The Ministry of Economy and Finance (MEF) recently decided to shrink the tax burden for local microfinance institutions (MFIs) by lowering withholding tax on interest from loans acquired from abroad from 14 to 10 percent, a move that the government claims will keep the massive sector sustainable. This is the… – Continue reading
Plan proposes 12.5% tax rate on intellectual-property income Bills ‘upend decades of U.S. tax policy’ on tight deadline U.S. companies that make billions of dollars from patents and other intellectual property held offshore would be eligible for a special 12.5 percent tax rate on those earnings under the Senate tax… – Continue reading
Considering a work stint in Japan? You’d better make it short, and you’d better stay alive. That’s because the government subjects long-term foreign residents to inheritance tax of up to 55 percent on their worldwide assets – meaning heirs could be forced to give up their family homes or businesses,… – Continue reading
Qatar has become the 115th jurisdiction to sign the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. The Convention is touted by the OECD as “the most powerful instrument for international tax cooperation.” It provides for all forms of administrative assistance in tax matters: exchange of information on request,… – Continue reading
THE Government has been urged to “get across the line before year-end” on global tax information exchange standards, amid hope the relevant legislation will reach Parliament tomorrow. Michael Paton, a former Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) chairman, told Tribune Business that the Bahamas needed to upgrade its existing legislation to… – Continue reading
Bulgaria has said that multinationals covered by the country’s new transfer pricing country-by-country reporting regime should submit their first report by December 31, 2017. Through Order 3LIY-1410, Bulgaria’s National Revenue Agency has newly set out the rules concerning country-by-country documentation, including who the reporting obligations apply to and how to… – Continue reading
Under President Trump’s political and economic climate, stocks and the economy have been soaring. Trump constantly aims for three percent GDP growth as a result of cutting corporate income and individual income taxes, which aims to encourage spending across different family incomes. However, these corporations the tax cuts favor have… – Continue reading
The Senate Finance Committee released its tax reform plan on November 9, presenting a draft bill with marked differences to that agreed by the House Ways and Means Committee on the same day. The proposal was drafted by Finance Committee Republicans under the leadership of Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin… – Continue reading
Even Israelis residing overseas for three years are being required to pay tax in Israel on their income during that period. Quite a few Israelis who emigrated from Israel, lived abroad for certain periods, and did not report their income there, claiming that they are not residents of Israel, have… – Continue reading
ACCRA, Nov. 10 (Xinhua) — Ghana’s Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia said on Friday Ghana was leveraging technology to broaden the tax base and enhance tax collection. He believes that Ghana has reached a stage in its development where it must adopt appropriate, current and improved technology to make tax administration convenient… – Continue reading
“Reportage about hacked data from global law firm Appleby has highlighted the substantial lack of media understanding of offshore investment structures and Bermuda’s long-time reputation for tax transparency and cooperation with international authorities,” the Bermuda Business Development Agency said. “Bermuda is committed to the exchange of relevant information to legitimate… – Continue reading
The Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue) vide notification S.O. 3512(E) dated November 2, 2017 sets out the Third Protocol to the Convention between the Government of the Republic of India and the Government of New Zealand for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with… – Continue reading
The Cabinet today gave its green light to an agreement between India and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) of China for avoiding double taxation and prevention of tax evasion. The Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also approved the protocol amending the agreement between India and Kyrgyzstan… – Continue reading
FinanceMalta, the Institute of Financial Services Practitioners, the Chamber of Commerce, Enterprise and Industry and the Gozo Business Chamber have welcomed the PANA Committee’s confirmation that the Maltese tax system is in line with current international and EU standards. Furthermore,according to the Committee, Malta has transposed EU rules and respects… – Continue reading
The commitment comes amid ongoing controversy over the use of complex tax arrangements following the Paradise Papers leak. The islands of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man have signed up to a joint commitment with the British and Irish governments to tackle tax evasion and abusive tax avoidance. The… – Continue reading
Luxury yachts built in Dutch shipyards are being sold to suspect buyers around the world through tax havens, Trouw and the Financieele Dagblad reported on Friday. The dubious yacht transactions were revealed through an investigation being carried out into the Paradise Papers by the two Dutch newspapers . The documents… – Continue reading
French finance minister Bruno Le Maire has urged countries to approve tougher sanctions against jurisdictions that do not adhere to standards in tax transparency in the wake of the Paradise Papers leak. Le Maire told reporters ahead of a meeting of European Union finance ministers in Brussels that such sanctions… – Continue reading
