On December 2, 2014, the State Administration of Taxation (SAT), China’s highest tax authority, issued the Administrative Measures for the General Anti-Avoidance Rules (Trial) (GAAR), which went into effect on February 1, 2015. Prior to this legislation, China had no specific GAAR, only a few general anti-avoidance principles in various… – Continue reading
Ireland has become the top destination for US multinational investment and the economic bond between the countries is only likely to intensify, according to a leading Wall Street economist, reports the Irish Examiner. In a report on the economic relationship between Ireland and the US, compiled for the American Chamber… – Continue reading
NEW PACTS WITH AMSTERDAM AND TOKYO BOOST TRANSFER PRICING IN HONG KONG When combined with aggressive tax planning, Hong Kong’s onshore-offshore tax regime often results in a reduced tax burden for taxpayers that operate through Hong Kong companies by pricing intra-group transactions. The Advance Pricing Arrangement agreement with the Netherlands… – Continue reading
Senator Rand Paul said that the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act violates privacy rights of US citizens as well as has a bad effect on the American economy. WASHINGTON (Sputnik) – The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) violates privacy rights of US citizens as well as has a bad… – Continue reading
Mr R S Sodhi, the Managing Director of GCMMF which owns the famed brand Amul has given his take on the Union Budget on our request. We produce the same verbatim-Editor For Cooperative Sector, the budget will have a mixed effect. Budget is good for those cooperatives who are in… – Continue reading
CANBERRA: The federal opposition has proposed a $1.9bn package targeting multinational tax avoidance, with most of the savings slated to come from changes to the amount of debt for which companies can claim deductions in Australia. Bowing to sustained government pressure to start spelling out alternative budget savings, Labor’s leader,… – Continue reading
Double Tax Avoidance Agreement to be Applied to China Funds Investors no longer have to be worried about double taxation on China-based funds. On Mar. 4, the Korea Financial Investment Association told asset management firms to hand in documents for double tax avoidance agreement applications. Four months ago, when the… – Continue reading
Cyril Ramaphosa said government would be improving tax collection and combating illicit financial flows. JOHANNESBURG – Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa on Wednesday announced that government would be improving tax collection and combating illicit financial flows. Ramaphosa was answering questions in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon. The Economic Freedom Fighters’ Floyd Shivambu… – Continue reading
Recent deals signed with Switzerland, Monaco and Liechtenstein Vatican City, March 5 – The Vatican is in talks with the Italian authorities for a deal about bank secrecy and other tax issues to help track down Italian tax evaders, Holy See sources told ANSA on Thursday. Italy recently reached deals… – Continue reading
Microsoft and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) have agreed to end their battle over documents used in transfer pricing audits of the tech company. On February 24, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and Microsoft reached an agreement which resulted in the dismissal of the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit… – Continue reading
Boris Johnson today called for a massive tax rise to stop foreign crooks using the London housing market to launder dirty money. The mayor claimed ‘international despots and criminal rings’ were using phoney companies to buy homes in the capital. More than 35,000 London properties are owned by secretive offshore… – Continue reading
The files at the foundation of the Swiss Leaks articles are based on data secreted away by Hervé Falciani, a former HSBC employee-turned-whistleblower. He turned the data over to the French government in 2008 and its tax authority launched an investigation. The French newspaper Le Monde obtained a version of… – Continue reading
India has made a major breakthrough with Swiss tax authorities, who have agreed to provide information in respect of cases independently investigated by IT department whereas first round of talks have reportedly taken place between Pakistan and Swiss government on revision of Convention for the Avoidance of Double Taxation agreement…. – Continue reading
Associated Oregon Industries Oregon’s largest business advocate The issue of “tax havens” garnered early interest from the House and Senate Revenue Committees as the Oregon Department of Revenue issued a new report outlining which additional countries should be considered “tax havens” for purposes of Oregon tax law. AOI testified in… – Continue reading
Former JP Morgan Vice President Hernán Arbizu claimed that HSBC Argentina hired JP Morgan’s employees for “advise on evasion know-how.” He incriminated himself by saying that the company he worked for helped Argentinean economic groups to evade AFIP tax bureau controls. “The banks in Argentina are to blame for the… – Continue reading
UK official data show that almost 41,000 London properties owned by foreign companies 90% are based in tax havens such as the British Virgin Islands (BVI), which do not have to disclose ownership information. Transparency International, the anti-corruption organisation, used Land Registry and Metropolitan Police data to identify 40,725 properties… – Continue reading
