July 22: Tax legislative changes in Austria were passed by the parliament, and the effective date for most changes is 1 January 2016. Among the provisions are the following items. Withholding tax on dividend distributions, capital gains The withholding tax rate for dividends and capital gains will be increased to… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS–European Union regulators ordered France to recover 1.37 billion euros ($1.5 billion) in state funds from Electricite de France SA (EDF.FR) after concluding the French electricity supplier had benefited from illegal tax breaks. The decision, which follows an annulment of a similar 2003 decision by the EU’s top court, comes… – Continue reading
You might think your bank records–especially foreign banks–are personal and confidential. Yet the government can make you hand over your bank records, even if they incriminate you. It turns out not even the Fifth Amendment can protect you. With FATCA, the pace of foreign account disclosures is frantic, and the… – Continue reading
Even before the government’s options paper on tax reform is released later this year, many reforms have been taken off the table, at least before the next election. Here’s the expert view on six. Broadening or increasing the GST Some experts say expanding the GST, which is a regressive tax,… – Continue reading
As governments around the world establish austerity measures to compensate for decreases in tax receipts, a new catch phrase has emerged: double non-taxation. Double non-taxation is the phrase used by governments to denote untaxed or lightly taxed profits that result from effective, legal tax planning techniques. These techniques include application… – Continue reading
Turkish Finance Minister Mehmet Şimşek said the Turkish government and the United States administration will sign a deal on July 23 which will make financial information exchanges possible between the two countries, as a part of the efforts to fight against tax evasion, as reported by Anadolu Agency. “With the… – Continue reading
On 8 June 2015, the Law “On optional declaration of assets and bank accounts (deposits) by individuals” (the “Capital or Tax Amnesty Law”) came into force. It was announced as part of the deoffshorisation campaign and opens a window of opportunity for the business community to declare “grey” assets without… – Continue reading
As part of its framework of measures on anti-money laundering and the counter-financing of terrorism (AML/CFT), Hong Kong’s Security Bureau has launched a three-month public consultation on the establishment of a reporting system on the physical cross-boundary transportation of large quantities of currency and bearer negotiable instruments (CBNIs). A spokesman… – Continue reading
A report published today by Global Witness, alleging that an individual with ties to a former Kazakh public official owns large swathes of London, follows much recent interest in the issue of public officials owning property in the UK via secretive corporate structures that conceal their interest. Earlier this month,… – Continue reading
Mexico on July 17, 2015, published the text of its agreement with Turkey to avoid double taxation between the two countries and prevent tax evasion. The double tax agreement (DTA) was signed in 2013 and is valid from July 23, 2015. Under the agreement, dividends will be subject to a… – Continue reading
The total of uncollected VAT and income revenue by HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) rose by £1 billion in the last 12 months to an eye-watering total of £34 billion. The £34 billion ‘tax gap’ – the difference between what HMRC is actually owed and what it physically collects –… – Continue reading
Moves to track offshore buyers are rushed and confusing and could increase compliance costs to taxpayers, the Government has been warned. In its submission on the Taxation (Land Information and Offshore Persons Information) Bill, EY (formerly Ernst & Young) said the proposed legislation was being rushed through to come into… – Continue reading
In a published report, anti-corruption organisation highlights complex structures through which swaths of UK property are owned Global Witness has called for greater transparency around the ownership of UK properties after reviewing alleged links between a former Kazakh secret police chief accused of money laundering and a London property portfolio… – Continue reading
SAO PAULO (AP) ” Three top officials of Brazil’s Camargo Correa construction company have become the first business executives to be convicted in the corruption-kickback scandal engulfing state-run oil company Petrobras. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office says Judge Sergio Moro on Monday sentenced the three on charges of money laundering, corruption… – 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
London (July 21st 2015):- His Excellency Dr Kevin Isaac signed an Agreement on the Exchange of Information Relating to Tax Matters with the Republic of Ireland on behalf of the Federation this afternoon July 21st 2015 at the Embassy of Ireland in London. Ireland’s ambassador for Britain Dun Mulhall signed… – Continue reading
Categorizing it as a “large scale, continuing, complex commercial crime,” a judge has sentenced two Calgary businessmen to prison for five years for defrauding the federal government of millions in taxes that should have been paid on registered retirement savings plans. Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Peter McIntyre said Steven… – Continue reading
