The finance minister says federal government doesn’t “want to wait for the next Panama Papers.” Canada’s finance minister denounced “unfair” tax loopholes on Thursday and put Bay St. on notice that the Liberal government is committed to addressing “blind spots” and exposing shadowy corporate finances to public scrutiny. “We don’t… – Continue reading
Kosovo and Switzerland signed on Friday an agreement regulating taxation of income and capital, which is beneficial for both countries, the Swiss federal government said. Under the agreement on double taxation dividends will be taxed at source at a maximum rate of 15%, while qualified participations – at no more… – Continue reading
The Hungarian parliament has approved an increase to the country’s advertising tax, despite concerns that the measure breaches European Union state aid rules. The new legislation increases the advertising revenues tax from 5.3 percent to 7.5 percent beginning July 1, 2017. However, because companies do not pay the tax on… – Continue reading
The UK Conservative Party has outlined plans to “legislate for tougher regulation of tax advisory firms.” In its Manifesto last week, the ruling Conservative Party said: “We have taken vigorous action against tax avoidance and evasion, closing the tax gap the difference between the amount of tax due and the… – Continue reading
EU Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis has said there is a broad consensus among European finance ministers on the principle of greater tax harmonization, and that talks will continue on the proposed common corporate tax base (CCTB). At a May 23 ECOFIN meeting, ministers discussed the Commission’s proposal for a CCTB in… – Continue reading
The deadline for submitting automatic exchange of information (AEOI) returns for the year ended 31 December 2016 is 31 May 2017 for financial institutions, and that this is the first year for common reporting standards (CRS) filing Returns should include reportable accounts for the financial accounts tax compliance act (FATCA),… – Continue reading
Cyprus and the Caribbean island-state of Barbados signed a double tax avoidance and prevention of tax evasion treaty on Wednesday, the finance ministry said. “The agreed text will contribute to the development of commercial and financial ties between Cyprus and Barbados, as well as other countries,” the finance ministry said… – Continue reading
Apartment construction is booming as the wealthy rush to invest in rental housing as a way to reduce inheritance tax and banks hand out easy mortgages, but concerns are mounting that excessive supply paired with a shrinking population could soon lead to the bursting of the bubble. New starts on… – Continue reading
Malaysia uses both progressive and flat rates for personal income tax, depending on an individual’s duration and type of work in the country. As expatriates may fall into either tax category depending on their work, it is important to understand Malaysia’s basic tax structure. The Income Tax Act of 1967… – Continue reading
About 21 staff of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) have been interdicted for allegedly aiding some private companies to evade duties and taxes. Citi News understands that those interdicted were mostly from the customs division of GRA. Sources close to GRA also told Citi News that the case is currently… – Continue reading
About 21 staff of the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) have been interdicted for allegedly aiding some private companies to evade duties and taxes. Citi News understands that those interdicted were mostly from the customs division of GRA. Sources close to GRA also told Citi News that the case is currently… – Continue reading
Westpac has said that Australia’s new bank levy will cost it around AUD370m (USD275.7m) a year, and warned that “no company can simply ‘absorb’ a new tax.” In a letter to shareholders, Westpac chair Lindsay Maxsted described the tax as “bad public policy.” He said that the Government intends to… – Continue reading
For approximately 7,000 tax-evading individuals and businesses in Detroit, it may be time to pay up. Detroit tax collectors are conducting a large scale litigation campaign against tax evading individuals and businesses operating at 33 properties within the city’s downtown and midtown areas, the Associated Press reports. The team behind… – Continue reading
ABUJA, May 22 (Reuters) – Nigeria will increase the interest rate on unpaid taxes to discourage companies and individuals from paying late and racking up a larger debt, the finance ministry said on Monday. The ministry said the measure will take effect on July 1 and that the rate would… – Continue reading
Grandfathering is term for alteration of rules that apply to a certain investment technique Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) based in Mauritius and Singapore had, it now appears, rushed to take advantage of the ‘grandfathering’ clause in the new Double Tax Avoidance Agreement signed between both the governments of the two… – Continue reading
New reporting regulations meant to help authorities track down evasion at home and corrupt officials overseas Beijing has ordered an overhaul of financial accounts to crack down on tax cheats at home and abroad. From July 1, all deposit-taking institutions, policy banks, investment agencies and insurers must ensure each new… – Continue reading
Cyprus and San Marino have signed a double taxation avoidance agreement. The agreement, which further enhances the relations between the two states, was signed between the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus and San Marino, Ioannis Kasoulides and Nicola Renzi, who held a tete – a – tete meeting before… – Continue reading
