Revenue Minister Todd McClay must release the text of the Inter-Governmental Agreement which affects tens of thousands of Kiwis who were born or have worked in the United States, Labour’s Revenue spokesperson David Clark says. National is about to introduce legislation to ratify an agreement between the US and New… – Continue reading
While financial companies in city gear up for compliance with Fatca, those with mainland affiliates are unlikely to meet requirements Hong Kong financial institutions with mainland affiliates are hoping Beijing signs an agreement with Washington soon on a new US tax disclosure law, because of concerns mainland financial institutions will… – Continue reading
India amended its domestic tax law for transactions with taxpayers of certain tax jurisdictions, as an anti-avoidance measure. The amendments involving transactions made in Cyprus include a temporary 30% withholding tax for all transactions between India and Cyprus in place since March. Under the double tax treaty between India and… – Continue reading
CALGARY – A Calgary-based United States tax expert has recommended to the federal government that Canada follow the lead of other countries and include certain Canadian trusts within the definition of organizations subject to reporting under the recent Intergovernmental Agreement between the Canada and the U.S. “This would eliminate the… – Continue reading
The internet retail giant Amazon is facing fresh claims of tax avoidance after its latest accounts showed it routed more than £11 billion through its Luxembourg-based subsidiary in 2013 – yet paid only £4 million in UK corporation tax last year. Amazon trades through the Luxembourg subsidiary, Amazon EU SARL,… – Continue reading
The Inland Revenue Department of Cyprus (“IRD”) will proceed with the signing of Model 1 IGA (Inter Governmental Agreement) with the US Treasury, following the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). The Model 1 IGA requires Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs) to report all FATCA-related information to their own governmental agencies,… – Continue reading
NEW YORK – According to a report from Bloomberg, Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) is keeping an ever growing share of its cash reserves outside of the U.S. to use for acquisitions. In a letter to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Google revealed that it currently has more than $ 30 billion… – Continue reading
New Delhi: Keen to further boost bilateral ties with India under the incoming government led by Narendra Modi, Cyprus is looking to bolster tourism activities as well as make the island nation a shooting destination for Indian film makers. Cyprus, the seventh largest source of FDI (foreign direct investment) into… – Continue reading
During the last financial year, India attracted $5.98 billion in FDI from Singapore, whereas it was $4.85 billion from Mauritius Press Trust of India | New Delhi May 26, 2014 Last Updated at 00:45 IST Singapore has replaced Mauritius as the top source of foreign direct investment o India, accounting… – Continue reading
Banks prepare to open their books to the long arms of Uncle Sam The countdown is on, with just a month to go before the United States’ Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) goes live on July 1. Aimed at curbing tax evasion by American citizens, an estimated 26,000 foreign… – Continue reading
There’s a bill that will go into effect on July 1. It’s known as H.R. 2847 which contains FATCA (the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010). H.R. 2847 also known as HIRE (the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act) was a law passed in March 2010 which will go into… – Continue reading
Legislation aimed at finding American tax evaders would give up personal information of Canadians with ties to the U.S. OTTAWA—If one wants another clear-eyed illustration of the power imbalance between Washington and the federal Conservatives, one need look no further than a tax deal signed between the two countries last… – Continue reading
Funds flowing from Australia to tax havens such as Vanuatu, Liechtenstein and Jersey are at a five year low, according to government analysis. The Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC) numbers for 2012-13 show $47 billion was sent from Australia to tax havens, a fall of 13% compared to… – Continue reading
Course summary: Justin Bender of PWL Capital and Dan Bortolotti of PWL Advisors explain the ins and outs of foreign withholding tax on U.S. and international equity index funds and ETFs. INTRODUCTION Canadian investors get an enormous benefit from diversifying their portfolios with US and international stocks. But this benefit… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON: It will soon get a lot harder to use overseas accounts to hide income and assets from the US tax collectors. More than 77,000 foreign banks, investment funds and other financial institutions have agreed to share information about US account holders with the Internal Revenue Service as part of… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON – About 77,000 foreign and U.S. banks and financial institutions, including some in Russia, have registered with the United States to comply with a new law meant to fight tax dodging by Americans, the U.S. Treasury Department said on Monday. Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Tax Affairs Robert Stack… – Continue reading
Introduction Successive surveys of tax executives and senior finance professionals at multinational companies show that risks associated with transfer pricing have become the number one tax-related concern for businesses operating across several jurisdictions. Ernst and Young’s (EY’s) latest Global Transfer Pricing Survey shows that businesses are taking increasing heed of… – Continue reading