On 20 March 2015, Poland’s government approved an agreement with the United States, implementing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) in Poland. FATCA is a US anti-avoidance law. It requires financial institutions abroad to provide the US tax authority with information about their US citizen clients. Poland is one… – Continue reading
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will seek the Union Cabinet’s approval for a model investment protection agreement that will enable India to safeguard against offshore arbitration and international litigation from global companies and also resume talks with the U.S. on a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). One of the reasons talks between… – Continue reading
The US can making giant vying to buy British industrial champion Rexam has sought to play down fears that the deal will stifle competition and could lead to higher prices. Earlier this year Ball Corporation swooped on Rexam in a £4.3billion takeover that will create the world’s largest beverage can… – Continue reading
New Delhi has proposed the setting up of a bilateral high-level group to discuss with Washington its concerns on the long-pending issue of US “visa restrictions” affecting the easy movement of Indian skilled professionals, especially in the IT sector. New Delhi has proposed the setting up of a bilateral high-level… – Continue reading
The Finance Ministry of the United Arab Emirates has released US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act guidance notes and the registration form for entities to access the FATCA reporting portal. FATCA, enacted by the US Congress in 2010, is intended to ensure that the US obtains information on accounts held… – Continue reading
Several measures have been taken to combat black money both by way of policy level initiatives as well as through more effective enforcement action. The fall in deposits by Indians in Swiss banks may be a result of the steps being taken by the government to unearth black money stashed… – Continue reading
In its annual survey of the South African economy, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has recommended measures to increase tax revenue and meet the country’s requirement for higher public spending on infrastructure and welfare. At the presentation of the survey, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria said that “more… – Continue reading
In cooperation with their Latvian colleagues, Ukrainian investigators have uncovered and frozen more than USD 80 mln (EUR 73 mln) worth of funds in Latvian bank accounts. The funds were moved there by Serhiy Kurchenko, a well-known associate of ousted president Viktor Yanukovych, the Russian LSM site reported yesterday via… – Continue reading
Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement or DTAA is an agreement between two countries which aims to avoid taxation of the same income in both countries. India has signed the DTAA with several countries. During assessment of an assessee to whom DTAA applies, the provisions of the Income Tax Act apply only… – Continue reading
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has urged SA to increase taxes on the wealthy, tighten up on corporate and personal tax allowances and broaden the valued-added tax (VAT) base in order to raise the resources it will need to fund development, reports Business Day Live. The OECD’s… – Continue reading
The governments of Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde (Cape Verde) signed agreements to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion at the end of a four-day working visit to Guinea-Bissau by the Prime Minister of Cabo Verde, José Maria Neves. Alongside the tax agreement, Cabo Verde will train Guinean technicians so… – Continue reading
The European Parliament’s special tax committee is seeking to punish multinationals for refusing to send representatives to a hearing in June by revoking lobbyist passes and preventing access to senior European Commission officials. AB InBev, AmazonEU, Barclays Group, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Google, HSBC Bank, Ikea, McDonalds and The Coca-Cola Company… – Continue reading
Thousands of expats living in Australia, many of them British with temporary retirement visas, want to become permanent residents but are told they are unable to do so despite funding their own lifestyle. Some have lived in Australia for over 20 years but the visa they hold was withdrawn to… – Continue reading
THE HAUGE, July 20 (Xinhua) — The Dutch-German agreement to enhance the exchange of information on tax rulings was “an important step” towards greater transparency, but there is still a long way to go before reaching common ground on harmonized corporate tax policies within the European Union (EU), according to… – Continue reading
Most South Africans think the prospect of working and living in a foreign country is an exciting adventure. However, the ins and outs of your tax affairs can be enough to make one less adventurous. The first thing to establish is what your “tax residency status” is. This is easier… – Continue reading
Irish people investing in other countries often lose up to a fifth of dividends Irish tax refund specialists Taxback. com have introduced an online service to help people recover tax withheld on share dividends in other countries. *Irish people investing abroad often lose up to a fifth of their dividends… – Continue reading
HMRC has secured £26.6bn from clamping down on tax avoidance and evasion in the last year, its annual accounts have shown. The tax office identified £2.7bn more such activity in 2014/15 than it did in the year before, when the figure amounted to £23.9bn. The chancellor pledged in his March… – Continue reading
