The government of Finland is planning to be the first European country to provide to each adult citizen a basic income, replacing its existing welfare, social security, and unemployment payments. A pilot program is planned for November 2016, to be implemented by the Finnish Social Insurance Institution. The replacement of… – Continue reading
As the curtain falls on Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf’s career in government, one of the most abiding legacies she leaves behind is the collapse of Swiss banking secrecy under her watch as Finance Minister. Her predecessor, Hans-Rudolf Merz, told the world in 2008 that it would “break its teeth on Swiss banking… – Continue reading
Pierre Gramegna says “challenging and long lasting” impact of the terrorist and refugee crises means countries have “no choice” but to ramp up spending Terrorist attacks are the biggest threat facing the European Union and countries have “no choice” but to tear up budget rules and ramp-up spending in order… – Continue reading
More than 50 banks which helped American clients dodge tax in Swiss bank accounts have received immunity from criminal prosecution in the US. The firms, which include UK giant Standard Chartered, Germany’s biggest lender Deutsche Bank, and France’s BNP Paribas, have reached plea bargains with the US Department of Justice…. – Continue reading
Mondelez was able to pay no UK corporation tax as a result of a Channel Islands-based bond, despite Cadbury making £96.5m profit in 2014 Mondelez, which owns Cadbury, is facing controversy over its tax arrangements after it was reported that it had not paid UK corporation tax last year. An… – Continue reading
THE Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ) is not happy with amendments to the Income Tax Act that will see the implementation of a transfer pricing regime retroactive to April 1 this year. The PSOJ, in a letter to Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) Commissioner General Ainsley Powell in September, had… – Continue reading
Island’s biggest employer files suit in San Juan federal court Legal challenge comes as Puerto Rico copes with debt payments The Puerto Rico unit of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. sued the island’s government, seeking to overturn a new tax the retailer calls unfairly high. Enacted in May, Puerto Rico’s… – Continue reading
The Treasury was forced to defend this week’s Autumn Statement and Spending Review announcements last night after the influential Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), an independent research institute, said there was just a 50-50 chance Osborne would hit his target of a surplus in 2019-2020. While saying the government will… – Continue reading
In last week’s column, we started our discussion on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan 10, which seeks to align transfer pricing outcomes to value creation by providing protection to payor-countries against base-eroding payments and prescribing additional rules on the applicability of the profit split method. BEPS Action… – Continue reading
Ellah Mukwati Herald Correspondent The recent historic visit by the Chinese President Xi Jinping which saw 12 mega deals worth $4 billion being signed cemented the good bilateral relationship between Zimbabwe and China, the Minister of Finance and Economic Development has said. In a statement released yesterday Minister Patrick Chinamasa… – Continue reading
The Tax Department will thoroughly investigate the income of all Cyprus residents on the Lagarde list, going as far back as 2003. The Department will look into their income after 2006, to determine whether they met their tax obligations up to date. Chief tax inspector Klelia Papadopoulou told Phileleftheros daily… – Continue reading
£300 penalties would be dwarfed by millions in potential profits for firms that take advantage of tax-avoidance schemes Huge multinational companies that dodge millions of pounds in tax in the UK and around the world face “laughable” fines of £300 under new rules proposed by HM Revenue and Customs. The… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: India has been an active participant in the Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (BEPS) action plan, the final package of which was rolled out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in October. The action points, set down by the OECD, aim at closing loopholes that enable… – Continue reading
Employees at Allergan have been told a proposed merger with Pfizer is about changing healthcare – not skirting tax law. Allergan’s global chief executive Brent Saunders has written directly to the company’s employees – including around 1,000 in Ireland, telling them the controversial deal is not just about tax savings…. – Continue reading
The tiny nation wants to become “the European location of choice” for global financial services firms, and is already the biggest centre for fund management in the EU, reports the Telegraph. Luxembourg’s finance sector has set out plans to become Europe’s leading financial centre in the next five years, plotting… – Continue reading
From the start of 2016, multinational companies found to be avoiding tax will have pay back the tax owed, plus a 100 per cent penalty, reports ZD Net. The Australian Greens have voted with the Coalition to pass legislation that will see multinational companies with annual revenue above AU$1 billion… – Continue reading
Amit Ramnani, director of Ipanema Wealth, an independent financial consultancy firm, discusses year-end tax planning techniques for U.S. expatriates. RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Amit Ramnani, director of Ipanema Wealth, reminds U.S. expatriates that they still have time to apply some year-end tax-planning techniques. U.S. citizens who are resident in… – Continue reading