Billions of pounds of corruptly gained money has been laundered by criminals and foreign officials buying upmarket London properties through anonymous offshore front companies – making the city arguably the world capital of money laundering. Some 36,342 properties in London have been bought through hidden companies in offshore havens and… – Continue reading
On 9 February 2015, Insurance Europe published its comments on the discussion draft on action point 4 of the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Action Plan published by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) in December 2014. The draft aimed to address weakness in the international tax… – Continue reading
James Emejo in Abuja
 The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on Tuesday inaugurated the Anti-corruption and Transparency Monitoring Unit (ACTU) in the former to boost integrity as well as enhance transparency in its operations. Speaking at the launch in… – Continue reading
LAHORE: Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has raided Shah Alam area of Lahore and booked a person involved in money laundering. According to Federal Investigation Agency spokesman a raid was conducted by FIA team headed by Sub Inspector Sarwar Asghar at shop no 28 UK Centre Azam cloth market Lahore. FIA… – Continue reading
The Ministry of Planning and Investment has asked Nokia Vietnam to submit a report on how it has fulfilled its investment commitments so that local authorities can consider whether the firm is eligible to receive tax policy incentives. Nokia Vietnam Co. Ltd., now known as Microsoft Mobile Vietnam Co. Ltd.,… – Continue reading
Eight of the biggest U.S. technology companies added a combined $69 billion to their stockpiled offshore profits over the past year, even as some corporations in other industries felt pressure to bring cash back home. Microsoft Corp., Apple Inc., Google Inc. and five other tech firms now account for more… – Continue reading
The Minerals Council of Australia (MCA) has warned against international tax proposals, including changes to thin capitalization rules, that have been put forward by the Opposition in Australia. The Council said that any changes to the thin capitalization rules – which it said are already among the world’s most robust… – Continue reading
Abuja — NIGERIA and Republic of Seychelles relations Wednesday received a boost even as both countries have renewed commitment to further strengthen bilateral relations between them. Speaking during the presentation of his Credence Letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Aminu Wali, in Abuja, the Honourary Consul of Seychelles… – Continue reading
(Bloomberg) — Islamic finance offers a path toward greater transparency for Luxembourg after confidence in the country’s tax regime was undermined last year, according to Finance Minister Pierre Gramegna. The reliance on asset-backed deals in Shariah-compliant finance fits the approach now being considered by the Grand Duchy, he said in… – Continue reading
Anti-corruption groups and Met detectives say £180m worth of real estate is under investigation as being used in money laundering and stolen capital Hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of UK properties held in secretive offshore companies have been used to launder the proceeds of international corruption, Scotland Yard investigators… – Continue reading
Third country nationals may take up residence in Malta in terms of the Global Residence Programme Rules (GRP) Rules. Such individuals will be granted a special tax status by the Maltese tax authorities and will be subject to tax in Malta at a flat rate of 15% as described hereunder…. – Continue reading
The former UBS Group banker whose cooperation with the United States has helped expose tax evasion by thousands of Americans says the Swiss bank used similar practices elsewhere and he’s eager to help European governments. “It’s not a US issue, it’s not a French issue, it’s a global issue. UBS… – Continue reading
THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, MARCH 4: The taxman has taken a headlong plunge into an alphabetic soup to comply/align with emerging tax and jurisdictional requirements, domestic and foreign, of which is GST is only one. Advance Pricing Agreements (APAs); General Anti-Avoidance Rules (GAAR); BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Sharing); and POEM (Place… – Continue reading
Ministry of Finance Enlists EY and Convey to Develop and Deploy FATCA Model Nassau, Bahamas – The Government of the Bahamas through the Ministry of Finance announced today that it has moved to a new stage in the development and rollout of its Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) Model… – Continue reading
Bermuda and other international financial centres are “routinely attacked and demonised” in Europe, according to Bermuda’s top financial regulator, reports the Royal Gazette. Jeremy Cox, chief executive officer of the Bermuda Monetary Authority, said in opening remarks in the BMA’s Business Plan 2015, published today, that it was “time for… – Continue reading
The UAE and Luxembourg are modern, dynamic economies that have emerged as major financial centres and hubs for international banking, reports the Khaleej Times. Dubai — Luxembourg, which is home to assets under management to the tune of more than €3000 billion, seeks to boost collaboration with the UAE in… – Continue reading
The year 2015 promises to be an active one in U.S. international tax policy, as new players take the stage in the tax reform debate, the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) effort continues to develop and even begins to go into effect around the world, and corporate inversions remain… – Continue reading