Universities are always looking for new ways to increase returns on their endowments. The hunt for lucrative investments has reportedly led several institutions offshore. College endowments are typically exempt from federal taxes. However, when income is earned on an endowment outside of the core educational mission, it can be subject… – Continue reading
The European Union Common Consolidated Corporate Tax Base (CCCTB) has been talked about recently as a solution to the problem of an imperfect pan-EU corporate tax system, which allows large companies, particularly those with a digital presence, to detach profits from value-creation, and pay tax in low-tax jurisdictions. But what… – Continue reading
In this Tax Alert we will briefly highlight two topical Dutch tax matters very relevant to internationally active companies: the current status of the legislative proposal regarding Dutch dividend withholding tax rules for holding cooperatives and BVs/NVs and the announcement of the Dutch Ministry of Finance that the Dutch fiscal… – Continue reading
Ghana is considering promulgating laws to criminalize the abuse of transfer pricing in its petroleum sector, the Acting Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Commission, Mr. Egbert Faible, has disclosed. According to Mr. Faible, the abuse of transfer pricing in the country’s budding petroleum sector was worrying and there was… – Continue reading
What more could the Indonesian tax authority do than simply pledge to investigate and verify information on taxpayers who sheltered their wealth secretly in offshore tax havens, as revealed last week through the leaked Paradise Papers. But the stated commitment is meaningless unless the government acts quickly and firmly to… – Continue reading
GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands (CMC) — The Cayman Islands, noting that it has had to get used to “unfair and inaccurate” reporting about its global financial sector, is distancing itself from the so-called Paradise Papers, a set of confidential documents related to offshore investment. In addition, the island has also… – Continue reading
The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) raised the possibility of granting a general tax amnesty to lure individuals and corporations with outstanding liabilities to settle their obligations without fear of being slapped with criminal charges. Following the tax settlement of cigarette-firm Mighty Corp. with the government, Budget Secretary Benjamin… – Continue reading
The company known for the ‘double Irish’ scheme is moving its subsidiaries’ tax residency. A set of leaked documents from offshore law firm Appleby has revealed that Apple stashed $250 billion in Jersey, a tiny island off the coast of France known for being a tax haven. The tech titan… – Continue reading
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has commended the Philippines for legal changes that brought the nation’s casinos within the scope of the country’s Anti-Money Laundering Act. “[The IMF] welcomes the recent amendment… to include casinos” under the act, the IMF executive board said in a press release issued on Monday,… – Continue reading
The investigation wing of the income-tax department in Goa probing money laundering and black money has uncovered more than Rs 1,000 crore worth of tax evasion in recent months. The tax evasion cases came to light between April and October 2017 following the post-demonetisation crackdown on undisclosed income, a senior… – Continue reading
On October 2 the US Government released the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, setting out in legislation its plans for comprehensive reform of the US tax code. For businesses, the bill will bring about a landmark shift to a territorial corporate tax system, replacing the current worldwide tax basis regime… – Continue reading
Goltsblat BLP advises that the Federal Tax Service (FTS) has approved BVI’s removal from the list of countries (jurisdictions) not exchanging information with the Russian Federation for tax purposes from 1 January 2018 (the relevant order is pending registration with the Ministry of Justice). A country’s removal from the FTS… – Continue reading
Goltsblat BLP advises that the Federal Tax Service (FTS) has approved BVI’s removal from the list of countries (jurisdictions) not exchanging information with the Russian Federation for tax purposes from 1 January 2018 (the relevant order is pending registration with the Ministry of Justice). A country’s removal from the FTS… – Continue reading
The Deputy Prime Minister yesterday revealed the Bahamas “may have to look at” implementing a low-rate corporate income tax, as global regulatory pressures force “hard decisions” upon it. K P Turnquest, while emphasising that such a move was a long way off, agreed that compliance with the OECD’s Base Erosion… – Continue reading
TOKYO – Japan is cracking down on online retailers who skip taxes by not having an office in the country. The government of Japan recently announced that it is looking to amend current legislation to update the definition of a permanent establishment of a business, in an effort to bring… – Continue reading
The EU Economic and Financial Affairs Council has adopted a Directive to create a new system to resolve double taxation disputes between EU Member States. This measure will afford taxpayers a transparent process with clear deadlines applicable to tax authorities involved to resolve cross-border double tax disputes within the EU…. – Continue reading
The Cayman Islands’ Premier, Alden McLaughlin, recently delivered the territory’s first two-year budget, which was notable for the absence of new borrowing or revenue-raising measures. McLaughlin said his administration will continue to pay down debt and deliver operational budget surpluses to fund capital investment plans and provide for contingency against… – Continue reading
