Americans who believe the region is a safe tax haven to hide money and investments overseas should think twice as Caribbean trade bloc countries are moving to full comply with a new U.S. law designed to catch tax dodgers who stash assets in foreign destinations. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance… – Continue reading
The U.S. and China enjoy increasingly strong connections. Yet virtually no Chinese family or business relishes dealing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). American tax laws are famously complex, and dealing with the IRS can be like quicksand. Of course, whether they like it or not, U.S. citizens and green… – Continue reading
On 16 June 2015 the Department of International Tax Cooperation (the “DITC“) of the Cayman Islands government announced that it was moving forward with the implementation of the OECD Common Reporting Standard (“CRS“), via the introduction of Cayman Islands domestic law, by October 2015. The CRS represents a significant step… – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The agreement between Hong Kong and Italy for the avoidance of double taxation with respect to taxes on income and the prevention of fiscal evasion has entered into force. The Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor K C Chan, said today (August 14), “Hong… – Continue reading
Introduction In 1934 distinguished US jurist Judge Learned Hand famously opined that “one may so arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which will best pay the Treasury; there is not even a patriotic duty to… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: Large foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) have voiced concerns before Indian capital market regulator Sebi about the fate of the Mauritius treaty which the government is renegotiating with the tax haven. Officials of more than 20 offshore asset managers, belonging to top banking groups and fund houses, met Sebi chairman… – Continue reading
Revenue authorities need to be “vigilant” in monitoring the super-rich, according to research that called on many of them to improve their scrutiny of their richest taxpayers, reports the Financial Times. The study by the Paris-based OECD is a further sign of the pressure on tax departments to squeeze more… – Continue reading
A report by PriceWaterHouse Coppers (PwC) that chart the top risks in the global insurance sector and the growth concerns of insurance CEOs shows that cyber risk, interest rates and growing tax burden are now among the top risks for insurers, reports Business Day. This is indicative of how high… – Continue reading
In his summer budget the first exclusively Conservative one in 19 years British Chancellor George Osborne outlined several key changes for non-domiciled individuals or non-doms, reports MENAFN. These major modifications coming into effect in April 2017 arguably represent the biggest shake-up to the non-dom status since it was first introduced… – Continue reading
A new income tax treaty between the Bulgaria and the United Kingdom was signed in March 2015. The treaty, once it is ratified and enters into force, will replace the existing income tax treaty (1987). The new income tax treaty includes measures that differ from the provisions under the current… – Continue reading
A clarifying statement agreed by the UK Treasury and the Ministry of Justice about Guernsey’s position within the OECD bolsters the island’s attractiveness as a fund domicile, according to Guernsey Finance, the promotional agency for the island’s financial services industry. Representatives of Guernsey’s Government, the regulator, and industry bodies have… – Continue reading
The Swiss Federal Council has adopted a dispatch on the implementation of a tax information exchange protocol to its double tax agreement (DTA) with Italy. The protocol to the 1976 DTA was signed on February 23, 2015. It brings its information exchange provisions into line with the Organisation for Economic… – Continue reading
The regulatory environment surrounding the banking industry already constrains the behavior of banking groups in ways which obviate base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) risks, the International Banking Federation (IBFed) said in a paper released on August 7. Entitled Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS): Why International Banks Are Different,… – Continue reading
With the UK announcing new tax rules for foreigners living in the country, the government has been careful not to damage the country’s appeal to wealthy foreigners. The “non-dom” tax status “plays an important role in allowing those from abroad to contribute to our economy”, says George Osborne, the UK’s… – Continue reading
The Polish Ministry of Finance has published the text of the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income as concluded on July 13, 2015 between The Republic of Poland and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia (Hereafter: the… – Continue reading
On August 11, 2015, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) released its annual report addressing global tax administration. The OECD’s stated mission is to “promote policies that will improve the economic and social well-being of people around the world.” The OECD describes its annual report as follows: Tax… – Continue reading
The first reporting cycle for the United States Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) kicked off with the 31 March deadline set by the US Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) for countries and territories such as Hong Kong that have a Model 2 Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA). Although the IRS has granted… – Continue reading
