Chevron, the US oil giant behind Australia’s biggest liquefied natural gas project, has been hit with claims its tax affairs are a “rort”. We have spent a year trying to find Australia’s biggest tax dodger and we’ve found it. It’s Chevron. Sam Dastyari But the company insists it is the… – Continue reading
18 November 2015 – The Group of 20 (G20) leaders have called for more collective action to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth that can be universally beneficial. In a communique issued at the end of the summit, the leaders agreed that not only do they have to do more… – Continue reading
EY believes the key to a robust tax system is striking the right balance between enabling and mandating A report by the Big Four firm explores whether proposals outlined in HMRC’s consultation document on “Improving large business tax compliance” has led the UK far away from the robust but competitive… – Continue reading
The new tax treaty signed between Australia and Germany on 12 November 2015 is the first tax treaty Australia has signed that comprehensively incorporates the proposals in the OECD base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) final recommendations. Some notable BEPS-related changes in the new Australia and Germany treaty include: The… – Continue reading
The Isle of Man’s role as an offshore finance centre will come under the spotlight on television following a Welsh town’s experiment in how to avoid paying UK tax. Independent traders in Crickhowell, led by the salmon smokery, the local coffee shop, the adventure clothes shop, the optician, the book… – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, on behalf of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, today (November 18), signed in Bucharest an agreement on the avoidance of double taxation with Romania. Romania’s State Secretary for Public Finance, Mr Attila Gy?rgy, signed on… – Continue reading
UPDATE 12.45pm: Bermuda has a company tax rate of zero. In Ireland its 12.5 per cent and, with the Netherlands, has given the world the term “Double Irish Dutch Sandwich”. But a trio of prominent Australian business leaders have denied the tax links of their companies to the three offshore… – Continue reading
TAIPEI — Japan and Taiwan will sign a bilateral tax treaty aimed at improving the flow of people and investment between the two economies, sources familiar with the matter said on Wednesday. The treaty will reduce or eliminate taxes on dividends repatriated from companies’ overseas branches and help avoid issues… – Continue reading
Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan says multinationals are already approaching the Australian Taxation Office to negotiate before the Turnbull government’s tougher anti-avoidance laws take effect in January, and he expects the office to reap $1.1 billion from them. We at the ATO acknowledge Australia needs investment by foreign companies in infrastructure… – Continue reading
Global tax is set to face the biggest shake up ever that will affect every saver and investor with accounts in any of the world’s major financial centres. Financial firms and governments are readying to start the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) from January 1, 2016. CRS is a souped up… – Continue reading
KPMG in Kuwait discusses plans to implement a tax on business profits, changes to the Kuwait tax authority’s (KTA) approach to deemed permanent establishments, and Kuwait’s shift away from tax holidays toward tax credits to attract foreign direct investment. TAXATION OF COMMERCIAL PROFITS Based on recent local media reports1, KPMG… – Continue reading
Under Indian foreign exchange regulations, Indian companies having foreign investment participation are generally categorised either as Indian owned and controlled company (IOCC), or foreign owned or controlled company (FOCC). An Indian company in such cases is considered as IOCC where they are owned and controlled by resident Indian citizens and/or… – Continue reading
Globally, taxpayers are becoming more interdependent, and engage in cross-border financial activities with more regularity. With this, comes the need for enhanced co-operation and understanding across countries on issues such as tax administration and transparency, to curb tax evasion and ensure a fair allocation of taxes to tax jurisdictions. “The… – Continue reading
Fund houses and R&T agents have already started alerting investors to furnish Fatca and KYC details Mutual fund (MF) investors have to submit declarations to their fund houses to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca), which was passed in the US in 2010 (read more on this… – Continue reading
EXCLUSIVE A federal tax designed to share profits from the oil and gas sector with the Australian public is barely raising a single extra dollar despite the industry’s transformation from a $5 billion concern a decade ago to a $60 billion export powerhouse. With Australia poised to become the world’s… – Continue reading
THE liquidation of Kingdom Bank Africa Limited (KBAL) Botswana has been derailed after creditors declined to give the liquidator, Max Marinelli, autonomous authority to sell the assets of the defunct offshore bank. KBAL depositors and debtors are predominantly in Zimbabwe where the bank originates. In a seven-hour long heated meeting… – Continue reading
