Category: Regulatory

China decides to impose additional tariffs on 16 bln USD of U.S. imports

BEIJING, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) — China has decided to impose additional tariffs on imported products from the United States worth about 16 billion U.S. dollars, according to an official statement released Wednesday. Approved by the State Council, the Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council has decided to impose additional… – Continue reading

E-tax system will burden us – KAM

Manufacturers have accused the Kenya Revenue Authority of bulldozing the planned roll out of the e-tax stamp duty system despite numerous concerns. Their main concern is that the Excise Goods Management System will push up the cost of doing business. The Kenya Association of Manufacturers yesterday made a passionate appeal… – Continue reading

Switzerland To Hand Over HSBC Data To India

India is to receive bank account information from HSBC, after Switzerland’s highest court ruled that the bank is obligated to provide data requested where the leaked data has not been purchased. The information was leaked in 2008 by Herve Falciani, who worked for HSBC’s Swiss private bank. The Indian authorities… – Continue reading

Pakistanis’ hidden foreign assets worth around $350bn

ISLAMABAD: Authorities probing illegal foreign accounts and properties of thousands of Pakistanis made shocking revelations on Tuesday that the volume of these assets hidden in different tax havens abroad reached up to US$350 (Rs43 trillion). Interestingly, the authorities also revealed for the first time that only accounts and properties worth… – Continue reading

Intra-group Service Fee Treatment in China

Most multinational corporations (MNCs) charge their subsidiaries for services like human resources (HR) or information technology support. The subsidiary’s payment for these services is classed as intra-group service fees when they are made within same enterprise group. Because some businesses use this method to avoid tax and shift profits, tax… – Continue reading

Over Rs35 bn laundering: CJP hints at Panama-like JIT for Zardari, Faryal

ISLAMABAD: The Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), Mian Saqib Nisar, on Monday suggested formation of a Panama-style joint investigation team (JIT) to investigate the allegations against former president Asif Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur of laundering over Rs35 billion through fake bank accounts. A three-member bench of the apex… – Continue reading

Properties in UK: 75pc FBR notices issued to people from Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad

ISLAMABAD: The people belonging to Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad are on top on account of receiving 75 percent tax notices from the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) for owning expansive properties in UK out of total 600-700 properties. This information has been shared by the UK tax authorities in a… – Continue reading

Outrageous tax incentives harming local businesses – ECG Chairman

The current tax incentives arrangement for foreign investors looking to invest in key sectors of the economy ends up financing multinationals to the detriment of local businesses who continue to wobble under severe taxation, Marwan Ansah, Western Regional Chairman, Senior Staff Union of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG), has… – Continue reading

Malaysia To Phase Out ‘Harmful’ Tax Regime

Malaysia has suspended its MSC Malaysia tax regime, pending changes to bring it into line with recommendations from the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting initiative. Under the regime, domestic and foreign information and communication technology-related businesses can apply for “MSC Malaysia Status,” which allows them to benefit from tax… – Continue reading

Warning to declare foreign income before September deadline

UK taxpayers who receive any foreign income or profits from offshore assets have been urged to contact HMRC and disclose this income before 30th September 2018 to avoid being hit by higher penalties. David Redfern, tax preparation specialist and director of DSR Tax Claims, warned those affected to contact HMRC… – Continue reading

How Will the UK Deal With Crypto After Brexit: Expert Take

The United Kingdom and the European Union failed to reach an agreement on an orderly uncoupling, which is a major geopolitical and strategic event, with global implications. Uncertainty about the outcome of the Brexit referendum has already started to weaken growth in the U.K. — which is expected to get… – Continue reading

FBR to send tax notices to 600-700 potential tax evaders in UK

ISLAMABAD: After expiry of the tax amnesty scheme that had failed to lure owners of offshore assets abroad in a big way, the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided dispatching tax notices to 600-700 individuals having rental income from possessing expensive properties in the UK in a bid to… – Continue reading

VN, Croatia sign agreement on double taxation avoidance

Viet Nam News HA NOI — Vietnamese Deputy Minister of Finance Do Hoang Anh Tua’n and Croatian Minister of Finance Zdravko Maric on Wednesday signed an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to income taxes. According to Tua’n, the agreement is… – Continue reading

Putin Signs ‘Tax Havens Bill’ to Shield Russian Companies From Foreign Sanctions

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a package of laws allowing Russia-controlled foreign offshore companies to be re-registered in offshore financial centers (OFCs) established in Russia’s Kaliningrad Region and Primorsky Territory in order to minimize the possible consequences of sanctions and political risks from foreign countries. The legislation establishes the procedure… – Continue reading

Lyford Cay Blasts 500% Hike In Tax

The Government is moving to reinstate the $50,000 property tax “cap” after The Bahamas’ wealthiest community slammed “punitive taxation” that threatens “500 percent or greater” tax hikes. KP Turnquest, deputy prime minister, yesterday told Tribune Business that the Government was “actively reviewing” recent Real Property Tax Act reforms that could… – Continue reading

