In a time of fiscal austerity, it is breathtaking to learn that Congress has allowed Fortune 500 companies to avoid an estimated $620 billion in federal taxes on earnings they are holding offshore. While the inaction by lawmakers on this issue may create the impression that there is nothing to… – Continue reading
Economist and policy consultant, Avernash Persaud is urging government to remove concessions for foreign investors, a similar advice proffered by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Persaud said government should instead focus its attention on infrastructure development. Persaud, who has assisted in policy development in countries like Singapore, said investors will… – Continue reading
Two decades after Ken Dart renounced his U.S. citizenship and took his tax attorney with him to the Caribbean, the billionaire bond investor and local kingpin is reinventing himself as the Cayman Islands’ biggest real estate owner. In a rare glimpse into Dart’s holdings, Mark VanDevelde, chief executive of the… – Continue reading
The taka has continued to fall against the dollar for two weeks now after nearly one year of an unchanged exchange rate, according to data from the Bangladesh Foreign Exchange Dealers’ Association. “Market forces are determining the exchange rate,” said Kazi Sayedur Rahman, general manager of Bangladesh Bank’s foreign exchange… – Continue reading
The company at the centre of the revelations denied any wrongdoing Some of the best-known names in British football face losing millions of pounds after being allegedly advised to invest in “risky” projects that have subsequently failed or were hit with tax bills. Rio Ferdinand and Andy Cole, both former… – Continue reading
NEW YORK, Nov. 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Business executives cited an increased compliance burden as their biggest concern with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting initiative (37.7 percent), according to an October Deloitte poll. Other concerns included double taxation of income (17 percent) and… – Continue reading
Transfer pricing by multinationals has cost South Africa an estimated R250 billion over three years and, with it, lost tax revenue. This is according to Sunia Manik, group executive for the large business centre at the SA Revenue Service (Sars), adding that it was being done through “service payments” made… – Continue reading
The UK is one of several countries to introduce voluntary disclosure schemes. More people are coming forward to regularise their affairs as they realise there is nowhere left to hide in this new world of tax transparency. Tax authorities and financial institutions are gearing up for the new automatic exchange… – Continue reading
LONDON, Nov 8: The British government has set a target for this year to triple annual prosecutions for the most serious tax evasion to 100 each year. It plans to create a “strict liability” offence of offshore tax evasion, according a report in the international media. This means that an… – Continue reading
x The Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has slapped higher taxes on importers of second-hand vehicles ahead of a new duty that will push the prices up by Sh200,000. The revenue authority reviewed the current retail selling price of second-hand vehicles in October 15. This is the benchmark the taxman uses… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: Dismissing apprehensions of Mauritius being used to route black money as “misconception”, its Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth has termed the issue as an aberration in the “very special” ties with India and hoped that revision of their tax treaty won’t harm its interests. Stating that Prime Minister Narendra… – Continue reading
Millions more Greeks need to start paying taxes says OECD boss, as Athens likely to fall short in bid to secure €2bn cash injection this week Greece is battling to secure the release of €2bn in bail-out cash as one of the world’s foremost tax chiefs has warned the country… – Continue reading
Small and medium-sized businesses that don’t have the resources to patent intellectual property may still be able to benefit from the Knowledge Development Box (KDP) under plans being considered by the Government. The Department of Finance is looking at allowing SMEs with patentable assets, but without the resources to get… – Continue reading
FRANKFURT (The Street) — Europe’s allure as a tax haven for U.S. multinationals may be coming to an end. That’s because European Union regulators are closing up tax loopholes that U.S. companies have been enjoying for years. The first two to feel the heat are Starbucks (SBUX – Get Report)… – Continue reading
Clubs Australia and the American Gaming Association (AGA) to Join Forces to Table Illegal Online Gambling Trade Association Clubs Australia made recent headlines releasing a statement that confirms its partnership with the American Gaming Association to tackle an ongoing problem that has created an analogous situation with the ‘Wild West’…. – Continue reading
Leave.EU, supported by Ukip and financed by a multimillionaire, vies to lead Britain’s exit from Europe A leading campaign group seeking to take Britain out of the European Union was set up by an offshore company that offers tax avoidance services to “high net worth individuals”, the Observer can reveal…. – Continue reading
HALF a billion dollars worth of assets previously unaccounted for were declared following the passing of a law to establish a tax amnesty scheme designed for Fijians to declare all their assets held overseas Attorney-General and Minister for Finance Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum, in his 2016 National Budget address, said there was… – Continue reading
