FATCA—the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act—is America’s global tax law, called an American tax nightmare by the New York Times. That is an apt description. It was quietly enacted in 2010, and after a four-year ramp up, it’s finally in effect. Never before has an American tax law attempted such… – Continue reading
The Indian Parliament on Wednesday approved the Undisclosed Foreign Income and Assets Bill providing for heavy penalties for stashing black money away in foreign accounts with the Rajya Sabha passing the measure, two days after the Lok Sabha had done so. Moving what is called the Black Money Bill for… – Continue reading
HE Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, received HE Philip Parham, UK ambassador to the UAE at the Ministry of Finance (MoF) premises in Abu Dhabi. The two parties discussed the bilateral economic relations between the countries and the latest development regarding the rounds of negotiations… – Continue reading
Robert Maas,tax consultant at Carter Backer Winter was struck by April’s economia essay in which Diarmid O’Sullivan – an advisor at ActionAid UK – set out ActionAid’s five-point plan to tackle tax avoidance The article’s first point starts by demanding that “British tax rates do not incentivise tax avoidance by… – Continue reading
Russia is set to enact an amnesty on offshore assets next month, but disagreement and lack of clarity over the terms of the pardon threaten not only to render the measure impotent, but undermine the government’s very drive to lure overseas money back home. The capital amnesty, part of a… – Continue reading
National Treasury announced significant relaxation of exchange controls in the national budget in February this year, but according to Sable Forex MD, Andy Rissik, the paperwork demands are still an obstacle to moving money in or out of South Africa. “High Net Worth (HNW) individuals were pleased to receive some… – Continue reading
Even as the action plan to address Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (BEPS) is being worked out, multinationals are bracing for some turbulent times in India. For some time now, transfer pricing – the price of goods and services determined by a company when two of its subsidiaries transact –… – Continue reading
President Truong Tan Sang arrived at Heydar Aliyev international airport in Baku on May 13 afternoon for a three-day official visit to Azerbaijan. The President was welcomed at the airport by Azerbaijani Deputy Prime Minister Eyyubov Yaqub, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Khalaf Aly Oglu Khalafov, Azerbaijani Ambassador to Vietnam… – Continue reading
Technology companies need to stop “extremely aggressive” tax planning, the man charged with reforming global tax rules has told the BBC. He says these “push the boundaries of what is legal”. Pascal Saint-Amans, who runs the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy, said that new standards would require companies to pay… – Continue reading
The Bahamas Ministry of Financial Services released draft copies of the FATCA Legislation and the FATCA Guidance Notes to meet the International Tax Compliance Requirements of the Model 1 FATCA Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the Bahamas and the United States of America (US). The new FATCA Bill was drafted in… – Continue reading
If you are American and have a non-U.S. bank account, chances are that you’ve received a letter from your bank asking for your tax details. It may seem odd that banks everywhere want to know if you are compliant with the IRS. But for the U.S. government, that’s the beauty… – Continue reading
The worldwide transfer pricing landscape is in a state of flux and the need for sound and reliable dispute resolution mechanisms has never been more important for multinational enterprises. In particular, where aggressive tax administrations such as India are concerned, double taxation is a key concern for businesses. Mutual agreement… – Continue reading
The opera singer Montserrat Caballé failed to appear in a Spanish court this week to settle a tax fraud case, and her lawyer stepped down as her legal representative in the matter. Ms. Caballé, who was summoned by a judge in Barcelona, Spain, on Tuesday, did not explain her absence,… – Continue reading
In order to curb the shadow economy and tax evasion, the State Revenue Service in Latvia will continue active control measures at companies in those national economy sectors that are the most exposed to the shadow economy; amendments have been drawn up in cooperation with the Finance Ministry in order… – Continue reading
India is well on its way towards achieving meaningful financial sector reform and development, and time is of essence. Last month, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) stated that India will overtake China as the world’s fastest growing economy in 2015, buoyed by a rising middle-class, a young population, and competitive… – Continue reading
Frank Lowy’s Westfield Corporation intends to take another step in cutting ties with Australia by shifting its head office overseas, once an offshore stock market listing is finalised. The company is entirely focused on shopping malls in the United States, Britain and Europe, with all Westfield-branded centres in Australia and… – Continue reading
While the Bureaucrat Hall of Fame and Moocher Hall of Fame already exist, the Hypocrite Hall of Fame is just a concept. But once it gets set up, Congressman Alan Grayson of Florida will definitely be a charter member. Here are some passages from a column in the Tampa Bay… – Continue reading
