It was quite a revelation when leaked documents, made public in April, showed that Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm, had helped 14,000 clients worldwide create offshore accounts to conceal assets or dodge taxes. On Monday, a report by The Times found that there were at least 2,400 clients based… – Continue reading
HMRC believe that that they have turned a corner in catching companies trying to avoid paying corporation tax after subjecting large businesses “to an exceptional level of scrutiny”. Data released following a Freedom of Information Act request by UHY Hacker Young showed 15 per cent decrease in the number of… – Continue reading
The FBR has proposed powers through Finance Bill 2016-17 for entering into treaty with bilateral or multilateral forums for exchange of information to ensure prevention of tax evasions in the aftermath of Panama Leaks disclosure that many Pakistani influential owned offshore companies abroad. In totality, the FBR took tax measures… – Continue reading
Iran is to launch an offshore bank on one of its Gulf islands “within a month”, according to a report by the official IRNA news agency, as it continues to seeks ways around restrictions on international payments. The bank will be set up on Kish Island, which has been developed… – Continue reading
A CLAMPDOWN on tax planning, a transformation of its services for taxpayers and delivering a professional, efficient and engaged organisation are the three key objectives for HMRC in its updated single departmental plan. The government department has outlined its main visions and objectives for the period between 2015 and 2020,… – Continue reading
Hungary’s State Secretary for Economic Development and Regulation István Lepsényi and Turkmenistanʼs Minister for Economy and Development Bazarov Batyr signed a double taxation avoidance agreement yesterday in Budapest, according to reports. Hungary and Turkmenistan initiated negotiations on the matter last year to allow for a more transparent and favorable business… – Continue reading
Over half of senior executives from multinational financial firms are concerned that non-compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and Common Reporting Standard (CRS) mandates could affect their reputations, a Thomson Reuters survey has found ‘The results of the survey demonstrate that institutions’ greatest concerns regarding FATCA and… – Continue reading
Asia Pacific The January – March edition of tax highlights for the Asia Pacific region highlights industry developments from Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Korea, Malaysia and Singapore including: Australia’s new tax system for Managed Investment Trusts The final stage of China’s B2V reform to be rolled out from… – Continue reading
The United Kingdom has legislated to stop property developers from using offshore structures in the Crown Dependencies to avoid UK tax on profits. The UK has published legislation to bring into force amendments to the tax treaties between the UK and the Crown Dependencies – Guernsey, Jersey, and the Isle… – Continue reading
Jamaica and Uruguay today signed the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters and Brazil deposited its instrument of ratification of the Convention on the occasion of the launch of the OECD’s Latin American and Caribbean Regional Programme and the OECD Ministerial Council Meeting. Jamaica and Uruguay became… – Continue reading
In an ongoing effort to increase transparency by multinational enterprises (MNEs), India joined Canada, Iceland, Israel, New Zealand and the People’s Republic of China in becoming the 39thsignatory to the OECD ‘s Multilateral Competent Authority agreement for the automatic exchange of Country-by-Country reports (CbC MCAA). The Country-by-Country Reporting Agreement was… – Continue reading
An Algerian-UK treaty to end double taxation has been announced to come into effect by next year, according to a British Treasury Minister. Speaking in Algiers last week, Greg Hands announced that the Double Taxation Treaty, which will ensure that tax isn’t charged on the same income in both countries,… – Continue reading
On 20 April 2016, the Loan Market Association (“LMA”) updated its Standard Terms and Conditions for Par and Distressed Trade Transactions (Bank Debt/Claims) (“Standard Terms”) to include language that covers FATCA (as defined below) tax withholding on certain payments of US source FDAP income and, potentially, sale proceeds (as described… – Continue reading
HMRC is consulting on whether a secondary adjustment rule should be introduced into the UK’s transfer pricing legislation, as the government department continues its clampdown against tax avoidance. The adjustment aims to counter multinationals that do not use the arm’s length principle, reversing any cash benefit that a multinational gains,… – Continue reading
The finance ministry has notified that the equalisation levy (popularly known as Google tax) introduced in this budget, will come into force from June 1. As of now, it will apply to payments for online advertisements made by Indian business entities to non-residents (such as Google,Yahoo, Twitter, Facebook) where the… – Continue reading
India has asked the Netherlands to resume negotiations on amending their bilateral tax treaty as the government extends its efforts to plug loopholes in such accords to curb misuse. The Dutch tax treaty , which allows exemption from capital gains and a lower rate of tax on dividends, has led… – Continue reading
Foreign portfolio investors based out of the US have collectively approached the India with a request to amend the India-US tax treaty, exempting them from paying capital gains tax , people close to the development said. These investors — mainly pension funds —are those who had invested in Indian equities… – Continue reading