(Seychelles News Agency) – Onshore banking activities, including the possibility of introducing Sharia-compliant banking are being considered for the Seychelles-registered Bank of Muscat International Offshore (BMIO). The Al Salam Bank of Bahrain, which now owns 50 percent shares in the Seychelles-registered Bank is engaging with the Seychelles authorities on the… – Continue reading
The nonprofit Korean American National Coordinating Council has provided support to U.S. citizens for travel to Pyongyang. NEW YORK, Aug. 13 (UPI) — A Korean American organization that previously has helped Americans travel to North Korea is under investigation for tax evasion and political activities that violate U.S. tax laws…. – Continue reading
Seeking to allay fears, the government said full confidentiality will be maintained with regard to disclosures of unaccounted overseas wealth made under the black money compliance window and only those who do not take advantage of the scheme need to worry, reports PTI according to the Free Press Journal. Asking… – Continue reading
The rise of Islamic finance and sukuk issuances have brought with it a growing phenomenon: Shariah banking is increasingly taking advantage of offshore banking jurisdictions, and this for a number of reasons, reports the Gulf Times. Many offshore centres around the world meanwhile offer a wide range of features allowing… – Continue reading
A CAMPAIGN questioning the “fairness” of land ownership launched across Scotland yesterday. Our Land is a month-long initiative created by Common Weal, Women for Independence and land reform campaigners Andy Wightman and Lesley Riddoch and aims to highlight problems caused by a land ownership system that “allows a handful of… – Continue reading
The Danish government is hopeful ratification of the convention for avoidance of Double Taxation agreements (DTA) with Ghana — and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital gains between the two countries — will help to double Denmark’s investment in the country. This brings… – Continue reading
The IRS today released two revenue procedures that that provide guidance regarding the advance pricing agreement (APA) program, and that offer guidance on the process for taxpayers to request and obtain the assistance of the U.S. Competent Authority under the U.S. network of income tax treaties. Rev. Proc. 2015-41 [PDF… – Continue reading
A “legislative requirement” for large businesses to publish their tax strategy could create commercial confidentiality risks IN an age where large corporates continue to engage in tax avoidance or aggressive tax planning, compelling businesses to disclose their tax strategies is, at heart, a good idea. There is a risk, however,… – Continue reading
The Australia government on 6 August 2015 released two exposure drafts in relation to its multinational tax integrity measures. In the 2015 budget, the government announced a package of measures to address multinational tax avoidance. As part of these measures, the two exposure drafts would: (1) introduce the new OECD… – Continue reading
Excerpt from “FATCA in Canada: The Restriction on the Class of Entities Subject to FATCA” first published by the Canadian Tax Foundation in (2014) 62:3 Canadian Tax Journal by Roy Berg and Paul Barba. This article provides an introduction to the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) for Canadians and… – Continue reading
In doing business, companies will incur operating costs that vary according to the nature of the undertaking. For manufacturers, the key operating costs, apart from raw materials and overheads, might include such expenses as manufacturing know-how and technical assistance. For distributors, the key operating costs will normally include inventory, marketing… – Continue reading
QROPS specialists are offering free transfers to Gibraltar QROPS for August only for teachers who want to retire abroad and avoid all UK taxes and future UK taxes on their existing teacher’s pension scheme. This is the final chance for teachers living abroad to transfer their UK pensions outside the… – Continue reading
Switzerland and Belize signed a tax information exchange agreement (TIEA) on August 10, 2015. The agreement is Switzerland’s ninth TIEA. It provides for the exchange of information upon request. It covers Swiss federal, cantonal, and communal taxes on income and capital, and the cantonal and communal inheritance and gift taxes…. – Continue reading
The latest estimate of the tax potentially underpaid by the UK’s biggest businesses suggests that “the era of billion-pound tax settlements might be over” with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) increasingly focusing on mid-tier firms, an expert has said. Heather Self of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, was… – Continue reading
China devalued its currency on Tuesday after a run of poor economic data, a move it billed as a free-market reform but that some suspect could be the beginning of a longer slide in the exchange rate. The central bank set its official guidance rate down nearly 2 percent prior… – Continue reading
FATCA refers to provisions contained in the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (the ‘HIRE’ Act) signed into law on 18 March 2010 in the United States. The main purpose of FATCA is to identify and gather information on US persons who may be evading tax through the use of… – Continue reading
Only 23 percent of business leaders feel that recommendations from the OECD on base erosion and profit shifting will be successfully implemented, according to the findings of a new survey by Grant Thornton. Three quarters of business leaders would pay more taxes in exchange for greater clarity from authorities on… – Continue reading