A damning report issued by a group of investigative journalists shows that Malta has become a “pirate base” for tax avoidance in the European Union. Over the last three months, journalistic network European Investigative Collaboration (EIC) dug into over 150,000 documents that show how international companies take advantage of this… – Continue reading
The Internal Revenue Service is pilot testing a new program for conducting correspondence examinations of taxpayers using secure messaging technology that will also include their tax practitioners who have power of attorney. In an email to tax professionals Friday, the IRS said it plans to invite approximately 8,000 taxpayers who… – Continue reading
The tax reporting solution FiTAX enables financial institutions worldwide to comply with OECD and local requirements on tax-reporting Management and technology consultancy BearingPoint, which ranks among the leading providers of Risk and Regulatory Technology (RiskTech/RegTech), announced today that the first institutions in early adopter countries successfully submitted their initial reporting… – Continue reading
REVENUE generated from taxing offshore gaming operations here is expected to double in 2017, or less than a year since the industry was regulated, with the Philippine Amusement Gaming Corporation’s (PAGCOR) online gaming arm noting high demand for licenses. PAGCOR’s recently established Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) estimates that it… – Continue reading
New centre established to focus efforts on gaining better foothold in tax havens A unanimous Parliament yesterday agreed to significantly step up Denmark’s efforts to combat international tax evasion. Among the new initiatives are the establishment of a new centre that will consolidate efforts against tax evasion, more transparency regarding… – Continue reading
The European Commission will be forced to draw up a new blacklist of countries that facilitate money laundering after the European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected the latest effort that failed to consider countries that enable tax evasion. EU lawmakers voted 392-80, with 207 abstentions, to reject the list that includes 11… – Continue reading
The Union Cabinet has given its approval for the signing of multilateral convention to implement tax treaty-related measures to prevent base erosion and profit shifting. A product of OECD/ G20 BEPS Project, this convention is aimed at tackling baseerosion and profit shifting through tax planning strategies that exploit gaps and… – Continue reading
The tax base in India is set to widen with more people coming forward to pay taxes after unaccounted for cash lost its anonymity following the note ban, finance minister Arun Jaitley said today. “A move towards digitisation, an increase in the number of tax assessees and tax returns filed… – Continue reading
The Common Reporting Standard (the CRS) is, like FACTA (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act), an information exchange regime aimed at realising international tax transparency. Exchange of information under CRS is achieved by requiring certain bodies including banks and other “Financial Institutions”, to collect data and report some of it… – Continue reading
The Indonesian government on Tuesday issued a regulation in lieu of law (Perppu) to end bank secrecy in the country, with officials of tax offices allowed to directly access bank accounts owned by both Indonesian citizens and foreigners. Perppu No. 1/2017 on financial information access for taxation purposes was signed… – Continue reading
OECD announced that another important step has been taken to implement country-by-country (CbC) reporting requirements, as signatories to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on the Exchange of CbC Reports (the CbC MCAA) activated their automatic exchange relationships. The OECD also signalled that additional jurisdictions will nominate partners with which they… – Continue reading
The American Institute of CPAs has sent a list of six tax regulations to Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin that it wants the Treasury Department to review under an executive order from President Trump calling for reducing overly burdensome tax regulations. Trump signed an executive order last month on identifying such… – Continue reading
The Revenue Commissioners have today, 16 May 2017, issued detailed user guides on automatic exchange of information reporting requirements for Irish financial institutions covering both FATCA and CRS/DAC2 reporting obligations. The new guidelines set out in detail the process for filing FATCA and CRS/DAC2 returns, including the new functionality for… – Continue reading
Lebanon became the 111th jurisdiction to sign the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters on May 12, 2017. The OECD describes the Convention as the most powerful instrument for international tax cooperation. It provides for all forms of administrative assistance in tax matters: exchange of information on… – Continue reading
FATCA is unfair to Europe because the US government is not playing fair with tax information by failing to swap data. Members of the European Parliament are calling for the American IRS to give them information on European taxpayers with cash and investments in the US. The argument hinges on… – Continue reading
The CBEC will be rechristened as the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) and will supervise GST and Customs activities and provide the government policy inputs. Ahead of the planned GST rollout from July 1, the government is strengthening the body responsible for detecting tax evasion and will… – Continue reading