The British government is about to get tough with so-called tax havens that are dragging their feet on revealing the secret ownership of thousands of offshore companies. One of the main thrusts of Britain’s drive to clean up the murky world of tax avoidance has been to put pressure on… – Continue reading
Since the global economic crisis corporate tax revenues have been falling, pilling greater pressure on individual taxpayers to shoulder the burden so that governments can meet financing requirements, according to the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), reports City AM. Individual workers and consumers are now taking on the… – Continue reading
On December 1, the Italian Revenue Agency issued a guide delineating how companies can take advantage of Italy’s “patent box,” together with a circular containing the answers to questions arising out of the new regime’s operation. With effect from the present 2015 fiscal year, the patent box offers an optional… – Continue reading
France and Luxembourg failed to ratify a protocol changing the France-Luxembourg double tax treaty by 30 November, which means that a change which will affect real estate structures cannot come into force until 1 January 2017, at the earliest, for companies whose fiscal year is based on a calendar year…. – Continue reading
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) updated its diverted profits tax guidance to clarify the tax authority’s interpretation of the legislation and proposed administrative practice. Highlights Some highlights from the revised guidance include: Both the “insufficient economic substance condition” and the “design test” in section 86 FA 2015 (avoidance of UK… – Continue reading
Italy has removed Hong Kong from two of three “black lists.” A ministerial decree in November 2015 removed Hong Kong from the black lists that apply with respect to: The Italian controlled foreign corporation (CFC) rules and the full taxation of inbound dividends Costs that arise in transactions between Italian… – Continue reading
The European Commission today announced its decision to launch a “state aid” investigation into tax rulings granted by the tax authorities in Luxembourg to a company that is a member of a U.S.-based multinational taxpayer group. Background According to a February 2015 report, in 2008-2009, the group transferred its European… – Continue reading
The Dutch Ministry of Finance published a draft decree for implementing the “common reporting standard” (CRS) and that includes the identification and reporting requirements contained in the CRS for reporting financial institutions. The CRS, developed by the OECD and largely based on FATCA, is a standard that governs the exchange… – Continue reading
The agenda of the meeting of the European Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) of December 8, 2015 has been published on the website of the European Council/Council of the European Union. According to the Agenda, ECOFIN will a.o. discuss 2 tax subjects. First of all the proposal for a… – Continue reading
Hungary’s National Economy Minister Mihály Varga called on European Union members to assist in a joint crackdown on value added tax evasion, the minister said today at a conference in Prague, according to a report from the National Economy Ministry. Varga and Czech finance minister Andrej Babis, whose ministry organized… – Continue reading
“The Business Council welcomes the passage of the government’s multinational tax bill through the Parliament. The legislation will see Australia play its part in responding to the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting package. It will provide companies with certainty around their obligations, and provide the community with greater confidence… – Continue reading
Switzerland’s EFG Bank is to pay a penalty of $29m to the US Department of Justice to avoid prosecution for helping its American account holders evade taxes. The bank came forward as part of a voluntary programme launched in 2013, which allows Swiss banks to admit their potential role in… – Continue reading
Multinationals in India will soon have to forgo to a great extent the flexibility in managing their tax outgo in the country and have to report their global operations in elaborate detail to the tax authorities here. This is because New Delhi is set to adopt a new regime to… – Continue reading
Corporate tax revenues have been falling across OECD countries since the global economic crisis, putting greater pressure on individual taxpayers to ensure that governments meet financing requirements, according to new data from the OECD’s annual Revenue Statistics publication. Average revenues from corporate incomes and gains fell from 3.6% to 2.8%… – Continue reading
x MUMBAI: India has been an active participant in the Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (BEPS) action plan, the final package of which was rolled out by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in October. The action points, set down by the OECD, aim at closing loopholes that… – Continue reading
Developments driven by Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (Beps) boost Irish tax The closing down by Irish multinationals of tax planning arrangements involving offshore or foreign subsidiaries is part of the reason for Ireland’s increased corporation tax receipts, according to an informed source. Under country-by-country reporting rules, Irish companies with… – Continue reading
Some of the DTAAs entered into by India with other countries allow taxation of capital gains on shares only in the country of which the taxpayer is a resident. The government on Friday told the Lok Sabha that it has started negotiations with some countries to amend provisions on capital… – Continue reading