May 13 — The hiring of an outside law firm in a sharply contested audit of Microsoft’s transfer pricing “appears to violate federal law and the express will of the Congress,” Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin G. Hatch (R-Utah) said in a letter to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen. Hatch, in… – Continue reading
A Protocol amending the Agreement for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and Prevention of Fiscal Evasion with respect to Taxes on Income and on Capital between South Africa and Cyprus was signed on the 1st of April 2015. According to the Protocol, Article 10 (“Dividends”) of the Double Tax Treaty… – Continue reading
Head of forum’s tax policy will push for reform to cut down on avoidance. The OECD has attacked the “extremely aggressive” tax planning of companies such as Google, Amazon and Apple as it pushes for reform of global tax rules to cut down on avoidance. Pascal Saint-Amans, who heads up… – Continue reading
Chairman of our Corporate Team, Paul Egan, gives an overview of the changes of which Irish companies should be aware on the commencement of the Irish Companies Act 2014. The Companies Act 2014 was enacted on the 23 December 2014 and its commencement is planned for 1 June 2015. The… – Continue reading
There’s more trouble for Indians holding undeclared assets overseas as the black money bill passed by the Lok Sabha on Monday will disallow foreign tax credits, cutting off another loophole, reports the Economic Times. Holders of such assets that are not declared within the stipulated period will be denied credits… – Continue reading
Ireland and Pakistan signed a new Income Tax Treaty on 16 April 2015. Once in force and effective, the new Treaty will replace the existing on of 1973. The new treaty will come into force after the two countries exchange ratification instruments. The provisions of the treaty will have effect… – Continue reading
The Swiss cabinet plans on addressing the issue of stolen data with regard to banking information requests from other countries. This comes as Switzerland is under close scrutiny for compliance with international standards. In its meeting on Wednesday, the cabinet discussed the thorny issue of stolen data. Switzerland currently does… – Continue reading
BANKS are unable to directly recover the huge sums of money stolen from their customers via online transactions if the cash is stashed in offshore accounts, its association said yesterday. The Kenya Bankers Association chief executive officer Habil Olaka said most countries like Mauritius or Switzerland where fraudsters hide the… – Continue reading
Short cuts, loopholes and other forms of skulduggery will not be tolerated when the automatic exchange of tax information comes into force, a top official from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has promised Swiss bankers, reports Swiss Info. Grace Perez-Navarro, second in command at the OECD’s tax… – Continue reading
FATCA reporting commences In our March client briefing we noted that the Tax Information Authority in the Cayman Islands (“TIA”) had launched its online portal for the automatic exchange of tax information (the “AEOI Portal”), which can be accessed from its website (www.tia.gov.ky). The deadline for reporting Cayman Islands financial… – Continue reading
“Uruguay has now definitely earned its long-time nickname — the Switzerland of Latin America.” That’s what I wrote several months ago during my first visit to this small, south Atlantic costal country wedged between Brazil and Argentina. For the last week, I have been enjoying my second visit to Uruguay,… – Continue reading
On May 11, 2015, the Cayman Islands announced the extension of its FATCA registration and reporting deadlines, as follows: Registration Each Cayman Islands investment entity that has been classified as a “Reporting Cayman Islands Financial Institution” for purposes of FATCA (or its “sponsoring entity,” if applicable) should register with the… – Continue reading
As of 6 April 2015, non-UK residents will no longer benefit from attractive tax advantages when they invest in the UK residential property market. The tax changes include the removal of the Capital Gains Tax (CGT) exemption, restricted access to Private Residence Relief (PRR) and possible removal of personal allowance… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: The Special Investigation Team on black money informed the Supreme Court on Tuesday that 339 accounts in HSBC bank held by Indians had a net amount of Rs 6,400 crore on which the income tax department has raised a demand of Rs 4,520 crore. “Amount of Rs 237… – Continue reading
U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson, the outspoken, populist Democrat who thunders against Wall Street fat cats,and used to to joke about Mitt Romney’s low tax bill, incorporated a couple hedge funds in the Cayman Islands so investors could avoid taxes. Grayson Fund Ltd. and Grayson Master Fund were incorporated in 2011… – Continue reading
Ireland and Zambia signed a new Income and Capital Tax Treaty on 31 March 2015. Once in force and effective, the new Treaty will replace the existing one of 1971. The new Treaty will come into force after the two countries exchange ratification instruments. The provisions of the treaty will… – Continue reading
