Barbados has agreed to share information with the U.S. under a new law aimed at preventing offshore tax evasion by American citizens. One of the most controversial laws of the Barack Obama administration, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) requires financial firms to report information on U.S. account-holders to… – Continue reading
Backbench MHK John Houghton’s antics in the House of Keys have been branded ‘outrageous’ by the Chief Minister. Mr Houghton was ordered to leave the Keys last week after refusing to apologise for questioning the honesty of the Treasury Minister. Chief Minister Allan Bell said: ‘It seems the election is… – Continue reading
Russia’s upper house of parliament has approved an “anti-offshore” law requiring individual and corporate taxpayers to report foreign profits. The Russian government aims to prevent capital outflow via “offshores,” estimated at $200 billion in 2014. The law requires Russian tax authorities to be notified of all foreign dealings. The government… – Continue reading
Russia’s Putin Urges Action to Restrain Rising Interest Rates, Inflation President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday urged Russia’s government and the Central Bank to work together to curb interest rates and restrain surging inflation as the economy slides toward recession. “Only combined efforts by the government and Central bank and a… – Continue reading
Former billionaire Samuel Wyly’s Dallas church is taking on the might of the U.S. government for a scrap of the businessman’s remaining fortune. Wyly, who filed for bankruptcy after losing a fraud lawsuit by the Securities and Exchange Commission, owes $20,000 to the Third Church of Christ, Scientist, under a… – Continue reading
The Tax Office denied Macquarie Group a controversial tax deduction related to offshore subsidiaries that resulted in a long-running and costly court battle, while at the same time allowing other taxpayers to claim the deductions, a report finds. A report from inspector-general of taxation Ali Noroozi, released by the government… – Continue reading
Belgian authorities have charged a Swiss subsidiary of HSBC with serious and organised fiscal fraud, money laundering, criminal organisation and illegal financial intermediary. Belgian prosecutors say HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) cheated the state by wooing very wealthy clients particularly in diamond businesses in Antwerp. The bank is said to have… – Continue reading
MPs have attacked the taxman for being too slow to crack down on controversial avoidance schemes used by celebrities and other high earners, resulting in millions of pounds being lost to the public purse. As much as £10 million may never be recoverable because of delays by Her Majesty’s Revenue… – Continue reading
LONDON: Britain’s tax collection agency is not doing enough to tackle multinational firms who use complex company structures to reduce their tax bills, a report by MPs said on Tuesday. Britain has sought to take a leading role in international efforts to reduce legal tax avoidance methods used by companies… – Continue reading
Westpac will shut down the accounts of money transfer operators on November 24, due to growing fears about breaching strict terrorism financing and anti-money laundering laws, leaving hundreds of legitimate remitters to developing countries in the lurch. Westpac is the last of the four major banks to withdraw from servicing… – Continue reading
The Finance Bill 2014 (the “Bill”), which was published 23 October 2014, proposes a package of measures which focuses on Ireland’s tax rate, regime and reputation. The changes seek to reinforce Ireland’s position as a top destination for multinational companies and emphasise the importance of real and substantive foreign direct… – Continue reading
Thirty-five-year-old Rocky Martin travelled from his home in Sundre, Alta., to Tijuana, Mexico to get rid of his U.S. citizenship. And he saved himself about $1,800 by doing so. Martin, born in Canada, inherited U.S. citizenship from his mother, who registered him as an American born abroad when he was… – Continue reading
Russia’s lower house of parliament on Tuesday took aim at the offshore holdings that have become ubiquitous in Russian business, passing in its final reading a bill that will make Russian taxpayers declare and pay taxes on their assets abroad. But once signed into law, this product of President Vladimir… – Continue reading
On November 13, 2014, Hong Kong announced that it had signed a Model 2 FATCA IGA. Under the agreement Hong Kong financial institutions will enter into separate FFI agreements with the IRS and will report information on U.S. account holders directly to the IRS. Hong Kong indicated its intention to… – Continue reading
Should London’s Mayor pay U.S. taxes? How about filing FBARs and other forms that make it easy for the IRS to track his bank accounts? London’s Mayor Boris Johnson is English, but being born in New York means he’s American too. Turns out he never gave up his U.S. citizenship,… – Continue reading
Narendra Modi talked of black money, which is an issue at home, and linked it to terror finance — something that worries Western governments The G20, world-weary political and economic observers would say, has outlived its use and that it has become a talking shop like the G8 and then… – Continue reading