French request for UBS banking data stopped by Swiss court: report

GENEVA, Aug. 2 (Xinhua) — Switzerland’s Federal Administrative Court has ordered the country’s tax administration not to provide France with details about 40,000 UBS bank clients with French addresses, Swiss media reported Thursday. In May 2016, the French tax authorities requested administrative assistance from the Federal Tax Administration (FTA), Swiss… – Continue reading

A Caribbean Perspective: Tax Rules We Can’T Meet, Unity We Must Not Avoid

The financial services sector of Caribbean jurisdictions – and other parts of the developing world – have been under continuous assault by the European Union (EU) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) since the mid-1990s. This assault will peak again in a month’s time when financial institutions… – Continue reading

VN-Cambodia agreement on double taxation avoidance ratified

The Government has ratified the agreement on double taxation avoidance and income tax evasion prevention between Vietnam and Cambodia. The Government assigned the Ministry of Finance to coordinate with relevant ministries and agencies of Vietnam and Cambodia in implementing the agreement. The agreement was officially signed on the occasion of… – Continue reading

Angola’s General Tax Administration guarantees introduction of VAT in 2019

Value Added Tax (IVA) will replace the Consumer Tax in Angola in 2019, the coordinator of the Technical Group for the Implementation of IVA, Adilson Sequeira, said according to a report published on the website of the Angolan Ministry of Finance. “The introduction of IVA is the result of a… – Continue reading

Crackdown on overseas tax avoidance

Draft laws stopping multinational companies leveraging their Australian assets with debt, to reduce their tax burden have been released for public comment. The “thin capitalisation” rules prevent multinationals from shifting profits offshore by using excessive levels of tax-deductible debt to fund their Australian operations. “This will further reinforce the government’s… – Continue reading

Corporate America now knows how to tally its repatriation taxes

U.S. companies that had been unsure of how to calculate a new tax on profits they’ve stashed offshore now have official answers. The Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations on Wednesday on Section 965, governing the so-called repatriation tax, detailing which corporate taxpayers are subject to the tax, which assets… – Continue reading

Slovakia is pushing on digital platforms, including booking.com, to pay taxes here

One digital platform has registered on its own and others are being registered ex officio. Foreign digital platforms, which mediate services in transport and accommodation in Slovakia, are obliged to launch so-called permanent establishments in Slovakia. The Finance Ministry wants to force them to pay corporate tax. So far only… – Continue reading

HMRC warn UK taxpayers it’s time to declare offshore assets

HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is urging UK taxpayers to come forward and declare any foreign income or profits on offshore assets before 30 September to avoid higher tax penalties New legislation called “Requirement to Correct’ requires UK taxpayers to notify HMRC about any offshore tax liabilities relating to UK… – Continue reading

Macau | City to comply with OECD tax information exchange from September 1

Macau financial authorities announced today that starting from September 1 the city will start complying with automatic financial exchange regulations devised by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Macau (MNA) – The Office of the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lionel Leong Vai Tac, has announced this Tuesday that… – Continue reading

Nigeria’s Tax Law obsolete, overdue for review —Oruaze Dickson

A legal practitioner cum entrepreneur, Moses Oruaze Dickson, has called for the review of the legislative framework for tax and taxation in the country, describing the existing law as obsolete for a progressive society like Nigeria. According to Dickson, who is also Managing Solicitor, Triax Solicitors, the law is long… – Continue reading

Tax Hike ‘Shockwaves’ Hit High-End Properties

Foreign investors were yesterday said to have halted construction projects, with some threatening to sell their high-end properties, as the “shockwaves” from Budget tax changes hit home. Robert Myers, the Organisation for Responsible Governance’s (ORG) principal, told Tribune Business that much of the Bahamas’ second home market “is dead” unless… – Continue reading

Introduction of exit capital tax will attract attention of tax authorities to export-import companies – Expert

The introduction of an exit capital tax, envisaged by the draft law on amendments to the Tax Code of Ukraine regarding the tax on exit capital (No. 8557), will draw the attention of tax authorities to companies carrying out foreign economic operations, expert for transfer pricing at Evris law firm… – Continue reading

Federation Council Approves ‘Russian Tax Havens Laws’ to Thwart Sanctions

The Russian parliament’s upper chamber approved a package of laws enabling Russia-controlled foreign offshore companies to be re-registered in offshore financial centers (OFCs) established in Russia’s Kaliningrad Region and Primorsky Territory in order to minimize the possible consequences of sanctions and political risks from foreign countries. The legislation establishes the… – Continue reading

PM asks authorities to probe tax evasion by FDI firms

Media reports have suggested the Government to build a more effective mechanism to tackle the problem that prolonged loss-making FDI enterprises have still enlarged investment and production. — Photo cafebiz.vn Viet Nam News HA NOI – Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc has assigned the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and General… – Continue reading

Rivers seeks support from US senators

(CNS): Financial Services Minister Tara Rivers was in Washington, DC, last week, trying to persuade US Senators and others that Cayman’s financial services industry is well regulated and adhering to tax transparency standards. Picking up from an earlier visit, the minister spoke with American lawmakers about the industry here and… – Continue reading

BEPS Project Has Triggered Near-Global Tax Reform: OECD

The OECD has committed to providing proposals to fix the taxation of the digital economy by 2020, in an update to G20 leaders on international efforts to mitigate base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS). In the newly released Second Annual Progress Report of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS, the… – Continue reading

Which Countries is The Cryptocurrency Taxed In?

