance by multinational enterprises. In particular, the tax law will be tightened to prevent a multinational from shifting profits from Australia by claiming excess interest expense deductions. This tax avoidance technique is… – Continue reading
Malcolm Turnbull, Australia’s second-richest parliamentarian, has invested in a ”vulture fund” based in the tax haven Cayman Islands. Disclosure of what appears to be a $1 million stake in a New York-run fund targeting distressed and bankrupt companies sparked criticism from financial transparency campaigners on Thursday. They argue the Communications… – Continue reading
GLOBAL firms’ growing ability to avoid company tax by shifting their intellectual property to low-tax countries could undermine Australians’ respect for the tax system, causing greater leakage of revenue, a senior Treasury official warned yesterday. Rob Heferen, head of revenue at the federal Treasury, also said Australia’s massive reliance on… – Continue reading
Treasurer Joe Hockey will introduce legislation this month to tighten corporate taxation loopholes but says there must be a global solution to tax evasion. The government is going ahead with rule changes to lower the amount of debt a multinational firm based in Australia can have on its books. This… – Continue reading
OPINION: In February and April I wrote about a decision of the Taxation Review Authority (TRA) that found a taxpayer was still a New Zealand tax resident despite living predominantly outside New Zealand for more than 10 years. In those articles I highlighted why I thought the authority’s decision was… – Continue reading
The Australian Tax Office is stepping up its surveillance of Australians funnelling money into secret offshore bank accounts. The extra scrutiny is part of an amnesty program that will allow some tax dodgers to avoid severe punishment by declaring income and agreeing to come back into the tax system before… – Continue reading
Global mining giant Glencore Xstrata has rejected claims it has paid no tax on the $15 billion in income it has earned from coal mining in the last three years. The Swiss-based company, which is Australia’s largest coal producer, was accused of using a sophisticated profit shifting system that might… – Continue reading
As Shirley Bassey once sang, it’s all just a little bit of history repeating. Exactly a year ago, we observed the global chase for yield had lit a rocket under the share prices of Australia’s banks for most of the prior year. But back then the big question for investors was… – Continue reading
Christian leaders representing over 1 billion people from 170 nations have sent an Open Letter to heads of the G20, calling for urgent action on corruption and tax evasion. This historic anti-corruption initiative by the global Church comes at a decisive political moment as finance ministers meet in Australia ahead… – Continue reading
Australians with undeclared offshore investments are being urged to take advantage of a once-off chance to avoid hefty fines, and a possible jail sentence, by disclosing their foreign income. Australian Taxation Office (ATO) deputy commissioner, Michael Cranston, warned investors who have not reported their overseas earnings in the past that… – Continue reading
Wesfarmers chief executive Richard Goyder has backed calls for bigger cuts to the corporate tax rate, amid concerns that living standards and jobs could be at risk if Australia continues to fall behind Asia and the developed world in attracting big business. The 30 per cent rate has not changed in… – Continue reading
Tax officials snooping around secret Swiss bank accounts may be a decade too late, with criminals constantly one step ahead of authorities. In Australia, Treasury is taking submissions on an updated tax treaty with the Swiss, in an attempt to crack down on the notorious tax haven. But the new… – Continue reading
Google Australia and New Zealand managing director Maile Carnegie has urged governments across the world to address the inconsistencies of the global tax system rather than shaming individual companies for their profit-shifting activities, The Australian Financial Review reports. “I am actually incredibly empathetic to why people want to talk about this. I… – Continue reading
Treasury is taking submissions on a revised tax treaty with Switzerland, which will lead to Swiss banks handing over secretive bank account information to Australian authorities on request. The new treaty means Australian tax evaders with undisclosed Swiss bank accounts will now rely on limited bank secrecy protection from the… – Continue reading
The regulatory landscape for the Australian funds management industry continues to change. This article provides an overview of five key matters that should be on the radar of fund managers. FATCA The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) allows the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to identify and collect… – Continue reading
The world is close to the point where hiding money offshore is foolhardy, no matter how little or large the amount is. As the loopholes continue to close, the Australian Tax Office (ATO) has announced a voluntarily scheme for people to declare unreported foreign income and assets. The ATO wants taxpayers with… – Continue reading
International moves to shut down profit-shifting from high to low tax countries is starting to have an impact on Australian companies doing business offshore. A new EY report says these local companies are feeling the heat of a global trend of “increasingly aggressive” tax authorities. EY’s 2014 Tax Risk and… – Continue reading
Funds flowing from Australia to tax havens such as Vanuatu, Liechtenstein and Jersey are at a five year low, according to government analysis. The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) numbers for 2012-13 show $47 billion was sent from Australia to tax havens, a fall of 13% compared to… – Continue reading
When Business Council of Australia chief Jennifer Westacott weighed in on plans for an Australian tax crackdown on multinationals last week, she warned the move could risk competitiveness and lead to companies being double taxed. Last year the Australian government passed new laws to prevent multinational companies shifting their profits to avoid the payment… – Continue reading
