The GMB union said the top 20 private landlords in Britain received between half a million pounds and £4.6 million in housing benefit in the 2013/14 financial year Private landlords are ” abusing” housing benefit by receiving huge amounts of money, paid in part or in full by taxpayers, according… – Continue reading
When Burger King’s owners first announced last summer’s mega-deal to gobble up Tim Hortons, the fast-food firm’s executives downplayed a key reason why they were acquiring the Canadian coffee chain and relocating corporate HQ to Canada: to cut its taxes. “Tax wasn’t really the driver of this,” Daniel Schwartz, the… – Continue reading
On 3 April 2015, Uzbekistan and the United States signed a Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Agreement. FATCA seeks to obtain information on accounts held by U.S. taxpayers in other countries. It requires U.S. financial institutions to withhold a portion of certain payments made to Foreign Financial Institutions (FFIs)… – Continue reading
Americans have overcome oligarchy before — and there’s no reason we can’t do it again. Rising inequality seems to pose an insurmountable political problem. If the underlying causes are technological change and globalization, the forces appear to be unstoppable. Alternatively, if the causes are primarily political and involve the power… – Continue reading
MUMBAI: The 1607-point decline on the Sensex in the past two weeks has unnerved many investors, but there could be more pain in store. May has historically been a bad month for stocks -in the past 24 years, the average monthly return of the Sensex has been a niggardly 0.24%…. – Continue reading
Tim Thornton, Chief Data Officer, Mitsubishi UFJ Fund Services comments on the upcoming deadline for registration on the Cayman FATCA portal… The upcoming 30 April deadline for registration on the Cayman FATCA portal is another milestone in the implementation of FATCA. The relatively short window from the portal being available,… – Continue reading
The Luxembourg Intellectual Property (IP) tax regime will be aligned to the “modified nexus approach”, as per Pierre Gramegna, Luxembourg’s Finance Minister. The IP regime is expected to be modified in 2015 and to be in force no later than 30 June 2016. This is driven by the OECD’s Base… – Continue reading
KELLY NJOMBO, Lusaka THE Jesuit Centre for Theological Reflection (JCTR) says Government’s discussion to approve changes to the mineral royalty tax regime will result in the increase in primary budget deficit and possible limiting of expenditure. JCTR says the threat of job losses, placing the mines under care and maintenance… – Continue reading
Tax intelligence seeks to create a legal window for taxpayers to pay their evaded taxes, detected by the taxmen, in a simpler way without having to pass through a tortuous process. The Central Intelligence Cell (CIC) under the National Board of Revenue (NBR) has found out that in majority of… – Continue reading
THE REVENUE Commissioner’s large cases division is investigating almost 100 schemes it suspects were designed by companies and wealthy individuals to avoid paying capital gains tax. The taxman is enquiring into 89 cases which used sophisticated financial instruments known as contracts for difference to generate artificial losses. The schemes avoided… – Continue reading
Lahore – Pakistan Tanners Association has said that exporters are paying full tax to the government and there is no chance of evasion of income tax on exports. “Exporters, whether making profit or loss, will have to pay 1% income tax on the value of each export consignment while 1%… – Continue reading
The Income Tax Department on Sunday published names of 31 tax evaders who owe over Rs 1,500 crore in taxes to the government in its bid to stop tax evasion. The names, last known addresses and vital financial details of these entities were published in newspaper. The department said they… – Continue reading
The world’s high and ultrahigh net worth families are run much like businesses these days, with family governance in place as well as fund structures in favourable tax jurisdictions that allow for consolidated reporting across diversified assets. That is the way the world is moving, with global tax authorities grouping… – Continue reading
Republicans and other people who are opposed to immigration reforms claim that they are a burden on the national economy and its resources. But latest reports suggest that undocumented immigrants paid as much as $12 billion dollars as taxes at state and national level. This is a huge amount and… – Continue reading
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the IRS are opposing bankrupt billionaire Samuel Wyly’s motion to sell his Woody Creek ranch because they believe he would hide sales proceeds in offshore accounts, according to court filings made earlier this month. Wyly, who filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy Oct. 19… – Continue reading
Benchmarks are poised just above their 200-day moving average — a long-term support April 25, 2015: Both the Sensex and the Nifty are very tantalizingly poised just above a long-term support level. This adds zing to next week’s trading that is expected to be full of action thanks to the… – Continue reading
About 11.4 million undocumented immigrants in the U.S. paid nearly $12 billion in state and local taxes in 2012, and granting them lawful permanent residence would further increase total tax collected, a study revealed. The recent study made by the Washington-based Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy said the average… – Continue reading