The cryptocurrency industry is still at a very early stage of its development, so there are no single international rules yet. The governments of individual countries independently try to regulate digital assets. The tax on the cryptocurrency varies in different countries. Within the framework of this article, we will try… – Continue reading

Profit shifting a regional issue: Palaso

Profit shifting by large companies is a regional issue that can be addressed through improved information sharing between tax authorities of economies, says Internal Revenue Commission commissioner-general Betty Palaso. She said this at the opening of the Advancing Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (BEPS) and Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI)… – Continue reading

Macau | Monetary Authority revoked 13 offshore permits this year

The Monetary Authority of Macao has revoked offshore authorisation for 13 companies in the first half of this year with no new offshore permits being provided Macau (MNA) – Some 13 offshore companies saw their authorisation to operate in Macau revoked in the first half of this year by the… – Continue reading

Ensure foreign taxpayers have NBR certificates before allowing DTAA benefits

Bangladesh Bank on Monday asked all banks to ensure that foreigners have clearance certificates from the National Board of Revenue before allowing them tax benefits under double taxation avoidance agreement. Foreign Currency Policy Department of the central bank in a letter to the head offices of approved dealer banks suggested… – Continue reading

Rs. 2,476 cr collected as Tax and Penalty under Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015, says MoS Shiv Pratap Shukla

The Government has collected Rs. 2,476 as Tax and Penalty under Black Money (Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets) and Imposition of Tax Act, 2015 said Minister of Finance for State Shiva Pratap Shukla in the Rajya Sabha. The Government of India has taken various steps for curbing the black money… – Continue reading

UK Adopts EU Anti-Money Laundering Legislation

The UK is upgrading its national security by adopting a recently implemented European Union fifth anti-money laundering directive, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) announced in a statement on Tuesday. The fifth directive is aimed at combating corruption and money laundering and came into effect in the… – Continue reading

European Leaders Press for New Digital Tax at G20 Meeting

European finance officials just wrapped up a G20 summit in Argentina where they pressed for new global rules to better collect tax on digital giants like Google (NASDAQ:GOOGL 1258.15 0.04%), Facebook (NASDAQ:FB 214.67 0.02%), and Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN 1829.24 0.02%), among others. The European Commision is the executive (read: tasked with… – Continue reading

Spain’s PM Proposes Minimum Corporate Tax Burden

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has pledged to reform Spain’s corporate tax rules so that companies pay an effective rate no lower than 15 percent. Laying out the new Socialist Government’s two-year economic plan before parliament on July 17, Sanchez proposed that, by restricting the use of deductions, he would… – Continue reading

CBDT Revises Form 3CD: To mine GST Data to check Tax Evasion [Read Notification]

The Central Board of Direct Taxes ( CBDT ) has revised the Form No. 3CD, an audit report under section 44AB of the Income Tax Act, 1961 in a case where the accounts of the business or profession of a person have been audited under any other law. Earlier there… – Continue reading

Behind the amnesty

The extension of the deadline of the tax amnesty scheme has not borne the results it was expected to. The FBR is said to have taken the advice of accounting firms to extend the deadline, but the results have not matched the early optimism. Despite this, though, the amnesty scheme… – Continue reading

OECD to help Pakistan implement world tax standard

ISLAMABAD: The Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on Friday announced that they launched new programme to support Pakistan in implementing new international tax standards. According to statement issued by the OECD after holding three days talks with Pakistani authorities stated that as part of a mission held from… – Continue reading

HMRC Chasing Expat Contractors For Unpaid Tax

The British tax man is asking foreign governments to chase down expats working overseas who have failed to pay the right amount of tax. Almost £6 million was raised for HM Revenue & Customs by foreign tax authorities in 2017. This was triple the amount raised from British expats in… – Continue reading

Transfer pricing remains an issue

HCM CITY — Viet Nam’s laws about transfer pricing remain inconsistent and have many loopholes, causing great loss of State revenue, speakers said on July 19 at a meeting held in Ha Noi. Speaking at the “Transfer Pricing – Issues in Management” workshop, Dr. Ho Duc Phoc, auditor general of… – Continue reading

The cabinet will strengthen the control of tax authorities over wealthy Ukrainians.

From 1 January 2019 rich Ukrainians can be under scrutiny of tax authorities. This draft law was developed on the eve of the Finance Ministry, writes in his article for EP Galina Kalachova. The author notes that understanding of Finance, a taxpayer with high income is someone who meets one… – Continue reading