India has approved amendments to its double tax agreement with Qatar. The amendments update the information exchange provisions between the two countries in line with current international standards. A new Limitation on Benefits (LOB) provision has been introduced, which is designed to prevent “treaty shopping” (whereby companies or transactions are… – Continue reading
Argentina’s Federal Administration of Public Income has extended the filing deadline for country-by-country (CbC) notifications. Taxpayers who are part of multinational enterprises now have until May 2, 2018, to file CbC notifications where the ultimate parent company of the multinational group has a December 2017 fiscal year end. The CbC… – Continue reading
Speakers corner: Delano asked Raymond Krawczykowski, partner and tax leader at Deloitte Luxembourg, “In your view, what have been the key changes in EU & Luxembourg tax rules in 2017, and what major shifts could be in store for 2018-19?” His response was clear: Beps and Atad. The Base Erosion… – Continue reading
The federal government wants to block multinational companies using trusts and partnerships to escape paying tax in Australia. Assistant to the Treasurer Michael Sukkar introduced legislation to parliament on Wednesday that would bring artificial or contrived arrangements involving trusts and partnerships under the multinational tax avoidance laws introduced in 2016…. – Continue reading
The Indian Central Board of Direct Taxes has issued a statement to defer the filing obligation on surrogate parent entities with regards to country-by-country reporting. Section 286 was inserted into the Income Tax Act 1981 through the 2016 Finance Act to introduce a requirement to furnish a country-by-country report. The… – Continue reading
The Australian Tax Office (ATO) has launched a community consultation to seek feedback on practical compliance issues arising from complying with taxation obligations in relation to cryptocurrency transactions. On March 13, the ATO updated its web guidance tax treatment of cryptocurrencies to address some of the common enquiries in relation… – Continue reading
British lawmakers are shifting their focus towards the offshores and tax havens detailed in the Panama and Paradise papers, in order to improve tax collection, curb multinationals’ tax avoidance practices, and track the money flows of ill-gotten gains. Kristian Rouz — Members of Parliament (MPs) are set to investigate the… – Continue reading
Luxembourg and France have signed a new double taxation treaty (DTT), replacing the existing treaty that had been in force since 1958. The accord was inked during the official state visit led by Grand Duke Henri and Grand Duchess Maria Teresa, in Paris, on 20 March 2018. A communiqué released… – Continue reading
All international groups operating in the country will have to provide a country-by-country (CbC) report as per the revised Income tax Act, the government clarified in a finance ministry release issued today. The CbC report is to be furnished by the ultimate parent entity of an international group in the… – Continue reading
HEADS of financial institutions face a fine of up to $10,000 or two years in prison if they fail to make the necessary accounts reports. The reminder came in a statement from the Ministry of Finance, Trade and Investment this week. It stressed that the deadline is approaching for filing… – Continue reading
THE Bahamas’ ‘blacklisting’ response threatens to “cause a lot of damage” to its IBC business and create “much less certainty” for the financial services industry, a top attorney is warning. Michael Paton, a former Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) chairman, told Tribune Business that the proposed Multinational Entities Reporting Bill… – Continue reading
President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday signed two agreements with two countries following the approval of the Federal Executive Council (FEC). The agreements, according to a statement issued by the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the President, Femi Adesina, include the instrument for ratification of agreement between Nigeria and… – Continue reading
The United States Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently published a document reminding taxpayers that income derived from virtual currency transactions must be reported on income tax returns. The IRS states that taxpayers who fail to report virtual currency earning may be audited or made liable for “penalties and interest.” IRS… – Continue reading
Granting tax relief to Deloitte India, the Mumbai bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) held that the provisions relating to Tax deduction at Source (TDS) are not applicable to the professional fee paid by them to its Group Entities in US and Singapore. The division bench of the… – Continue reading
One of the fastest growing crypto exchanges over the past year, Binance, announced on its official blog its intention to move operations to the European island of Malta. This decision comes after the difficulties experienced to operate under the conditions imposed by the Japanese government. A few weeks ago the… – Continue reading
The OECD has announced that its multilateral convention to implement tax treaty-related measures to counter base erosion and profit shifting will enter into force on July 1, 2018. The Convention, negotiated by more than 100 countries and jurisdictions under a mandate from G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors, will… – Continue reading
Foreign Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Klimkin and Finance Minister of Qatar Ali Shareef Al-Emadi have signed an agreement on avoiding double taxation and preventing income tax evasion between the government of Ukraine and Qatar. According to a Thursday posting on the website of the Finance Ministry of Ukraine, avoiding double… – Continue reading