The opaque governance structure of sports federations makes them less accessible to independent oversight and therefore more prone to corruption, the deputy managing director at Transparency International, a global anti-corruption movement, told Sputnik. ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik) – Earlier this year, separate investigations by US and Swiss prosecutors uncovered deep-rooted corruption… – Continue reading
The Isle of Man has signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Romania. The TIEA was signed during a ceremony in London on 4 November 2015, by His Excellency Mihnea Ioan Motoc, Romania Ambassador in London and Eddie Teare MHK, the Isle of Man’s Treasury Minister. Mr Teare said:… – Continue reading
LOST REVENUE:A lack of regulations on taxing cross-border Web-based content and services providers puts their local peers at a disadvantage, Ernst & Young said The nation’s tax system is relatively behind developed markets in adapting to the proliferation of the digital economy, which has resulted in lost revenues for the… – Continue reading
The Financial Stability Board (FSB) has today published a Report to the G20 on actions taken to assess and address the decline in correspondent banking. This report provides an update on work by the FSB in partnership with other organisations to examine the extent and causes of banks’ withdrawal from… – Continue reading
Recent CRA comments at the May 2014 IFA international tax seminar1 and a subsequently released CRA technical interpretation2 highlight anomalies in the application of subsections 92(4) and (5) of the Income Tax Act (Canada) (the “Act“).3 These provisions address the situation where shares of a foreign affiliate are held by… – Continue reading
A blacklist of tax havens by the U.S District of Columbia, which featured the Channel Islands, has been repealed. The Bailiwicks were listed as part of a plan to highlight international jurisdictions the U.S. considers to be used by people trying to avoid paying tax. The Chief Minister was opposed… – Continue reading
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has issued an interpretation note to provide guidance on the term “place of effective management” for the purposes of determining the tax residence of a company in South Africa. SARS notes that, in general, a resident is liable to income tax on gross income… – Continue reading
The UAE delegation, which was headed by HE Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, has concluded its official visits to the Scandinavian countries. These visits aimed at strengthening the country’s network of agreements on exchange of information for tax purposes, reviewing the financial practices adopted by… – Continue reading
No member state of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) ranks among the top 20 jurisdictions worldwide for financial secrecy. The United States of America (at number 3), Germany (8), Japan (12) and Britain (15), all rate as bigger tax havens than any CARICOM jurisdiction, according to the Tax Justice Network (TJN),… – Continue reading
The recent corporation tax controversy highlighted by US presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is not damaging Ireland’s reputation as a place to do business, said the former chief executive of Apple, John Sculley. According to Mr Sculley, the controversy is simply part of US election fever. Known as… – Continue reading
The Redmond tech company and the Internal Revenue Service tangled in court Friday over the government’s audit of Microsoft’s software sales through offshore subsidiaries. Microsoft and the Internal Revenue Service sparred in court Friday over the agency’s power to investigate taxpayers. Microsoft, seeking a court order to overturn a portion… – Continue reading
Abolishing the UK’s deed of variation legislation as a means of tackling tax avoidance could risk causing distress to bereaved families, warned the Association of Taxation Technicians. A deed of variation gives beneficiaries of an estate a two-year window to alter the distribution of that estate following the death of… – Continue reading
A FINAL decision on the so-called Rangers “big tax case” may not happen until 2017, and Scotland’s footballing authorities are unlikely to deal with the ramifications of the matter until after that. Sir David Murray’s companies are yet to decide whether or not to appeal against the decision by three… – Continue reading
On September 18, 2015, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) released Notice 2015-66 announcing its intention to amend certain of the regulations under Chapter 4 of the Code (the “FATCA regulations”), to extend the period of time that certain of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) transitional rules will apply,… – Continue reading
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua, Friday November 6, 2015 – No member state of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) ranks among the top 20 jurisdictions worldwide for financial secrecy. The United States of America (at number 3), Germany (8), Japan (12) and Britain (15), all rate as bigger tax havens than any CARICOM… – Continue reading
Call to halt bank sale in favour of reform rejected by UK Government UK MINISTERS decided to “wash their hands” of a tax evasion scandal in a subsidiary of the government-owned Royal Bank of Scotland, according to damning testimony given by a former treasury official who is now a Labour… – Continue reading