AN assertion from Labour’s parliamentary candidate has been called an “unfounded personal attack” by Torridge and West Devon’s MP. Mike Sparling, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Torridge and West Devon, has spoken out about the party’s measures to tackle tax avoidance in the first months of a Labour government. He said… – Continue reading
NUMBER OF THE WEEK: $42,268. The projected average taxable income of all tax returns in 2015, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation’s Feb. 27 report on “Fairness and Tax Policy.” The report also projects that the top ten percent (in terms of income) of all taxpayers in 2015 will… – Continue reading
You’re probably figuring out how much you owe the tax man for 2014 about now. The answer for a handful of big profitable companies is zilch. There are 11 companies in the Standard & Poor’s 500, including tire maker Goodyear Tire & Rubber (GT), electronic component maker Eaton (ETN) and… – Continue reading
If you thought the Republican-controlled Congress went crazy when President Barack Obama used his authority as commander in chief to make changes to immigration enforcement, consider what might happen if such action involved taxes. The mere hint of executive tax actions already has riled up conservatives. Sen. Bernie Sanders would… – Continue reading
Fiscal competition between EU member states could lead to the disintegration of the European Union, the chairman of the European Parliamentary tax rulings committee has warned In a recent interview, French MEP Alain Lamassoure said that such an outcome would be “unacceptable”. “Fiscal competition can be healthy when it contributes… – Continue reading
Criminals, tax evaders, human traffickers and drug dealers have laundered billions of pounds worth of dirty money purchasing British properties through anonymous offshore companies, Scotland Yard investigators suspect. The Metropolitan Police say more than £180 million (US$276 million) worth of British property has been subject to criminal investigation since 2004… – Continue reading
Chancellor defends HSBC as a ‘very important bank’ but repeatedly fails to answer questions about his conversations with bank’s former boss George Osborne has defended the role of HSBC as a “very important bank” for Britain as he once again dodged questions about the extent of his discussions about tax… – Continue reading
Claims that the UK Treasury has started “gaming” to protect its own revenues from devolved Scottish tax competition should be given further consideration, a committee of MSPs has recommended. Holyrood’s Finance Committee is seeking further evidence on the Smith Commission’s call for devolution to cause “no detriment” to any part… – Continue reading
In many ways, the tide of public opinion has turned against bankers. Globally, they face more regulation and scrutiny, and many practices long considered just another day in the office are coming under fire. The latest series of scandals to hit global banks has to do with their role in… – Continue reading
That Labor’s corporate tax policy has been so vociferously attacked by the business lobby proves it is on the right track The usual suspects, the Business Council of Australia, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Minerals Council of Australia, all emerged on Monday like sprinters out of… – Continue reading
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) met last month to ask HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) about its efforts to curb tax avoidance, including how HMRC has developed its transfer pricing approach to counteract tax arrangements such as those by Google, Amazon and Starbucks. Present at the hearing on February 11,… – Continue reading
Controlled foreign company rules Federal Law No. 376-FZ of November 24, 2014 This law, which entered into force on January 1, 2015, introduces a fundamentally new institution into Russian tax legislation: rules on controlled foreign corporations (CFCs) (primarily the new chapter 3.4 and new article 309.1 of the Russian Federation… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: India will seek to apply its proposed law on black money held abroad fairly, making sure that its stringent provisions aren’t used to harass students, research scholars and professionals going overseas for short stints. “There will be suitable safeguards,” Revenue Secretary Shaktikanta Das told ET in an interview…. – Continue reading
Helping tax cheats or money launderers has never been an integral strategy of the Swiss financial centre, Swiss Bankers Association (SBA) chief executive Claude-Alain Margelisch tells swissinfo.ch as the HSBC ‘Swiss Leaks’ scandal continues. The unsavoury activities of HSBC, UBS AG (NYSE:UBS) and others, brought into the public domain by… – Continue reading
It’s early March and that means tax time for tens of millions Americans. As we become an increasingly mobile society, millions of U.S. taxpayers are wondering what forms are needed to report offshore income, assets and bank accounts. While no substitute for a good tax lawyer, CPA or enrolled agent,… – Continue reading
KUALA LUMPUR: Georgia is motivated to enhance economic cooperation with Malaysia, which has one of the most open economies in the world, its Charge d’Affaires ad interim (a.i.) to Malaysia Levan Machavariani said. “Malaysia is one of the world’s most open economies and fully integrated in the world’s trade and… – Continue reading
RAMALLAH, March 2 (Xinhua) — The Israeli withholding of Palestinian tax revenue dues would lead to full security deterioration in the Palestinian territories, a senior Palestinian official warned on Monday in an exclusive interview with Xinhua. Mohamed Mustafa, deputy prime minister of the Palestinian unity government and the minister of… – Continue reading