The Government’s planned legal reforms pave the way for the introduction of “corporate taxation” on a wide range of Bahamian financial services products, it was revealed yesterday. Carl Bethel QC, the Attorney General, confirmed to Tribune Business that legislation intended to address the European Union’s (EU) ‘blacklisting’ concerns was designed… – Continue reading
Cyprus and the UK on Thursday signed an updated agreement on double taxation avoidance on income and capital, which will contribute to further develop commercial and financial relations between the two countries. The agreement, signed in Nicosia by Finance Minister Harris Georgiades and British High Commissioner Matthew Kidd, is based… – Continue reading
The assessment to companies like Google, Facebook or Apple would raise 5 billion a year Google, Facebook and Apple have specialized in locating in a fictitious way their operations in microaffiliates located in territories or countries where corporate tax is low or even practically nil. And they have thus turned… – Continue reading
The introduction of a unilateral revenue tax on digital businesses in the UK would stymie investment and be a strangely timed gamble, says accountancy firm Moore Stephens. The Government’s position paper, “Corporate tax and the digital economy,” released at the recent Spring Statement, includes a proposal to tax certain tech… – Continue reading
Malta has reiterated its commitment to fighting aggressive tax planning, joining other EU member states who have unanimously agreed to amend the EU’s tax information sharing law, the Directive on Administrative Cooperation. The amendments to the Directive, which were agreed last week by EU finance ministers, will require intermediaries, such… – Continue reading
The price of BTC had increased in value significantly over the years, reaching $19,600 at its highest peak – and the exchange rate rests at $8,500 today. This is a stark contrast to just over a year ago when the digital currency’s value was under $1,000 per coin. Since the… – Continue reading
IN THE aftermath of The Bahamas’ blacklisting by the European Union for being a tax haven, Financial Services Minister Brent Symonette says it might be time for The Bahamas to consider appointing an ambassador to the EU to increase dialogue on matters concerning this country. The St Anne’s MP said… – Continue reading
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has warned taxpayers to beware of scammers demanding Bitcoin or other cryptocurrency as a form of payment for fake tax debts. Assistant Commissioner Kath Anderson said that the ATO became aware of scammers seeking payment in Bitcoin in late 2017, with over AUD50,000 (USD38,974) paid… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs, the UK tax agency, has lauded a ruling in its favor secured before the courts that will save the UK exchequer tens of millions of pounds in related tax-avoidance cases. The Upper Tribunal upheld an earlier ruling against Cyclops Electronics and Graceland Fixing on appeal, concerning… – Continue reading
Coinbase has announced that it is the first crypto exchange to obtain a U.K. bank account. According to CNBC, the account is with Barclays. Coinbase, which has nearly 12 million users, also announced it was granted an eMoney license by the U.K. regulator the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). “The license… – Continue reading
“The important thing to remember here is this is a brand-new, very complicated space,” warned John Oliver on last weekend’s episode of “Last Week Tonight.” “Literally nobody knows how it’s going to develop, so you need to be careful.” Oliver was discussing cryptocurrencies and blockchain on his show, highlighting the… – Continue reading
The deadline for multinationals to submit a master file and CbC report in India is March 31, 2018, in respect of the 2016-17 financial year. A “master file” must be furnished by multinationals if the total consolidated group revenue exceeds INR5bn and either the aggregate value of international transactions as… – Continue reading
Royalty taxation shall be set at 5% and 10%. The tax rate is being raised from 2% to 5%, while the zero taxation of dividends and royalty payments are being abolished. Such are the main changes in the Convention between Ukraine and the Kingdom of the Netherlands on double taxation… – Continue reading
THE Bahamas’ failure “to read the tea leaves” and introduce a corporate income tax “for ourselves” has contributed to Europe’s planned ‘blacklisting’, a financial executive argued yesterday. Paul Moss, Dominion Management Services’ president, told Tribune Business that implementing such a tax would mean the European Union (EU) “cannot accuse us… – Continue reading
Luxembourg Finance Minister Pierre Gramegna has said that any special tax measures against large digital companies should respect European Union law. Gramegna made the comments during an official visit to Paris earlier this month where he held a series of working meetings with French government counterparts. “Pierre Gramegna stressed that… – Continue reading
The OECD on March 12 released a third round of peer reviews of countries’ efforts to implement the BEPS minimum standard on improving tax dispute resolution mechanisms. The peer reviews concern BEPS Action 14, on making dispute resolution more timely, effective, and efficient. The third round reports released relate to… – Continue reading
The Deputy Prime Minister and minister of financial services were yesterday travelling to Europe in a last-ditch bid to plead the Bahamas’ case against being ‘backlisted’. Carl Bethel QC, the Attorney General, confirmed to Tribune Business that both K P Turnquest and Brent Symonette are leading a government delegation that… – Continue reading