JAKARTA (REUTERS)- Indonesia is considering offering tax incentives for employees as part of the country’s current efforts to spur economic growth through changes to its tax regime, Coordinating Minister for Economics Darmin Nasution said on Tuesday (Nov 17). The government of South-east Asia’s largest economy has introduced several other incentives… – Continue reading
On November 10th 2015, the European Council announced that the EU Savings Directive 2003/48/EC (EUSD) has been repealed in order to eliminate the overlap with other legislation developed in the aspect of preventing measures of tax evasion. Brief Background The 2003 EUSD, which originally came into effect on 1 July… – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Financial Secretary, Mr John C Tsang, arrived at Bucharest, Romania today (November 17, Bucharest time), for his two-day visit to strengthen economic and trade ties between Hong Kong and Romania. Mr Tsang first held a meeting with the Representatives of the Romanian Banking Association. Mr… – Continue reading
Amman, Nov. 17 (Petra)– Jordan and the United Arab Emirates held a fifth round of trade talks Tuesday here with the aim of inking an Avoidance of Double Taxation Agreement (DTAA). The agreement helps the taxpayer to get relief from double taxation on the same income. Director general of the… – Continue reading
New Zealand introduced a tax bill on November 16, 2015, for a new withholding tax on sales of residential property by people who live overseas and go on to sell the property within two years of purchase. The proposed measure is the third part of the Government’s investment property tax… – Continue reading
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has described its newly unveiled Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan as a “change of paradigm.”1 A few very large global groups aside, a more apt description may be a minefield for the unwary. BEPS has received considerable air time… – Continue reading
The fundamental contradiction between IndAS and taxation is that the latter is based on real income theory while the former is based on economic substance of transactions The country is undergoing an overhaul under the present government at the Centre, and so are its corporate laws. The country’s tax regime… – Continue reading
The US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has helped grab £5.17 billion in lost tax held in secret offshore bank accounts. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has revealed the figures in a FATCA update. The IRS says the controversial law has made identifying offshore cash and investments that taxpayers… – Continue reading
On October 6, 2015 Poland and Sri Lanka concluded a new Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income (Hereafter: the DTA). When entering into force this new DTA will replace the existing Double Taxation Agreement (stemming from 1980)… – Continue reading
Recently, the Internal Revenue Service announced the exchange of financial account information with certain foreign tax administrations as the next step in efforts to combat offshore tax evasion. This is a significant portion of the IRS’s efforts to enforce FATCA, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, which was enacted in… – Continue reading
Amazon, Facebook and Google in line of fire after committee backs proposals to force multinational corporations to pay tax where they make their sales MEPs have launched a scathing attack on Facebook, Google and Amazon in the European parliament, accusing them of diverting profits worth billions of pounds to low… – Continue reading
Gaborone — Clients of Standard Chartered Bank Botswana should brace themselves for exciting times with the launch of the offshore fixed income proposition under its wealth management portfolio. Speaking at a breakfast launch with clients and media, the head of wealth management for Botswana and Southern Africa at Standard Chartered… – Continue reading
In the first step towards boosting trade and investment between the two nations, Australia and Germany have signed a new tax treaty in Berlin. It also marks an attempt to improve the integrity of the tax system by pinning down on multinational tax evasion. The deal, which preceded the arrival… – Continue reading
US citizenship, Greencard, can no longer be a way of saving tax for some, as India has agreed to provide information for compliance with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which became law in March 2010. Either US citizens or institutions cannot refrain from paying tax on their investments… – Continue reading
Jakarta (ANTARA News) – The government step to offer cuts on income tax for firms willing to revaluate their assets, as promised in its economic policy package, has received positive responses from many companies. Finance Minister Bambang Brodjonegoro is convinced that numerous companies have been interested in conducting asset revaluations… – Continue reading
Macky Sall, the Senegalese president, tells journalists on the sidelines of the Malta migrants summit that Africa would have no need of handouts if wealthy governments stopped multinationals avoiding legitimate taxation in their countries African leaders have rejected a European Union bid to curb migration with aid payments as “not… – Continue reading
As at least the first phase of the OECD’s BEPS project1 wound down with the October release of the “final” BEPS deliverables, questions remained regarding how much of the recommended changes would be implemented in the United States in the near term. Because many of the recommendations require legislative changes… – Continue reading