First it was the scourge of public sector corruption, until now the mortifying spectacle of South Africa’s post-apartheid transition. Now, with the ground shifting beneath the world’s sclerotic economy – and the past few years have produced more tremors than ever in the 21 years of democracy – it’s a… – Continue reading
MINISTER of finance Calle Schlettwein said yesterday that the solidarity tax will be introduced as an income tax for individuals according to their income scale. He said the tax will also be a flat amount levied from juristic persons (closed corporations, partnerships, trusts and companies), based on the average per… – Continue reading
Plans to list its European REIT on the JSE. Feeding South Africans’ seeming insatiable desire for rand-hedge stocks, Schroder Real Estate is planning to launch a European Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), which will have a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange with a secondary listing on the Johannesburg… – Continue reading
New law in Poland expands the requirements for transfer pricing documentation, and includes country-by-country (CbC) reporting. The new provisions essentially reflect the recommendations made in Action 13 the OECD’s base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project, and provide for CbC, master file and local file reporting. The legislation was passed… – Continue reading
Paul Singer has a good track record as a money manager. In 1995, he bought $20 million worth of Peruvian debt at a discounted price of $11.4 million, then forced Peru’s government, through lawsuits, to eventually pay nearly five times his initial investment — some $58 million. In 2002 and… – Continue reading
Exclusive More than 100 victims of notorious conman Peter Foster have moved to freeze funds held in offshore tax havens after more than $10 million was siphoned from his online gambling company Sports Trading Club. Fairfax Media can reveal Foster and at least eight associates have been served with freezing… – Continue reading
(MENAFN – Gulf Times) The Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) is eyeing more financial and professional services firms, including Islamic finance firms from Asia and South East Asia as part of its strategic move to reach out to the untapped promising markets. The QFC, an onshore platform with a unique offering,… – Continue reading
Ireland: Apple’s foreign tax rate on its overseas earnings rose to 6% in fiscal year 2015 that ended on 26 Sept 2015, and this compares with a rate of 2% in 2012. Total net income jumped from $53.5bn in 2014 to $72.5bn in 2015. Net income was at $50.1bn in… – Continue reading
With local financial institutions bracing for the impact of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and Common Reporting Standard (CRS) reporting requirements, a recent partnership between a tax law firm and financial information services firm could well increase the ease of reporting for U.S. citizens living in The Bahamas…. – Continue reading
The BVI has announced amendments to its Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regime in order to ensure continued compliance with developing international standards on transparency and AML regimes. Amendments to the legislation have recently been published (Code of Practice and Regulations) and the proposed changes are to take effect on 1 January… – Continue reading
The Companies (Amendment) Law 2015 (the Law) has now come into effect in the Cayman Islands and will have potential application to all Cayman Islands companies. The Law amends sections 55 and 56 of the Companies Law (2013 Revision) which deals with appointments and notification of changes to directors. Previously,… – Continue reading
(Seychelles News Agency) – Seychelles’ efforts to comply with the widely-recognised Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD)’s regulations on the sharing of tax information has led the island nation’s jurisdiction to be rated ‘largely compliant’. This follows a re-assessment of the island nation’s ‘practical implementation’ of its legal and… – Continue reading
On September 7, 2015, the local tax court of Cologne (the “Court”) issued an injunction against the German Federal Central Tax Office (“FCTO”) to prevent the FCTO from conducting a coordinated exchange of information with the E6 countries Canada, Great Britain, France, Australia and Japan, which aimed at gathering intelligence… – Continue reading
On 5 October 2015 the OECD published the final package of recommendations to reform the international tax system – the “BEPS” Project. Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) refers to tax planning strategies that exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules to artificially shift profits to low or no-tax locations… – Continue reading
On 14 October 2015, the Luxembourg Minister of Finance presented a bill to Parliament on the state budget for 2016. This bill contains several proposals affecting corporate taxpayers. One of the main proposals is the abolition of the intellectual property regime. Similar tax relief systems, known as “IP box” or… – Continue reading
In Canada, taxes are levied at the federal, provincial and municipal levels of government. At the federal level, the government generates most of its revenue by way of income taxes and excise taxes imposed on the distribution and consumption of goods and services in Canada. The provinces and territories also… – Continue reading
British MEP Anneliese Dodds has accused national governments of hampering progress in tackling corporate tax dodging, warning that EU capitals are “far too focussed on their own self-interests”. On the anniversary of the breaking of the LuxLeaks scandal, Dodds said MEPs had made some progress in stamping out aggressive tax… – Continue reading