Macquarie Group has acknowledged that a revised tax bill following a full-scale audit by Tax Office investigators may be market sensitive and could move its share price. The information, which relates to three years of additional tax, has never been disclosed by the homegrown investment bank to the sharemarket. Macquarie’s… – Continue reading
A tax crackdown on multinationals including tech giants Google and Apple could make Australia less competitive, the Business Council of Australia warns. Moves by Australia to prevent profit shifting could lead to companies being double-taxed, BCA chief executive Jennifer Westcott told a conference in Canberra yesterday, which was attended by… – Continue reading
On 28 April 2014, the Australian Government signed an agreement (the intergovernmental agreement) with their U.S. counterparts that will greatly assist Australian financial institutions that must comply with the requirements of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) legislation, enacted by the U.S. Government. The FATCA regime is, at its core,… – Continue reading
A decision to drop tax and money laundering charges against three high-profile Sydney businessmen is ”another humiliating defeat for the Project Wickenby Keystone Cops”, according to a lawyer close to the trio. Charges attracting jail of up to 25 years, laid against former CVC Limited chairman Vanda Gould, former Sunland… – Continue reading
A few points about Macquarie’s bizarre tax predicament. The tax bill is up over $500 million in two years, but it is the rate that is worthy of note rather than the quantum. Last year was a very good one for the bank, net income was $1 billion higher so… – Continue reading
The tax office has announced an amnesty for taxpayers with unreported offshore financial activities, codenamed Project DO IT (disclose offshore income today). Among the transactions it’s interested in are interest income from offshore bank accounts, undeclared capital gains on overseas assets and ongoing income flows from businesses owned overseas. Though… – Continue reading
Australia has signed an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) with the US in order to “reduce the burden” on financial institutions when complying with FATCA. Australian treasurer Joe Hockey said the IGA will “minimise costs” by simplifying due diligence requirements, as well as broadening arrangements between the Australian Tax Office and the… – Continue reading
The federal government has entered into an intergovernmental agreement with the United States to “reduce the burden on Australian financial institutions” in complying with the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. Treasurer Joe Hockey announced yesterday that the agreement with the US government has been completed, heralding ramifications for “a… – Continue reading
Australia signed a tax-information sharing agreement with the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday ahead of a new U.S. law that will crack down on offshore tax avoidance. The accord, one of a number of so-called intergovernmental agreements (IGA) between Washington and individual countries, comes ahead of the implementation in the United… – Continue reading
More than three people a day have disclosed offshore income or assets in the fortnight since the Australian Taxation Office announced an amnesty, The Australian Financial Review reports. According to the newspaper, tax commissioner Chris Jordan said early results were promising, with 16 disclosures and 33 expressions of interest about possible disclosures… – Continue reading
Potato king Paul Rennie has told a court he is unable to explain why he sent millions of dollars to tax havens in transactions revealed by a Project Wickenby investigation. The Federal Court heard Mr Rennie had been raided by federal police, who seized documents related to his Griffith-area potato… – Continue reading
Australian tax laws are inhibiting the export of financial services and the nation’s development as an “international financial centre”, according to Macquarie Group. In its submission to the Financial System Inquiry, Macquarie said Australia’s tax provisions are becoming “increasingly detailed, complex and hard to interpret, making it difficult for businesses… – Continue reading
Aggressive tax strategies pioneered by Macquarie Group are under scrutiny both internationally and in Australia, putting at risk techniques the company has used to claim more than $1.3 billion in deductions. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development is targeting ”foreign tax credit generators” as part of its battle against… – Continue reading
On 27 March 2014, the Commissioner of Taxation announced an initiative to allow eligible taxpayers to come forward and voluntarily disclose unreported foreign income and assets. He urged taxpayers with offshore assets to declare their interests ahead of a global crackdown on people using international tax havens. The initiative covers… – Continue reading
Offshore finance companies are offering a way around strict new low-deposit mortgage rules, and documents obtained by 3 News reveal the Reserve Bank is keeping a close eye on it. The International Monetary Fund today warned the Auckland housing market is one of the biggest risks to our economy. Low-deposit… – Continue reading
The Treasury Department added 19 nations to its list of countries that have reached agreements with the U.S. on carrying out a far-reaching law aimed at preventing offshore tax dodging by American citizens. The Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service said the 19 nations – including Australia, Brazil, South Africa… – Continue reading
Macquarie Group successfully lobbied the Abbott government to water down and delay moves to tighten laws over which the bank is fighting a tax battle worth hundreds of millions of dollars. Fairfax Media has learnt that Macquarie was among industry players who attended a November 6 meeting with then-assistant treasurer… – Continue reading
Expats should put their financial affairs in order while they have the chance as governments around the world prepare a global tax net aimed at wiping out avoidance. The operation is headed by the Organisation of Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and closely follows the lines of the controversial US… – Continue reading