The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) recognizes the efforts of an increasing number of tax authorities to revise their tax policies in response to the international guidelines outlined in the G20 mandated Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Base Erosion Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. ICC urges national governments to… – Continue reading
The unpopular Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) of the United States has set off a rash of similar legislation around the world, and Costa Rica has been eager to adopt these international asset reporting treaties, which many taxpayers consider overreaching and in violation of financial privacy. The Costa Rica… – Continue reading
The EU’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) has been unable to reach agreement on the European Commission’s proposed anti tax avoidance directive. The issue has therefore been postponed until the next ECOFIN meeting in June. The European Commission announced its proposed anti-tax avoidance directive (ATAD) in January. The proposed… – Continue reading
The recent EMEA Conference of Alliott Group, one of the world’s most established international associations of independent accounting and law firms, brought together tax professionals from 28 countries across the world to discuss Base Erosion & Profit Shifting (BEPS), a project led by the OECD and G20 whose Action Plan… – Continue reading
OECD BEPS guidance, outlining new standards for tax transparency and transfer pricing documentation, and the new union customs code, containing important changes to customs valuations, call for immediate action. Recent developments At the doorstep of a new era of tax transparency driven by the OECD BEPS project, the new Union… – Continue reading
PANAMA, widely recognised as one of the world’s tax havens, declined a request by the South African government to enter into a bilateral arrangement for the exchange of information. However, the refusal was made before the huge leak of information about the offshore holdings of wealthy individuals and entities disclosed… – Continue reading
Ireland has helped delay an EU deal on corporate tax-dodging over fears it could harm the economy. Finance Minister Michael Noonan told his EU counterparts in Brussels he would not sign up to the deal because it affects Ireland’s sovereign right to set tax rates. “We want to make sure… – Continue reading
The European Council has adopted a directive on the reporting by multinational companies of tax-related information and exchange of that information between member states, which transposes the OECD’s recommendation on country-by-country reporting (CBCR) into EU law Companies with a total consolidated group revenue of at least €750m (£570m) will be… – Continue reading
The new tax treaty between India and Mauritius may achieve what last year’s budget tried to do, albeit unsuccessfully—encourage offshore fund managers to relocate to India, in the process making the country a fund management hub, much like London, Dubai or Singapore. With the new agreement restoring parity between domestic… – Continue reading
Cyprus and the Government of the Republic of Latvia signed in Brussels on Wednesday the Treaty for the Avoidance of Double Taxation on Income. The Treaty was signed by the Minister of Finance, Harris Georgiades, on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus, and the Minister of Economics, Dana Reizniece-Ozola, on… – Continue reading
The Delhi HC has delivered path-breaking and bold verdicts, quashing proceedings initiated by CBDT and CBEC administrative guidance for assessments and subsequent denial of benefits. A question tax professionals are often asked is: Has the government done enough to address the situation on tax? Several negative catchphrases had peppered headlines… – Continue reading
Cyprus and the Government of the Republic of Latvia signed in Brussels on Wednesday the Treaty for the Avoidance of Double Taxation on Income. The Treaty was signed by the Minister of Finance, Harris Georgiades, on behalf of the Republic of Cyprus, and the Minister of Economics, Dana Reizniece-Ozola, on… – Continue reading
The finance ministry expert panel is expected to pre-empt any potential confusion, assuage foreign investors facing twin changes in the tax regime New Delhi: The finance ministry is setting up an expert group to work out the modalities of implementing changes in the tax regime stemming from the withdrawal of… – Continue reading
The Panama Papers have recently drawn a great deal of investigation and public attention. Over 230,000 organizations and individuals were named as having set up offshore companies in tax haven like the British Virgin Islands, Panama, the Cayman Islands or the Bahamas. The public’s initial reaction was suspicion and anger toward… – Continue reading
Members of the US Senate Committee on Finance have called on the US Secretary of the Treasury, Jack Lew, to continue aggressive engagement with the European Commission to ensure its ongoing tax ruling probe does not inappropriately target US multinationals. In their letter submitted to Lew on May 23, 2016,… – Continue reading
Singapore and Cambodia have entered into a double taxation avoidance agreement to boost cross-border trade and investment between the two countries. The Agreement was signed on May 20, 2016, by Indranee Rajah, Singapore’s Senior Minister of State for Law and Finance, and Aun Pornmoniroth, Cambodia’s Senior Minister of Economy and… – Continue reading