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) launched the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) in October 2016, providing taxpayers with the opportunity to make good on any tax and/or exchange control contraventions of which they may be guilty in relation to offshore investments. The nine-month window period opened on October 1,… – Continue reading
The IMF has urged Ireland to ensure that it has a broad tax base, particularly in the context of international tax reform and domestic pressures to reform the Universal Social Charge (USC). The IMF has published the findings of its latest mission to Ireland. It noted that healthy economic growth… – Continue reading
The U.K’s diverted profits tax was dubbed the ‘Google Tax’ even before its introduction in April 2015. Yet instead of netting foreign tech companies engaged in complex tax planning such as California-based Google Inc., only U.K. multinational companies outside the technology sector have issued warnings so far over the tax… – Continue reading
Major U.S. multinationals are pushing the Trump administration to deepen the tax break it has already tentatively proposed on $2.6 trillion in corporate profits being held offshore, a key piece in Washington’s intricate tax reform puzzle. As President Donald Trump tries to deliver on his campaign promise to overhaul the… – Continue reading
Jacking up the top income tax rate to levels last seen in the late 1980s – just as company taxes are cut – will create a perfect storm for high income earners to engage in tax avoidance, including through increased use of property negative gearing. Policy experts are ringing alarm… – Continue reading
Money laundering offences usually consist of conduct which seeks to conceal the criminal origin of wealth. When it was first introduced into the legal order in the 1980s, the principal objective of anti-money laundering legislation was to combat the introduction of the proceeds of drug dealing into the legitimate economy… – Continue reading
Panama needs to require greater due diligence from financial and banking institution to tackle tax fraud in the wake of the Panama Papers scandal, a United Nations official has said. “The main component of illicit cash flows at the global level is tax fraud,” UN rights expert Juan Pablo Bohoslavsky… – Continue reading
India has called for enhanced international cooperation to address illicit cross- border financial flows, tax evasion and “hawala” transactions as it stressed that the world’s governance architecture for cooperation in taxation has not kept pace with globalisation. “Raising awareness on the important issue of International Cooperation on Tax matters is… – Continue reading
Further corporate tax reforms may be needed to Luxembourg’s tax regime for foreign companies if it is to maintain its appeal while responding to international tax initiatives, the International Monetary Fund has said. The IMF said that evolving international tax transparency and anti-tax avoidance rules at OECD/G20 and EU levels,… – Continue reading
The Criminal Finance Act 2017 received Royal Assent on April 27, 2017, making its way onto the statute book before the halting of Parliamentary business ahead of this year’s general election. As well as giving enforcement agencies further powers to recover the proceeds of crime and tackle money laundering, the… – Continue reading
Norbert Walter-Borjans has been busy turning himself into the public scourge of German tax cheats and foreign tax havens. Having already riled Switzerland by buying CDs with stolen bank account data – and then accusing the Alpine state of spying on his tax offices – North Rhine-Westphalia’s finance minister criticized… – Continue reading
Guidance on new financial reporting standards are to be published on the Ministry of Finance website later this month, the Alternative Investment Management Association said yesterday. The news came in an update on Aima Bermuda’s knowledge networking session on common reporting standards held last month. A spokesman for Aima said… – Continue reading
Norway’s Ministry of Finance has released a consultation on a proposal to further strengthen the nation’s restrictions on interest deductions within groups. The regime, introduced in 2014, is intended to prevent groups from establishing subsidiaries in lower tax territories from which to lend capital to companies in a higher tax… – Continue reading
Sub-Saharan African countries should look to tap tax revenues outside natural resources, to finance stimulus measures that could reinvigorate their ailing economies, a new report from the International Monetary Fund says. The IMF’s Regional Economic Outlook for Sub-Saharan Africa report, released on May 9, notes that growth in the Sub-Saharan… – Continue reading
Brazil’s Senate is considering the introduction of a new wealth tax on high net worth individuals. Senator Vanessa Grazziotin presented draft legislation for the tax on millionaires to the Senate this week. Under Bill 139/2017, the tax would apply to individuals with a net worth of more than 8,000 times… – Continue reading
Malaysian individuals and entities that have bank accounts overseas will soon see their financial information being shared with other countries and tax authorities in an effort to boost global transparency and tax compliance. This requirement is part of the automatic exchange of financial account information set out by the Organisation… – Continue reading
Newly-elected French president Emmanuel Macron has committed to reducing the rate of corporation tax from its current level of 33.3% to 25%, with the aim of bringing it in line with the EU average within five years Reductions in the rate of corporate tax will begin in stages from 2018… – Continue reading