At the plenary of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) local and regional leaders called for a fair and efficient corporate tax system in the European Union. The opinion drafted by Jean-Luc Vanraes (BE/ALDE), member of Uccle Municipal Council, criticises the complexity of corporate taxation systems, which disadvantages small… – Continue reading
The Luxembourg government said on Friday that it would appeal against the European Commission’s decision ordering it to recover 20-30 million euros ($22-33 million) of back taxes from Fiat Chrysler. The Commission ruled in October that Fiat had benefited from illegal tax deals with the Luxembourg authorities, as well as… – Continue reading
At the plenary of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) local and regional leaders called for a fair and efficient corporate tax system in the European Union. The opinion drafted by Jean-Luc Vanraes (BE/ALDE), member of Uccle Municipal Council, criticises the complexity of corporate taxation systems, which disadvantages small… – Continue reading
Tax authorities around the world could take a “cowboy” attitude towards captive tax rights when following guidance from the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) papers, according to Dr Pierre Olivier Gehriger, partner and certified tax expert at Pestalozzi Attorneys at Law. Speaking on a Captive Review webinar hosted by… – Continue reading
As part of the Isle of Man Government’s continuing commitment to meet international standards in tax co-operation and transparency, a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) has been signed with Spain. The agreement was signed by Mr José Manuel Gutiérrez Delgado, Financial Counsellor of the Embassy of Spain to the UK,… – Continue reading
Only time will tell whether the benefit of enhanced compliance and effective enforcement will outweigh the costs. The Common Reporting Standard (CRS) is a new international system for the automatic exchange of tax information promoted by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and modelled on the United States’… – Continue reading
The Government of India is aware of the potential loss of revenue from tax avoidance, and has been taking all necessary measures for preventing it. As a part of these measures, India has actively participated n the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project undertaken by the OECD and G-20… – Continue reading
The highly significant changes to transfer pricing guidance planned for under the SAT’s public discussion draft on ‘Special Tax Adjustments’ (yet to be finalised at the time of writing), and the impact of these changes in the light of evolving Chinese transfer pricing enforcement practice is the focus of this… – Continue reading
Members of the European Parliament’s (MEPs) economic and monetary affairs committee (EMAC) have asked the European Commission (EC) to table measures that would include corporation tax transparency, reports Economia. Recommendations were voted on by the EMAC on Tuesday and seek to build on work carried out by the European Parliament’s… – Continue reading
On December 3, 2015 the OECD issued a press release in which it announced that on that same day Andorra signed the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA), bringing the total number of signatories to 75. Andorra signed the MCAA during a meeting of experts on automatic exchange of information convened… – Continue reading
The European Parliament has endorsed a deal between the EU and Liechtenstein that will make it harder for EU citizens to hide cash in bank accounts in the state Liechtenstein and the EU signed a deal in October this year, agreeing to automatically exchange information on the financial accounts of… – Continue reading
(CNS) UPDATED: The Cayman Islands and other overseas territories have agreed to hold beneficial ownership information in their jurisdictions via “central registers or similarly effective systems”, according to the communique released by the FCO following this week’s meeting in London with territory leaders and the UK government. The agreement on… – Continue reading
A newly introduced amendment to the Bulgarian Offshore Companies Act (the “Act”) will bring significant changes to investment opportunities for offshore companies. If the Bulgarian Parliament adopts the amendment within the next month, the amended Act is expected to enter into force in the beginning of 2016. The proposed amendments… – Continue reading
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has issued draft regulations to require certain financial institutions (FIs) to report on accounts held or controlled by foreign residents. The OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS), which the regulations are in response to, obliges countries and jurisdictions to obtain financial information from their FIs… – Continue reading
The Australian Government has introduced legislation to implement the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD’s) Common Reporting Standard for the automatic exchange of financial account information. Treasurer Scott Morrison said: “The Standard will assist the tax office to crack down on taxpayers hiding funds and investments offshore in order… – Continue reading
Indian entities will do a reciprocal information sharing about Americans The Finance Ministry today said it has received information from the US under the financial information exchange pact FATCA in the last two months and it is being analysed. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) came into effect from… – Continue reading