New Zealand’s lack of overseas investment regulation is being promoted in Shanghai and Hong Kong to help sell apartments rising on the site of the country’s best-known record store. “NO stamp duties and property purchase tax, NO capital gains tax on residential property if sold after two years of holding,”… – Continue reading
Lord Sieff, then head of food at Marks and Spencer, returned from 1950s Israel having inked an agreement with horticulturalist Gordon Bickel to buy his gypsophila spray carnation. More than half a century later Bickel’s firm, Carmel Agrexco, has expanded from what he calls the ‘white gold’ that was behind… – Continue reading
A sweeping global reform of tax systems is under way and will have profound implications for the insurance industry, the London-based International Underwriting Association has warned. Responding to public concerns about tax evasion, the G20 major economies have ordered a major shift towards greater cooperation between tax authorities. This work… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: To protect confidentiality of tax information from abroad, the CBDT has warned of stern action against those making unauthorised disclosures as it amounts to breach of treaty commitments and cause embarrassment to the government. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) said the confidentiality of taxpayers’ information has… – Continue reading
The abiding complaint of those who believe offshore buyers are driving the rise in real estate prices in Metro Vancouver is the lack of data to prove it. How can you identify a problem if you can’t quantify it? The corollary to that complaint is the provincial government’s apparent inability,… – Continue reading
Post Finance, the banking arm of the Swiss post office, has informed clients living abroad that their credit cards will be cancelled at the end of October. The Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA) has criticised the decision that has been motivated by tightening money laundering and tax evasion regulations…. – Continue reading
The IRS’ investigation into Microsoft books centers on how the company uses its overseas subsidiaries for tax purposes. The company says the IRS audit has gone on long enough and the federal agency improperly hired an outside law firm to help in the investigation. Microsoft and the federal government have… – Continue reading
The UK is going ‘head to head’ with the Isle of Man and other jurisdictions with the reforms announced in last week’s summer budget, iomtoday reports. That’s the verdict of Treasury Minister Eddie Teare, who says that changes to the UK’s corporation tax, inheritance tax and reformed non-domicile rules will… – Continue reading
After almost a year of wrangling, the EU Council and the European Parliament have finally reached an agreement on a new Anti-Money Laundering Directive. The 4th AML Directive expands the scope of its predecessor (which was adopted in 2005, before the global banking scandals and the push towards tax transparency)… – Continue reading
The government confirms its commitment to tackling tax evasion and increasing international tax transparency by the introduction of new rules on automatic exchange of information concerning, amongst other things, offshore accounts. As announced as part of the pre-election 2015 Budget, the government will legislate to require financial intermediaries and tax… – Continue reading
Germany and the Netherlands have signed a new agreement that provides for the “spontaneous” exchange of information on advance pricing agreements and advance tax rulings. The agreement was signed in Brussels on July 14, 2015. Under the new agreement, both countries have committed to the mutual exchange of information on… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has launched four consultations on the UK Government’s proposed new approach to tackling offshore tax evasion. Under the proposals, corporates who are deemed to have failed to prevent tax evasion or the facilitation of tax evasion would face a criminal offence. A separate strict liability… – Continue reading
Swiss national Xavier Andre Justo will remain under Thai police custody for another 60 days, after investigators uncovered money laundering besides international corporate espionage-cum-extortion. Thai police have assured prosecutors Justo will be charged before his 85th day of detention, but sought further extension for his detention as more details are… – Continue reading
THE GOVERNMENT’S MOVE to introduce criminal ‘strict liability’ measures for those with undeclared offshore income and assets have been roundly criticised by the CIoT. While welcoming the announcement that the offence will be targeted at only the “most serious” offshore tax evaders and a threshold of £5,000 of under-declared tax… – Continue reading
A number of jurisdictions (including the US, the UK and Italy) have launched voluntary disclosure (‘VD’) programmes. A substantial number of cases involve private foundations, typically legacy structures based in Liechtenstein and Panama. As the concept of foundations is alien to common law, their tax treatment raises delicate issues in… – Continue reading
July 17: The Japanese Ministry of Finance on 16 July 2015 announced that the governments of Japan and Germany reached an “agreement in principle” for a new income tax treaty. The new treaty would replace the existing agreement signed in 1966, and subsequently amended in 1979 and in 1983. According… – Continue reading