SLOVAK law-enforcement forces known as ‘tax cobra’ have uncovered a tax evasion case concerning the import of mineral oil from Poland, which cost the state at least €9.5 million, head of the Financial Directorate Frantisek Imrecze revealed at a press conference on June 2, as reported by the TASR newswire…. – Continue reading
India’s tax dispute with Vodafone Plc regarding its purchase of Hutch Essar seven years ago is likely to reach the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the Hague, Netherlands a few weeks from now, sources privy to the matter said, adding this would be an unprecedented development in the history… – Continue reading
When it comes to being an expat, as far as the UK taxman is concerned, absence does not make the heart grow fonder. A tax specialist gives tips on avoiding problems. There is no avoiding the fact that moving overseas or returning to the UK creates some tax issues, and… – Continue reading
Russian business is certainly facing a challenging time. The Russian Government has sights set on the offshore business of Russian entities and individuals, and when they get their way it may have wide-reaching implications not only for Russian business, but for anyone doing business with Russian partners across the globe…. – Continue reading
The United States is targeting so-called offshore tax havens by claiming that billions of dollars of taxes are being evaded. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act was passed in 2010 as a revenue raiser, with the simple expectation that the United States can force the world’s financial industry to disclose otherwise… – Continue reading
Prosecutors Trace Accounts Across the Globe as Authorities Pressure Swiss Banks The hunt for money hidden in Swiss bank accounts by U.S. citizens has become a global chase, with prosecutors tracing records to Singapore, the Cook Islands and elsewhere as U.S. authorities increase the pressure on Swiss lenders to turn… – Continue reading
Cases like alleged involvement of 500 Indians in parking money in HSBC‘s Geneva Branch, 26 Indian account holders of LGT Bank may all be probed by SITThe special investigation team (SIT), announced on Tuesday by the Cabinet, will probe all cases of black money – be it related to the money allegedly stashed away by Indians abroad… – Continue reading
Russian lawmakers and banks are still squabbling about how to join the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) network after the US closed the door on talks following Moscow’s role in the Ukraine crisis. In recent weeks, Finance Minister Anatoly Aksakov pledged to Russian banks that a new law allowing… – Continue reading
Azerbaijan and the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) agreed to conclude an intergovernmental agreement on implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) by Azerbaijani banks, the Ministry of Taxes of Azerbaijan said on May 21. Starting from July 1, 2014 the banks in all countries should join the… – Continue reading
If any U.S. company seems ripe for moving to an island tax haven, it’s Chiquita. Based in Charlotte, the company’s sale of bananas, grown largely in Central America, accounts for two-thirds of its profits. But Chiquita isn’t bound for the tropics. It’s headed to Ireland, where the climate may be… – Continue reading
AsiaOne Business News released an article on the expectation of Singapore to dislodge Switzerland as the world’s wealth management capital (Business AsiaOne, 5/12/14) last week. AsiaBiz Services, Singapore’s leading company formation consultancy, affirmed that the main reasons for the country’s acquisition of its enormous share of global offshore wealth are attributed to… – Continue reading
The Russian government may place “limitations” on the amount of information that Russian banks can render to U.S. tax authorities under FATCA, a U.S. federal law intended to crack down on tax avoidance by U.S. citizens, Deputy Finance Minister Alexei Moiseyev said Thursday. Moiseyev told journalists in St. Petersburg that Russia will not become “tax agents for the Americans, that… – Continue reading
In recent years, the US Congress and the US Department of Treasury have come to believe that many US taxpayers (including US citizens and green card holders in India) have not been complying with the tax law that requires reporting of worldwide income, including income held in non-US financial institutions…. – Continue reading
Is every item buried in Table S-9 of the President’s budget a big can of worms? The only one I understand is big like a roadside attraction. By my count it’s item 237 out of 373: “Provide for reciprocal reporting of information in connection with the implementation of FATCA.” FATCA… – Continue reading
About two dozen U.S. companies ranging from Liberty Media to Sara Lee have quietly moved their headquarters out of the United States to places like Ireland and Canada and England since 2008 in search of lower corporate income taxes. Few people other than tax techies noticed. But now, thanks to… – Continue reading
US corporations are making record profits in tax havens like Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, and the British Virgin Islands (BVI). Some of the profits exceed the GDP of the host country, with Bermuda’s offshore profits 1643% of total economic output. As a share of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), profits from… – Continue reading
The Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the government to “bring back black money” is likely to help India plug its wealth draining to offshore tax havens with Swiss global tax activists saying that the government can put pressure on Switzerland by blacklisting it as a non-cooperative jurisdiction and complaining… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Taking aim against corporate tax avoidance, Democrats in the U.S. Congress called on Tuesday for curbs on U.S. multinationals that shift tax domiciles abroad in deals known as “inversions.” While still rare, these deals are becoming more common, with two recently attempted transactions by Pfizer Inc and… – Continue reading
Following the recent offer by U.S drugmaker Pfizer to acquire British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca, congressional Democrats are proposing new limits on the ability of U.S.-based firms to establish foreign residence and thus cut their U.S. corporate tax bill. Even before this latest flap, the Obama Administration proposed curbs on this… – Continue reading
Ireland has been “unfairly singled out” as a tax haven for corporations, Dublin-based Ryanair CEO Michael O’Leary said Monday on CNBC. “I wish we were, but we’re not,” he said. As one of Ireland’s wealthiest businessmen, O’Leary also described as “egregious” personal tax rates there. “The top tax rate … is about… – Continue reading
Uncle Sam is poised to poke his pointy nose into the financial affairs of millions of Canadians who have no connection to his country, and – no matter how distasteful you find this – pushing back will only make it worse. This is the gloomy – but credible – conclusion… – Continue reading
Many countries, especially Nigeria, like Mauritius’ tax friendly jurisdiction option for strategic business opportunities. “People refer to [Mauritius] as a tax haven, whereas actually it is a low tax jurisdiction, and its popularity is [that it] offers treaty benefits to countries without actually having a treaty with the island,” Richard… – Continue reading
The South African Reserve Bank (SARB) has relaxed regulations for private companies in the country, which now makes it possible to transfer intellectual property (IP) offshore, reports TechCentral. According to ENS Africa IP director Chris Bull, restrictions on intellectual property assets has been one of the key obstacles for local businesses… – Continue reading
Liechtenstein said Friday that it has signed a anti-tax fraud pact with Washington that requires banks in the principality to provide information about accounts held abroad by US taxpayers to US authorities. Under the agreement, Liechtenstein would implement the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which came into effect on… – Continue reading
The Liechtenstein Government plans to set up a working group to closely monitor and recommend domestic tax policy responses to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project. The Government anticipates that the OECD’s work will have a significant impact on the territory’s… – Continue reading
Weeks remain until the July 1 effective date of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which will change the way foreign insurers do business with U.S. brokers. To address those changes, the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB) is developing an online portal to house each foreign insurer’s… – Continue reading
Switzerland isn’t the only tax haven feeling the heat from countries that are trying to scrape more revenue by raking in taxes from citizens with undeclared offshore assets. According to the U.K.-based Ethical Consumer, mini-states, like Andorra and the Cayman Islands, and financial centers, like Hong Kong and Singapore, all offer banking… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON — European bank Credit Suisse AG pleaded guilty Monday to helping wealthy Americans avoid paying taxes through secret offshore accounts and agreed to pay about $2.6 billion. The Justice Department said it was the largest penalty imposed in any criminal tax case. It is also the largest bank to… – Continue reading
The Chartered Institute of Taxation (CIOT) has voiced concern over the proposed withdrawal of the principal residence election for all taxpayers. The authority has responded to HM Revenue and Customs’ (HMRC) plans to extend capital gains tax (CGT) to non-residents in certain circumstances, and fears the proposal could have a significant… – Continue reading
Swiss bank helped wealthy Americans avoid taxes using off-shore accounts for decades, authorities say Credit Suisse AG’s guilty plea and $2.6 billion payment in a high-profile case brought by the Justice Department are being held out as a warning to foreign banks believed to be helping U.S. taxpayers conceal assets…. – Continue reading
MINNEAPOLIS, May 19, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — The IRS recently announced in Notice 2014-33 that it would regard 2014 and 2015 as a period of transitional relief for financial institutions complying with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA). However, the IRS will continue to enforce the law and only grant penalty… – Continue reading
IT’S BECOMING increasingly apparent that the OECD’s plan to reduce tax base erosion and profit-shifting, as laudable as it is, is hugely reliant on the US making significant and drastic alterations to its corporate regime if it is to be successful. The cases of Starbucks and Google have shown us… – Continue reading
A decision from the U.S. to recognize those with agreements “in substance” changes the number of countries with IGAs from 22 to 48. Jeffrey S. Freeman, J.D., LL.M If you notice money missing from your bank account you start asking questions and find a way to get that money back…. – Continue reading