Japan and Panama have agreed the provisions of a bilateral tax information exchange agreement (TIEA), subject to further work on finalizing its text. Negotiation of the TIEA was initiated following the Japan-Panama Summit Meeting held on April 20 between Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and Panama’s President, Juan Carlos Varela…. – Continue reading
Dubai: UAE-based multinationals will start to feel the impact of the OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) proposals that come into effect this year, a KPMG seminar on international tax developments has revealed. The BEPS proposals are focused on mitigating tax planning strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in… – Continue reading
May 18 — Russia agreed to automatically share financial account information but passed up an opportunity the same day on a similar agreement to exchange company country-by-country reports. Russia signed the OECD’s common reporting standard (CRS) multilateral competent authority agreement May 12 at a meeting of tax administration heads in… – Continue reading
Tax Treaty between India and Mauritius for avoidance of double taxation had become a double non-taxation treaty. Under this treaty, India could not tax the gains from sale of shares in Indian companies by a Mauritius resident, who is also not subject to any tax in Mauritius as such gains… – Continue reading
NASHVILLE – Gov. Bill Haslam signed a measure into law Friday that statutorily phases out the Hall Income Tax and sends Tennessee on its way to income tax-free status by January 2022. First sponsored in 2012 by state Sen. Mark Green, R-Clarksville, the proposal to remove the tax on income… – Continue reading
In its fight against black money stashed abroad, India has signed a protocol with European Union member nation Slovenia to make changes to the Double Taxation Avoidance Convention between the two countries, an official statement said in New Delhi on Thursday. The protocol, for avoidance of double taxation and preventing… – Continue reading
Portugal finance ministry says it is looking at ways of preventing government departments from using tax havens after the Treasury debt agency was found to have held an investment in Jersey. The Finance Ministry says that the agency held 133 million euros ($149 million) of bonds in a Jersey-based company… – Continue reading
Reports published last week, based on the Panama Papers, cast further light on New Zealand’s role as a location where wealthy individuals around the world are able to hide their fortunes. Last month the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists released millions of leaked documents revealing that Panama-based Mossack Fonseca, the… – Continue reading
KINGSTON, Jamaica — Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Senator Kamina Johnson Smith returned to the island today having led the Jamaican delegation to the VIII Mexico-Jamaica Bi-national Commission from May 17 to 18 in Mexico City, Mexico. During the visit, Johnson Smith signed a Jamaica/Mexico agreement on the… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS – EU state aid regulators aim to rule on Amazon’s (AMZN.O) tax deal with Luxembourg by July, two people familiar with the matter said on Thursday, and it may order the country’s tax authorities to recover about 400 million euros ($448 million) in back taxes. The European Commission’s decision… – Continue reading
Georgia and Kyrgyzstan are stepping up bilateral cooperation to avoid double taxation, boost investments and increase economic cooperation. A delegation from Kyrgyzstan is currently in Georgia and holding meetings with Georgian authorities to discuss a cooperation agreement on avoidance of double taxation, prevention of evasion of income and capital taxes…. – Continue reading
MUMBAI India’s capital market regulator on Thursday took steps to stop suspected illegal money flowing into the country by making issuers of securities known as offshore derivative instruments register their customers. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) also tightened rules for transferring ownership of these offshore instruments to… – Continue reading
The European Union, locked in a tax battle with the likes of Apple Inc. and McDonald’s Corp., laid down the law in its bid to rein in governments that woo multinationals with special fiscal deals allowing them to reduce their fiscal liability by booking profits abroad. The European Commission, which… – Continue reading
China is joining an international effort to tackle tax evasion, with plans to require multinationals to disclose more detailed information on their overseas affiliates, according to taxation consultants who advised the government on the new rules. The proposed regulations would make it more difficult for large companies to avoid taxes… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: Now that loopholes in the tax treaty with Mauritius have been plugged, the Indian government is gearing up to apply the same fix to its accord with Cyprus. Talks to amend the double taxation avoidance treaty are at an advanced stage and the two sides will soon exchange… – Continue reading
Panama has officially signed on to comply with OECD standards on exchanging tax information, a move that comes more than a month after the Panama Papers data leak. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) officials say they have long tried to get Panama to agree to their common… – Continue reading
The closure of a tax loophole could hit UAE firms planning to invest in India through Mauritius. The Indian government this week amended a long-standing treaty that helped foreign investors to avoid capital gains tax by routing their investments through Mauritius. Mauritius is the biggest source of foreign direct investment… – Continue reading
