Walgreen Co. is at a crossroads, but it may not be “at the corner of happy and healthy” as its advertising slogan suggests. The nation’s largest drugstore chain is considering a move that would allow it to significantly cut its tax bill and increase profits. But it’s being painted by… – Continue reading
Rich Chinese, watch out. The growing arm of U.S. tax authorities appears poised to also help China obtain information about Chinese taxpayers in the U.S., a move that could make it harder for Chinese to move large sums of money out of the country. As the WSJ’s Wei Gu reports:… – Continue reading
The Cayman Islands Banking Association (CIBA) says almost 15,000 of Cayman’s financial institution have registered with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the United States. This, ahead of the Unites States Foreign Accounts Compliance Tax Act (FACTA), that will take effect on Tuesday. CIBA says many of the 14,800 financial… – Continue reading
Minister of Finance Hany Dimian said introducing amendments to some provisions of the tax law on individual’s annual income allow inserting articles to combat tax evasion. The Minister added that this comes within the reform package adopted by his ministry to address the new budget deficit. These amendments, President Abdel… – Continue reading
Treasurer Joe Hockey has said that he will improve the structural integrity of Australia’s tax system to address international tax avoidance by multinational enterprises. In particular, the tax law will be tightened to prevent a multinational from shifting profits from Australia by claiming excess interest expense deductions. This tax avoidance technique is… – Continue reading
Here’s a question for investors in any big U.S. corporation with foreign operations: Do you know what the company’s tax bill would be if it had to bring its overseas earnings home? The answer, alas, is that they probably don’t. That’s because most companies with large foreign earnings don’t disclose… – Continue reading
Malcolm Turnbull, Australia’s second-richest parliamentarian, has invested in a ”vulture fund” based in the tax haven Cayman Islands. Disclosure of what appears to be a $1 million stake in a New York-run fund targeting distressed and bankrupt companies sparked criticism from financial transparency campaigners on Thursday. They argue the Communications… – Continue reading
GLOBAL firms’ growing ability to avoid company tax by shifting their intellectual property to low-tax countries could undermine Australians’ respect for the tax system, causing greater leakage of revenue, a senior Treasury official warned yesterday. Rob Heferen, head of revenue at the federal Treasury, also said Australia’s massive reliance on… – Continue reading
Amid a global crackdown on tax avoidance, EU competition regulators last month opened a probe into suspected tax breaks for Apple Inc. in Ireland, Starbucks Corp. in the Netherlands and Fiat Finance & Trade SA in Luxembourg. Microsoft Corp, the world’s biggest software maker, is among companies embroiled in a… – Continue reading
The Romanian police conducted on Friday morning (July 4) 76 searches in Bucharest and six counties, at dozens of clinics suspected of tax evasion and money laundering through illegal VAT refunds via ghost companies, reports local Mediafax. The damage in this case is estimated at EUR 68 million. The police… – Continue reading
Finland’s Tax Administration has lost a landmark court case on transfer pricing. The Supreme Administrative Court’s ruling means the taxman could now lose out on hundreds of millions of euros in tax. The Finnish Tax Administration could lose out on millions of euros in tax from multinationals after a decision… – Continue reading
THE BUREAU OF INTERNAL Revenue (BIR) yesterday filed seven criminal complaints against traders and companies suspected of dodging taxes due to the government with a combined liability of P389.59 million. In a press release, the BIR said DG Cold Chain, Inc., a distributor of Nestlé products, was sued for underdeclaring… – Continue reading
LUXEMBOURG/BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Commission is widening its probe into how multinationals use countries such as Luxembourg to cut their tax bill, an official with knowledge of the matter said on Friday. Last month, the Commission warned Ireland, another EU country that offers companies offshore tax status, that it… – Continue reading
The authorities are looking to entice Russian-owned offshore firms to repatriate capital. A new law will impose penalties on such companies for tax evasion, but offers 2-year amnesty for those firms which decide to relocate to Russia. The Finance Ministry has decided to grant a 2-year amnesty for offshore companies… – Continue reading
Lawyers from the United States have been advising the Island’s financial services sector how to prepare for in-depth tax investigations. They spoke at a global tax enforcement conference organised by Douglas legal firm Dougherty Quinn at the Villa Marina (3 July). Its aim is to prepare service providers, banks and… – Continue reading
Treasurer Joe Hockey will introduce legislation this month to tighten corporate taxation loopholes but says there must be a global solution to tax evasion. The government is going ahead with rule changes to lower the amount of debt a multinational firm based in Australia can have on its books. This… – Continue reading
OPINION: In February and April I wrote about a decision of the Taxation Review Authority (TRA) that found a taxpayer was still a New Zealand tax resident despite living predominantly outside New Zealand for more than 10 years. In those articles I highlighted why I thought the authority’s decision was… – Continue reading
Players say it amounts to double taxation, prompts companies to refrain from giving dividends As foreign investors once again bet on India ‘story’, stock markets in the country are on a high. They are not running out of steam as predicted by many, but gaining strength by the day. Every… – Continue reading