Li Keqiang warns banks that he will use the country’s FTZs to help bring down borrowing costs and force lenders to change their ways Premier Li Keqiang has sent a clear message to the mainland’s commercial banks: he will use free-trade zones to ratchet up pressure on the lenders to… – Continue reading
SCOTTISH Nationalist MPs could help force up taxes at English airports unless their Westminster voting rights are curbed, David Cameron claimed yesterday (Friday, April 24). The prime minister raised the prospect of the Edinburgh Parliament slashing air passenger duty (APD) in Scotland, then its MPs voting with Labour to widen… – Continue reading
Neil Saunders, whose wife is the Director of Public Prosecutions, is a member of a controversial scheme being investigated by the taxman, The Telegraph can disclose The Director of Public Prosecutions’ husband is a member of a controversial “tax loophole” scheme that has been investigated by the taxman, it can… – Continue reading
The trio have NOT appealed against a tax tribunal ruling from last May that the Icebreaker scheme they poured millions into was designed to exploit legal loopholes TV sports presenter Gabby Logan has kept her promise to pay back all the money she owed from a controversial “tax shelter” scheme…. – Continue reading
European finance ministers have backed efforts to fight rampant tax avoidance by multinationals in the wake of the LuxLeaks scandal. But European Union members face tough negotiations to work out the details. Under a new plan the bloc’s 28 countries would share tax deals agreed with some of the world’s… – Continue reading
Mumbai, April 25 (IANS): The capital gains tax claims on foreign funds with retrospective effect and worries over similar notices ahead hit the marked mood during the week ended Friday, sending a key index down to its lowest level in three-and-a-half months. The mixed corporate results for the last quarter… – Continue reading
NUMBER OF THE WEEK: 6.5 percent The tax rate at which companies could voluntarily repatriate their foreign earnings under the Invest in Transportation Act of 2015 ( S. 981). Senators Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Rand Paul (R-KY) introduced the bipartisan proposal, offering ways to save the Highway Trust Fund. Funding… – Continue reading
Trade in today’s global era visualizes significant number of international transactions in form of transfer of goods, services, capital and intangibles. International transfers arise within the Multinational Enterprise group entities and are called intra-group transfer. What is actually paid by one entity to another entity in the intra-group transfer is… – Continue reading
The federal government has published the results of the consultation on the Financial Services Act and the Financial Institutions Act (for further details please see “Federal Financial Services Act and Federal Financial Institutions Act”). The Financial Services Act governs the prerequisites for providing financial services and offering financial instruments and… – Continue reading
Offshore investors look to New Zealand property markets New Zealand is emerging as one of the preferred property markets for global investors. This is a key finding in Colliers Internationals’ Capital Markets Report where prime average commercial, retail and industrial yields in Auckland and Wellington proved higher than their global… – Continue reading
India’s stand will show many nations in Asia and Africa the way to regain ill-gotten wealth stashed outside their countries “We have no information on any accounts held by Indian citizens in banks in Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Dubai or any other country. We have no information on the names of persons… – Continue reading
FPIs are battling it out with the income-tax department, which has issued notices demanding that they pay MAT to the tune of Rs40,000 crore New Delhi/Mumbai: Despite the government affirming that foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) can use tax treaties to fight tax demands on past capital gains, a majority of… – Continue reading
However, OECD being persuasive may not help funds based out of nations whose treaties do not give specific exemption The Indian government’s clarification that it would honour tax treaties while making a demand of Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) at the effective rate of 20 per cent came as a relief… – Continue reading
Company accounts provide insight into Parlesse Investments A Larry Goodman company based in Luxembourg made a profit of €52.6 million in 2013 and paid just 0.4 per cent tax, according to accounts in the tiny EU member state. The company, Parlesse Investments Sarl, began operations in 2010 and had accumulated… – Continue reading
The Irish Revenue collected EUR41.4bn (USD45bn) in tax in 2014, up 9.3 percent on 2013, according to the latest figures. Revenue’s Annual Report for 2014 shows that each of the main taxheads recorded growth. Income tax was up 8.8 percent year-on-year, with corporation tax and value-added tax (VAT) each up… – Continue reading
Osborne accepts public scepticism and ‘fatigue’ is growing about all parties The borrowing and spending plan of all of the main British parties in the general election leave voters “in the dark” about the spending cuts and tax increases that will necessary after May 7th, Britain’s leading economic organisation has… – Continue reading