There are two ways to approach a G20 summit. One is to seek to provide solutions to major international problems affecting the global economy and get other countries to sign up for them. The other is to go with a largely domestic agenda and tomtom it, but in large part… – Continue reading
Is corporate CEO pay really out of control? Well, consider Fleecing Uncle Sam, a new report from the Institute for Policy Studies and the Center for Effective Government. Of the 100 highest-paid CEOs in the US, the study finds, twenty-nine of them received more compensation than their companies paid in… – Continue reading
The United States has treaty language that allows us to work with the taxing authorities in other countries to collect U.S. taxes owed from U.S. Citizens or their property located in those countries and to allow those countries to have IRS collect from their citizens or property located in the… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – A Swiss banker charged in the United States last year with helping wealthy Americans avoid taxes said in a court filing on Tuesday that he wanted to fight the charges and asked a federal judge to consider his application for bail before he travelled to the United States…. – Continue reading
The European Commission, in an “Opening Decision” published on November 14, 2014, said that an advance tax ruling provided by the Netherlands to coffee group Starbucks appears to constitute state aid, in violation of European Union (EU) rules. In a 40-page letter to the Dutch authorities, the Commission detailed the… – Continue reading
On 11 November 2014, the UK and Germany made a joint announcement about a proposal they had developed to address some of the concerns raised over the OECD’s suggested approach to dealing with preferential IP tax regimes. These regimes will close to new entrants from June 2016, and will be… – Continue reading
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) should be allowed to offer settlements to resolve existing disputes over alleged tax avoidance, an expert has said.18 Nov 2014 Litigation & International Arbitration Enforcement UK Europe Tax disputes expert James Bullock of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said the measure would help… – Continue reading
A recent binding tax ruling recognised that the historical background of a multinational group is a key factor in considering whether a non-EU ultimate parent should trigger the anti-abuse rule which applies to exemption from dividend withholding tax. In a nutshell, the Spanish Non Resident Income Tax Law (NRIT), provides… – Continue reading
November 18: A requirement for bonded importers to declare and pay use tax on goods imported into Puerto Rico has been reinstated and is effective today, November 18, 2014. These rules were reinstated by Administrative Determination No. 14-27 (November 6, 2014) as issued by the Puerto Rico Treasury Department. Background… – Continue reading
November 18: The Treasury Department and IRS today released for publication in the Federal Register final and temporary regulations (T.D. 9704) concerning the treatment of U.S. and foreign persons that fail to file gain recognition agreements (GRAs) or that fail to satisfy other reporting requirements associated with transfers of property… – Continue reading
CEG says the U.S. corporate tax system is in desperate need of reform A recent report from the Center for Effective Government (Fleecing Uncle Sam) highlights that many large U.S. companies pay little to no corporate taxes, and a few even get tax rebates from the federal government. Moreover, in… – Continue reading
The New York Times’ report on prominent American think tanks receiving some $92 million from a minimum of 63 governments since 2011, prompted Rep. Frank Wolf (R-Va.) to ask Attorney General Eric Holder, a long overdue question: “Should think tanks be allowed to take undisclosed donations from foreign governments?” According… – Continue reading
Eureopean Union chief’s actions as prime minister of Luxembourg attacked over alleged role in creation of tax haven Jean-Claude Juncker is facing a vote in the European parliament to declare him unfit for his post as head of the EU executive because of his alleged role in turning Luxembourg into… – Continue reading
A publication in the Economic Times has caused much debate in India since after blacklisting Cyprus for not sharing information on tax evaders, India is now looking to take away the favourable tax treatment available to investors from the European tax heaven under the bilateral tax treaty between the two… – Continue reading
Switzerland’s ambassador to Germany said his country is working to improve its image after years of revelations that Germans used Swiss banks to avoid taxes. Ambassador Tim Guldimann pointed to Switzerland’s support of an international agreement on automatic tax-data sharing in Berlin in October as a sign of his country’s… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS—A Belgian judge on Monday formally accused a Swiss unit of banking giant HSBC Holdings PLC with helping wealthy Belgians evade taxes on billions of dollars of offshore holdings, the latest of numerous tax-fraud investigations to hit the Swiss banking industry.