Decentralized cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum have strong advantages over centralized financial systems, primarily because of their ability to function and operate without a single point of failure, which hackers and bad actors can target. Transaction processing On Feb. 19, Jameson Lopp, the lead engineer at multi-signature Blockchain security firm… – Continue reading
Egypt is to receive international support to implement new measures in the area of tax transparency and information exchange. Unveiled at a meeting on international tax reform in Cairo on March 7, the OECD and Egypt agreed a new project entitled “Enhancing Domestic Resource Mobilization in Egypt through a better… – Continue reading
Mauritius last month released the Income Tax (Country-by-Country Reporting) Regulations 2018, setting out the jurisdiction’s rules concerning the filing by multinational groups of transfer pricing documentation. The CbC report is one element of a new three-tiered standardized approach to transfer pricing documentation proposed under BEPS Action 13. Under the framework,… – Continue reading
The European Commission has criticised Luxembourg and six other EU member states for overly favourable tax treatment of multinational corporations. “The @EU_Commission is today stressing the issue of aggressive tax planning in seven EU countries: #Belgium, #Cyprus, #Hungary, #Ireland, #Luxembourg, #Malta and The #Netherlands. #FairTaxation,” Pierre Moscovici, the European finance… – Continue reading
India and Iran signed a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) in February, during Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s official visit to India. The ‘Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with Respect to Taxes on Income’ aims to encourage the movement of investments and services… – Continue reading
Hong Kong’s Inland Revenue Department on March 5 launched its new Country-by-Country Reporting Portal. Groups can now register to file CbC reports for accounting periods beginning between January 1, 2016, and December 31, 2017, using the online portal. The CbC report is one element of a new three-tiered standardized approach… – Continue reading
KARACHI: Foreign investors expressed concern over a proposed tax amnesty scheme to bring back offshore investments, terming it as an injustice with compliant taxpayers, officials said on Monday. Overseas Investors’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI), representing major foreign companies in Pakistan recently shared its concerns, through a letter, with… – Continue reading
On December 29, 2017, Hong Kong gazetted the Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No. 6) Bill 2017 (the Amendment Bill). The Amendment Bill, which was formally introduced into the Legislative Council on January 10, represents a crucial step in the development of Hong Kong’s transfer pricing regulatory and enforcement regime. The objectives… – Continue reading
Financial institutions in Singapore are required to file information required under the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act starting April 16 by May 31, 2018. All reporting Singapore financial institutions (SGFIs) must submit a FATCA Return to IRAS by May 31 setting out the required information in relation to every… – Continue reading
India might take the vanguard position all over the world in outlining a possible framework for taxing digital bodies that have a huge business or user base in a nation but do not have a noteworthy physical attendance there. The 2018 Union Budget has, for the initial time, cited the… – Continue reading
THE GOVERNMENT recently held bilateral talks with the Code of Conduct Group (COCG) to discuss tax transparency and fair taxation in the territory. A press release from the Office of the Premier issued on Tuesday (February 27), said Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson and other TCI representatives met with the COCG… – Continue reading
EU MEPs have supported plans to require intermediaries promoting aggressive, cross-border tax schemes to report those plans to the authorities. Under the proposal, service providers who design or promote such plans would be required to provide details of their schemes in a central directory. The disclosed information would then be… – Continue reading
The Belgian Special Tax Inspectorate (STI) is looking for Belgian individuals who have invested in cryptocurrencies in foreign exchanges, local news outlet De Standaard reported Friday, March 2. After receiving information from Finnish authorities that several Belgian taxpayers had been trading on Finnish crypto exchanges, the STI started looking into… – Continue reading
According to regional reports, China’s police agency is allegedly monitoring cryptocurrency exchanges based outside of the country. An informant details that China’s Public Information Network Security Supervision task-force is closely watching both domestic and foreign trading platforms involved with cryptocurrencies to prevent fraud, pyramid schemes, and money laundering. China’s Regulators… – Continue reading
The Australian Tax Office has updated and added to its list of the guidance on international tax matters it intends to release this year. This month, the ATO intends to release a guide on corporate residency – central management and control in Australia [reference code 3838], to provide the ATO’s… – Continue reading
The Government of the Netherlands has announced a comprehensive package of tax anti-avoidance proposals designed to bring the jurisdiction’s rules into line with new European Union anti-avoidance laws and fulfill its obligations under the international BEPS agenda. The plans were detailed in a parliamentary paper sent by State Secretary for… – Continue reading