After a landmark win for HMRC against Abbey National Treasury Services (ANTS) and Cater Allen International in June, the Revenue has yet more cause to celebrate After a first-tier tribunal decision in June secured £16m in unpaid tax from ANTS, HMRC successfully protected a further £45m late last week. The… – Continue reading
Controlled foreign companies (CFCs) that are engaged in offshore short-term insurance will be allowed to deduct reserves related to their “short-term insurance business” conducted outside South Africa, once an amendment to the Insurance Act, 2016 is promulgated. For a CFC to be eligible for this deduction (which is similar to… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WDAM) –This is a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice. Two tax return preparers with offices located in California, Maryland and New York were sentenced today in Los Angeles for facilitating an offshore tax fraud scheme, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the… – Continue reading
Comparative Information on OECD and Other Advanced and Emerging Economies Tax Administration 2015, produced under the auspices of the Forum on Tax Administration, is a unique and comprehensive survey of tax administration systems, practices and performance across 56 advanced and emerging economies (including all OECD, EU, and G20 members). Its… – Continue reading
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has further updated its guidance material on the Australia-US FATCA Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA). This is especially important in relation to self-certification requirements. The ATO has followed the US interpretation that a FATCA self-certification must be obtained before a new individual account is opened. The OECD… – Continue reading
The EU Commission has confirmed its continued endorsement of Guernsey as a cooperative jurisdiction following a meeting between officials in Brussels, reports Guernsey Finance. This news was welcomed in Guernsey, which has a strong record in meeting international standards as a cooperative and highly transparent jurisdiction – including as an… – Continue reading
The Barbados Government has taken key steps to meet the requirements of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act Intergovernmental Agreement (FATCA IGA) with the United States, Minister of Finance Christopher Sinckler said during a public consultation. Sinckler said: “With respect to legislative requirements, I am pleased to inform you that… – Continue reading
Surprising as it may seem, most of the advantages of the Cypriot Tax Regime were, up until recently, mostly directed to non- Cypriot Tax residents. This effectively meant that in order to enjoy the full benefits of the Regime one had to be a non-resident. The idea behind this was… – Continue reading
Following successful conferences in the Isle of Man in 2014 and in Gibraltar in March 2015, leading offshore law firm DQ Advocates and global law firm Latham & Watkins will be hosting their latest Global Tax Investigations Conference in the Isle of Man on 11 September 2015. The conference is… – Continue reading
Nerijus Numavičius, large owner of Maxima Group and one of the richest businessmen in the Baltics, is being accused of tax evasion by his business partner, writes Äripäev. According to small shareholder Mindaugas Marcinkevičius, various tax schemes employed by Maxima amount to over 200 million euros in tax evasion, of… – Continue reading
NAIROBI: The civil society in Kenya wants Parliament to join them in the push to end tax evasion through enactment of laws that enhance compliance from international trade. This, they argue, will boost revenue collection by the State. They say tougher laws will criminalise tax avoidance and spell harsher penalties… – Continue reading
THE OECD has published three reports outlining the framework for the automatic exchange of financial information between governments as part of its efforts to curb tax avoidance and evasion. In October last year, the organisation announced the agreement to automatically share tax information on individuals by the year 2018, to… – Continue reading
On 6 August 2015, Portugal and the United States signed a Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Agreement. FATCA seeks to obtain information on accounts held by U.S. taxpayers in other countries. It requires U.S. financial institutions to withhold a portion of certain payments made to Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs)… – Continue reading
Hundreds of millions of tax dollars are flooding into exchequers across the world, as governments offer evaders a last chance to own up to undeclared accounts, reports the Financial Times. Taxpayers with funds stashed offshore are coming forward voluntarily in their tens of thousands ahead of new transparency rules that… – Continue reading
Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority v 1. MH Investments, 2. JA Investments – CICA No. 31 of 2013; G391/2012 The Court of Appeal in rejecting the appeal of the Tax Information Authority against the decision of Mr Justice Quinn in MH Investments Ltd and JA Investments Ltd1 has confirmed in… – Continue reading
Would businesses really be willing to pay more tax if they had more certainty on what is acceptable for cross-border tax planning? According to a recent Grant Thornton International Business Report, three quarters of business leaders would in fact be ready to pony up more taxes in exchange for greater… – Continue reading