On 20 March 2015, the British Virgin Islands Government issued revised guidance notes regarding the Intergovernmental Agreements between the British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) and the United States of America (the “US”) and the United Kingdom (the “UK”) to improve international tax compliance (the “Guidance Notes”). The Guidance Notes confirm that… – Continue reading
On March 30, 2015, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it had entered into a nonprosecution agreement with BSI SA, the first Swiss bank to reach resolution with the U.S. government as to its potential criminal exposure for assisting its U.S. clients in engaging in tax evasion.[1] As part… – Continue reading
“There have been times,” Hervé Falciani tells me, “when I’ve wondered if I was losing touch with reality. Could I really have seen what I saw, and revealed the things that I did, while the financial world continued as if nothing had happened?” Falciani, sometimes called “the Ed Snowden of… – Continue reading
Greece’s desperate bid to fund debt repayments by clamping down on tax evaders is doomed to fail, according to analysts. Leonidas Bobolas, the head of Greece’s largest construction firm was arrested on Wednesday and not released until after he had paid €1.8m in back taxes, despite the fact he had… – Continue reading
Sarao made about $40m in profit using spoofing techniques that involve putting in an order and swiftly withdrawing it before a trade can take place Washington/London: The west London trader charged with contributing to a sudden crash in US equity markets five years ago set up companies in the Caribbean… – Continue reading
The U.S. Treasury Department has released proposed rules aimed at limiting theability of hedge funds to delay or lower their taxes by funneling investments through offshore reinsurance companies. The draft IRS regulations, which will not take effect until after a public comment period and any subsequent revisions, are aimed at… – Continue reading
The tax status of (usually well-heeled) long-term foreign residents in the United Kingdom hit the headlines again recently as the opposition Labour Party pledged to abolish the non-domicile tax rules if its wins the general election on May 7. At least, that seemed to be the message when Labour leader… – Continue reading
Multinationals play such a large role in many nations’ budgets that effective control is crucial. Business Tax-base erosion cripples Africa 24 Apr 2015 00:00 Lisa Steyn Multinationals play such a large role in many nations’ budgets that effective control is crucial. Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene says practices such as incorrect… – Continue reading
Britons overseas are now subject to CGT when selling UK properties, but this straightforward advice could help minimise the impact Expats who have kept a house or flat in Britain need to act now to avoid being stung by a hefty capital gains tax (CGT) bill in the future. Since… – Continue reading
In what is becoming an increasingly used attack vehicle, the Department of Justice (DoJ) is using the “required records doctrine” to compel taxpayer’s to produce what may be incriminating evidence of ownership or control of foreign financial accounts. The DoJ process involves the issuance of a Grand Jury subpoena for… – Continue reading
Sofia. The Silistra District Court ruled on April 3, 2015, that United Bulgarian Bank (UBB) and DSK Bank should pay offshore company (and sham creditor of Bross Holding) DC & Chem Co BGN 1,305,005.24 each for the remuneration of the legal adviser appointed by the offshore company, the Capital weekly… – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Government today (April 24) launched a consultation exercise to gauge views on proposals to apply, with adaptations for Hong Kong, the prevailing international standards on the automatic exchange of financial account information in tax matters (AEOI). On the basis of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation… – Continue reading
New Delhi: The Income Tax department on Friday told the Delhi High Court that the amount offered by an “arm’s length buyer” for Nokia India’s Chennai mobile making plant, frozen over an alleged Rs 10,000 crore tax dispute, is “very little”. The submission was made by the IT department before… – Continue reading
Arris stock on Thursday rose over 22 percent—leading the Nasdaq Composite index. The gain was due to an announcement that the company would acquire Pace, a U.K.-based telecommunications company. The deal will allow Arris to change its domicile to the United Kingdom, where it will enjoy a 21 percent tax… – Continue reading
PANAMA CITY (AP) — – Panama took a major step in an effort to clean up its reputation as Latin America’s premier hub for money laundering. The nation’s legislature late Wednesday unanimously approved a proposed law that will toughen supervision of more than a dozen non-financial sectors where illicit proceeds… – Continue reading
Tax evasion overseas has been further targeted by authorities as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) implements tougher penalties for those who hide assets and income abroad. The maximum penalty for offshore evasion of income and capital gains tax has doubled to 200 per cent of the tax due, but can… – Continue reading
Chinese investors in Kenya have asked the East African Community to implement a double taxation agreement (DTA), saying the current regime has hurt their expansion plans. The investors with interests in construction, trade, service industry, manufacturing and real estate sectors said they currently face a heavy burden paying the same… – Continue reading