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Thursday November 2, 2017 – The Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) between the Government of Barbados and the Italian Republic has entered into force. The instruments of ratification for the Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation with Respect to Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion… – Continue reading
The Treasury says the Isle of Man has become one of the first countries to sign a new international treaty against tax avoidance. The Island joins Austria in agreeing to the OECD’s Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treasury Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting. The agreement aims… – Continue reading
Summary: With effect from 1 January 2017, a number of amendments to Russian law have come into force which will affect aircraft leasing arrangements for lessors and financiers that have aircraft leased or financed with Russian operators. These amendments have started to affect negotiations and re-negotiations of leases with Russian… – Continue reading
Introduction The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) is an economic organisation made up of 35 member countries, with the aim of encouraging economic progress and world trade. In 2015, the OECD developed the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project, made up of reports on 15 action plans,… – Continue reading
The OECD’s Anti Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Initiative (BEPS) significantly affects current transfer pricing regimes regarding intangibles, documentation and dispute resolution. Why is Transfer Pricing relevant for BEPS? To avoid base erosion and profit shifting of multinational companies, the OECD initiated an action plan consisting of 15 actions with… – Continue reading
In its latest report for the country, the International Monetary Fund has recommended that Croatia modernize its property tax system to enable the country to lower the burden of taxes that weigh more heavily on economic growth. It said a “modern, well-designed real estate tax that is based on objective… – Continue reading
The difference between the tax due and that collected by the UK tax authority, HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) – known as the “tax gap” – fell to a record low of six percent in the fiscal year 2015-16, according to official statistics released on October 26, 2017. HMRC pointed… – Continue reading
The Hong Kong Government held a summit on October 23 to discuss new tax policies to boost the territory’s economy. Government officials recalled several recently announced taxation measures, including the two-tier profits tax rates regime and the enhanced deduction for research and development expenditure, and sought participants’ views on further… – Continue reading
HMRC has warned convenience retailers to “play by the tax rules” or face the consequences as new stats show a disproportionate amount of tax evasion is committed by convenience stores. While accounting for less than 1% of businesses, convenience stores and newsagents now account more than 6% of all incidents… – Continue reading
Freelance professionals in Greece may declare as low an income as they wish in order to avoid paying taxes, solidarity levies and social security contributions. This year’s tax statements showed that 89 percent of them declared annual takings below 7,000 euros. One might assume that declaring a very low income… – Continue reading
T&T faces possible sanctions after the Global Forum recognised this country as the only jurisdiction not considered to have made sufficient progress towards satisfactory implementation of the agreed tax transparency standards. Speaking at a media conference on Friday afternoon, Attorney General Faris Al Rawi said this has negative implications for… – Continue reading
Jude Scott, CEO of the Cayman Islands’ financial services promotion agency, Cayman Finance, has taken aim at a report labeling the territory as a “tax haven.” The report on international financial centers, issued by the non-profit US Public Interest Research Group and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, also… – Continue reading
BERN – The Swiss Federal Council has adopted a dispatch on the implementation of a new double taxation agreement (DTA) with Pakistan, according to the Tax News. The DTA was signed in March. According to the Swiss Federal Council, the agreement makes a number of improvements to the previous DTA,… – Continue reading
HYDERABAD: Income Tax sleuths on Wednesday conducted simultaneous searches in Hyderabad and Vijayawada on three top businessmen cum-realtors, who were allegedly evading tax, particularly in real estate transactions and unearthed documents pertaining to unaccounted investments running into hundreds of crores of rupees. These are the first big raids after shell… – Continue reading
Peru takes one step further in the eradication of tax avoidance and evasion after signing the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters with the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Deputy Director of the OECD‘s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration Grace Perez-Navarro affirmed these two crimes… – Continue reading
Turkey has clarified rules for taxing income derived from independent professional services (and similar activities) carried out within Turkey, by residents of countries which have double taxation prevention agreements with Turkey. The number of days a company’s employees spent in Turkey will now become the only basis for calculating the… – Continue reading