LONDON (ShareCast) – HMRC issued 1,502 legal notices in the year to 31 March 2014 demanding information on tax investigation targets. This figure is up from 1,490 the previous year. City law firm RPC (NYSE: RES – news) announced on Monday that HMRC is increasingly requiring accountancy and legal firms… – Continue reading
The G20 Communique is good news on the international tax reform front. As part of the G20 commitment to boost economic resilience the Communique commits G20 nations to taking action to ensure fairness in the international tax system. This means they are looking at ways to ensure profits are taxed… – Continue reading
Oxfam director Winnie Byanyima says what is on the table is not enough to stop poor countries being ‘bled dry’ Moves by G20 nations to tackle corporate tax avoidance are welcome but will only begin to uncover the full problem while leaving poor countries still vulnerable to exploitation, tax justice… – Continue reading
New Zealand is planning to crackdown on tax evaders and combat the menace of avoidance by international firms. As part of the exercise, New Zealand will work with an international action plan being spearheaded by the OECD. This was stated by Finance Minister Mr. Bill English. He told media persons… – Continue reading
Economic growth in France may exceed the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) 0.4 percent target this year, finance minister Michel Sapin told CNBC over the weekend. “The last figures for the third-quarter are figures that fill me with trust. This year, France will reach the 0.4 percent [target],… – Continue reading
In today’s global economy, where multinational companies do business in different geographical and tax jurisdictions, the need for arm’s length pricing of related party transactions is a growing concern for revenue authorities. Tax bodies are increasingly requiring multinationals to document their related party transactions. Where these transactions are not well… – Continue reading
The latest G20 leaders’ summit in Australia, which ended yesterday, has endorsed the various strands of international tax work being undertaken by the European Commission and by OECD, including work on the Base Erosion Profit Shifting (BEPS) project Prime Minister David Cameron said there had been ‘important breakthroughs’ in making… – Continue reading
It’s a surprise to many people that MLPs generate taxable income in retirement plans requiring a tax filing and payment of taxes. Traders and investors are interested in using their IRA and other retirement plan accounts (collectively referred to as “retirement plans”) for making “alternative investments” in publicly traded master… – Continue reading
Pretoria — President Jacob Zuma has concluded his visit to Brisbane, Australia, where he led the South African delegation to the G20 Leaders’ Summit, says the Presidency. The main outcome of the Leaders’ Summit was a commitment to lift the G20’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by at least an additional… – Continue reading
Fifty-one countries signed the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement in Berlin on Oct. 29 to fight offshore tax fraud and evasion. The agreement aims to put an end to banking secrecy by sharing tax-related information with member states. Missing from the signatory list are the United States and China. China’s absence… – Continue reading
G20 leaders have agreed to boost their combined economies by at least 2.1% by 2018, injecting $2 trillion into the world economy, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced. Closing the 2014 G20 Leaders Summit in Brisbane at the weekend, Abbott set out economic pledges agreed by world leaders, including greater… – Continue reading
G20 leaders have made “real progress” towards ensuring that “big companies pay the tax they owe”, David Cameron said at the end of the G20 summit in Brisbane yesterday. “There are now over 92 different countries and tax authorities properly sharing information and, as the OECD set out at this… – Continue reading
Tax agency asking for thousands 9 years later after suddenly changing their tax status It was Benjamin Franklin who said, “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” But in the case of Calgary residents Elise and Edwin Britton, an $18,000 tax bill from… – Continue reading
The limited liability company, or LLC, has become a popular form for organizing a business. Using an LLC generally avoids the double layer of taxation encountered with a corporation while providing limited liability for its members, and offers more flexibility than S corporations in which corporations may not be shareholders. … – Continue reading
A high-profile businesswoman accused of using Cayman Islands bank accounts to dodge more than $7 million in taxes is seeking to challenge the use of information obtained by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service through a tax information exchange request. Cheryl Womack, a Kansas City businesswoman who has a home and… – Continue reading
THE Lagos State government has begun the prosecution of no fewer than 50 companies over alleged tax evasion charges. The number adds up to 200 that have so far been charged to court in the last one year. Chairman of the Lagos State Internal Revenue Services (LIRS), Tunde Fowler,… – Continue reading
IN July 2014, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) sent letters to some tax consultants requesting their non-resident clients operating in Nigeria to file complete tax returns effective from 2014 tax year. In practice, non-resident companies file their tax returns on the deemed profit basis. Following an initial period of… – Continue reading
Recent months saw various important developments that are relevant to Sino-European trade and investment. These include (i) changes to the EU Parent-Subsidiary Directive, (ii) the entry into force of the double tax treaty between Luxembourg and Taiwan, and (iii) proposed changes to China’s Foreign Investment Catalogue and the Governmental Verifications… – Continue reading