HMRC has updated the reporting requirements under the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which may mean that some organisations or taxpayers no longer need to submit a return by the 31 May deadline HMRC points out that two recent updates have changed the reporting criteria. Firstly, UK financial… – Continue reading
After a decade of “offshoring,” financial executives are making the decision to bring some work home. Cities like Hyderabad and Bangalore being replaced with more familiar names like Syracuse and Jacksonville as more companies bring finance jobs back to the states after a decade of “offshoring.” Mid-size U.S. cities are… – Continue reading
On May 13th 2015, the portal for applying for Estonian e-residency was launched at e-resident.gov.ee, which allows to send an application from anywhere in the world to join the Estonian digital identity program, Estonian Ministry of Economy announced, Äripäev.ee/LETA reports. Estonia is the first country to offer e-residency — a… – Continue reading
HSBC Holdings’s Geneva private bank is no longer a place where wealthy people go to hide untaxed assets, according to Franco Morra, chief executive officer for HSBC in Switzerland. “Today, a new client in the first meeting will tell you he is tax compliant and even bring the files with… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI:Senior lawyer and former BJP leader Ram Jethmalani on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that all the election promises made by the NDA regarding black money were “false” and that the government hadn’t made any serious effort to bring back the ill-gotten money stashed away in tax havens. Jethmalani… – Continue reading
Glencore is under audit by the Australian Taxation Office for the low level of taxes it pays, claiming billions in “losses” overseas and resorting to low-tax or no-tax nations such as Bermuda, Singapore and the Cayman Islands. The Swiss-based mining giant revealed it was being investigated by the ATO in… – Continue reading
“I think it’s going to backfire,” says RSM Bird Cameron’s Craig Cooper The Abbott government’s planned laws to deal with multinational tax avoidance are an opportunistic revenue grab that could be vigorously resisted by the United States, according to Craig Cooper, director at accounting firm, RSM Bird Cameron. Technology companies… – Continue reading
FATCA made it extremely difficult for US citizens to open offshore bank accounts and this is applied to all, who hold a US passport (even if they lived abroad) are liable for tax in the US as well as US non-citizen who are tax residents in the US. The banks… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank today made a case for more clarity on taxing the sunshine e-commerce sector, which has been seeing high valuations and frenetic activities, saying doing so will help bolster their finances. “Taxing the burgeoning e-commerce space could bolster states’ own revenues, provided there is greater clarity around… – Continue reading
Current international tax rules are based on principles that have not kept up with globalisation and the rise of the digital economy. Over the years the rules have been patched up but, almost two years ago, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), acknowledging that a substantial overhaul was… – Continue reading
The Foreign Investors’ Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) has objected to a news item headlined “Tax theft by MNCs: Call to enforce transfer price rules” published in Sunday’s issue of The Financial Express. In a statement, the chamber said the shoulder “Tax theft by MNCs” and the reporter’s remarks… – Continue reading
Georgia is stepping up cooperation in taxation, customs affairs and a number of other avenues with Cyprus, Liechtenstein and Iceland. Finance Ministers of Cyprus, Liechtenstein and Iceland signed a cooperation agreement with Georgia on avoidance of double taxation, prevention of evasion of income and capital taxes in Tbilisi today. Georgia’s… – Continue reading
The corporate community is increasingly sounding the warning to Congress: Europe is coming after us on taxes. With tax reform talks stumbling in Washington, the fear for corporate titans is that other countries are already implementing a global set of recommendations meant to crack down on offshore tax avoidance. Lobbyists… – Continue reading
Switzerland’s banks will benefit from the global crackdown on tax avoidance, the president of the country’s association of foreign banks and head of HSBC’s (HSBA.L) Swiss private banking arm said on Tuesday, reports Reuters. The Alpine nation famed for its banking secrecy is bowing to international pressure by committing to… – Continue reading
A new tax on foreigners buying property in Victoria will add about $15,000 to the price of an average city apartment, the state government has revealed as it defends the extra stamp duty fee in the face of industry unrest. The government has come under furious pressure from the property… – Continue reading
In 2014, Canadian corporations sent nearly $200 billion offshore, costing us nearly $8 billion in tax revenue. Ottawa (12 May 2015) — Figures released by Canadians for Tax Fairness (CTF) (link is external) show that the amount of money Canadian corporations are keeping in tax havens has jumped to record… – Continue reading
President Putin coined a new word in his state of the nation address at the end of 2012, when he called for new measures for the “deoffshorisation of our economy”, reports the International Business Times. This was to become a major addition, not just to the Russian vocabulary but to… – Continue reading