The group, as a whole, will have to contend with adopting the BEPS framework and fulfilling the commitments made under the Brisbane Action Plan 2014 The tenth G-20 meeting at Antalya, Turkey, (that starts day after tomorrow) is gaining momentum. The challenges before the G-20 nations are many and varied…. – Continue reading
Canada is expected to join other G20 countries to sign off on an international deal in Turkey aimed at cracking down on “profit shifting” by large multinational companies seeking to reduce their tax bills. The changes, which are also aimed at exposing the corrupt use of tax havens to launder… – Continue reading
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) chief economist has warned that Ireland cannot rely on low corporation taxes to fuel growth. “Ireland is going to have to seek real investment based on comparative advantages other than tax,” Prof Catherine Mann told a conference hosted by the Irish Department… – Continue reading
The requirement for capital gains tax to be paid on investment properties bought and sold within two years has passed into law. The so-called ‘Bright-Line’ test for residential land was announced by the Government as part of May’s Budget to try to dampen property speculation and better enforce already existing… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: A US passport doesn’t look like such a priced possession anymore. Some Indians even want to surrender their hard-won green cards. India and the US are set to freely exchange financial information about their citizens, leaving no asset concealed. This could mean US tax officials imposing punitive levies on… – Continue reading
Some time ago we wrote an article on the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (‘FATCA’) which says that although the FATCA tentacles are fairly intrusive, at the end of the day, it represents just another form for tax payers to complete. Rather to my surprise this article elicited a threat… – Continue reading
The final reports on the G20/OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project were issued on 5 October (the “Reports”) after a two-year consultation period during which 62 countries and many other stakeholders (such as the World Bank, the IMF, and many trade associations) participated. These Reports, split into 15… – Continue reading
According to the Brazilian FM Mauro Vieira, the country is in talks for an agreement to avoid double taxation in air transport with Egypt. The Arab country plans on creating the route once the deal is in place. Riyadh – The Egyptian carrier EgyptAir could launch a route to Brazil,… – Continue reading
Australian motor racing legend Alan Jones has become embroiled in the collapse of an online gambling company operated by notorious conman Peter Foster which owes $11.5 million to about 150 investors. The 69-year-old former winner of the Formula One Drivers’ Championship was named in a writ to be lodged in… – Continue reading
The Caribbean island says its financial system is all aboveboard, yet it remains a gateway to less scrupulous offshore havens like the Cayman Islands. BRIDGETOWN — Is there “dirty” money strewn across the pristine sands of Barbados? Does something sinister hide beneath the glistening coral reefs of this former pirate… – Continue reading
‘Special purpose’ approach by accountants hides corporate secrets Amid the maelstrom over the GST, the Senate last night passed what may be the most useful piece of legislation yet to combat multinational tax avoidance. The new law was not carried by the government, whose track record on tackling big tax… – Continue reading
Mexico and Argentina have signed an agreement for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital. The agreement allocates taxing rights to the two countries, to avoid taxation being levied twice on the same income from companies and individuals… – Continue reading
Finland’s Minister for Foreign Trade and development, Lenita Toivakka, has admitted being involved in a scheme to reduce tax liabilities on a multi-million euro shopping centre development in Mikkeli. She insisted that the arrangement was legal as well as commonplace for international property investors. Finland’s Minister for Foreign Trade and… – Continue reading
The New Zealand foreign trust regime – its use in international wealth planning The New Zealand “foreign trust” regime came into being over 25 years ago. It arose from a domestic initiative to make the use of offshore trusts for tax minimisation more difficult for New Zealand residents, by imposing… – Continue reading
United States taxpayers using foreign accounts in the United Arab Emirates may see more rigorous enforcement of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FATCA, in the UAE, as obligations for UAE financial institutions have been ramped up under a new intergovernmental FATCA Agreement between the U.S. and the UAE,… – Continue reading
A recent CNBC report suggests that several billion dollars of estate tax due from the estates of foreign decedents on investments in U.S. stock and real estate goes uncollected by the IRS every year. The report noted a large discrepancy between the amount of foreign investment in these assets and… – Continue reading
More than 1,600 new financial institutions have signed up to the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) List. The list now covers 177,147 institutions in 226 financial jurisdictions – up 1,604 from the last list published on October 1. The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) keeps the list to… – Continue reading