Deal Allows U.S. to Enforce its Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or FACTA JERUSALEM—Israel has joined 80 other countries in signing an agreement with the U.S. government on fighting offshore tax evasion, the Israeli finance ministry said Wednesday. According to the agreement, Israel’s tax authority will submit information on local… – Continue reading
Greece’s Energy minister, Yiannis Maniatis spent the first days of July in London launching the country’s most ambitious programme so far to develop its untapped hydrocarbon potential. Greece has made several fruitless attempts over the years to find big reserves of oil or natural gas as it bids to reduce… – Continue reading
The BVI Government has signed a Model 1B (non-reciprocal) Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) in relation to the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), it was announced on 30 June 2014. It was announced in March this year that negotiations had been concluded with the US and later in April the… – Continue reading
AUSTIN, Texas–(Business Wire)–TEL OFFSHORE TRUST announced that there will be no trust distribution for the second quarter of 2014 for unitholders of record on June 30, 2014. The Trust has not been able to make a distribution to unitholders for twenty-two consecutive quarters, or since January 9, 2009. Except as… – Continue reading
The Finance Ministry is pushing ahead with its program to entice Russian-owned offshore firms to repatriate capital. A new law will impose penalties on such companies for tax evasion, but offers the carrot of a 2-year amnesty for those firms which decide to relocate to Russia. The Finance Ministry has… – Continue reading
Spain signed an agreement with the Dominican Republic to avoid double taxation of individuals and companies that are subject to levies in both nations. The accord, published today in the Spanish government’s Official Bulletin, allows income tax paid in one nation to be deductible in the other nation from income… – Continue reading
Sweeping rules aimed at stopping tax evasion took effect on Tuesday, ushering in a new system that Obama administration officials say will leave tax cheats with fewer havens overseas. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, one of President Obama’s initiatives for fighting offshore tax evasion, is arriving after multiple delays,… – Continue reading
The 2010 Foreign account tax compliance act represents a significant initiative by the United States to tackle offshore tax evasion. But it has not been popular with Chinese authorities, especially the banking sector, in part because it was considered an extra burden. Why should it obligate itself to do such… – Continue reading
Isle of Man chief minister Allan Bell has labelled tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs) ‘redundant’ and defended the lack of any new double taxation agreements (DTAs) signed by the island since the one with Luxembourg in April last year. The last TIEA it signed bilaterally was with the Czech Republic… – Continue reading
BERNE: Switzerland and the European Union stepped closer on Tuesday to resolving a near-decade long dispute over corporate tax rates, a sign of cooperation between the two amid friction over immigration policy. The pair signed an agreement, announced late last month, which outlined Switzerland’s intention to propose scrapping long-cherished rules… – Continue reading
SURAT: A team of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) from Ahmedabad trapped 12 persons at Songadh check-post on Gujarat-Maharashtra border for allowing trucks to enter the state without paying commercial tax at the sales tax check-post. A team of ACB led by police inspector K T Kamaria carried out checking at Songadh… – Continue reading
A White Plains federal grand jury has indicted state Sen. Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, on a charge of lying to federal agents, and his son, Westchester County attorney Matthew Libous, on charges of tax evasion, it was announced Tuesday. Thomas Libous, who represents a district that includes Broome, Chenango, Delaware and… – Continue reading
Having resolved his tax fraud with an $11.5 million payment, local businessman John Gizzi almost landed himself in prison last month by attending a Republican Party barbecue. “You’re seen as the millionaire who walked away with a probation sentence and bought himself out of federal prison,” U.S. District Judge Frank… – Continue reading
AN information technology (IT) technician is now before the court while several others, including business operators, are said to be under investigation for allegedly defrauding Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ) of more than $1 billion in revenue. TAJ said yesterday that it will ensure all involved in the massive billion-dollar revenue… – Continue reading
The federal first-time homebuyer tax credit programs expired near the end of 2011, but there is still tax help out there depending on the state or county where you live. For example, states such as Delaware, Texas, Kentucky and many more states have local homebuyer tax credit programs that you can take advantage of. Other… – Continue reading
RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh commercial tax department, which recently unearthed the multi-crore rupee bogus billing scam, is all set to investigate the role of lawyers, who were responsible for registration of taxpayer identification number (TIN) of the phony companies involved in the racket. The department has also decided to impose heavy penalties,… – Continue reading
Sentenced in absentia, Nassef Sawiris is also fined LE50 million for refraining from paying due checks to Egypt’s tax authority Egypt’s wealthiest man, Nassef Sawiris, has been sentenced in absentia to three years in prison and fines worth LE50 million on charges of refraining from paying due checks to Egypt’s… – Continue reading
Guernsey’s Income Tax Department is cracking down on tax evasion. Islanders who haven’t declared interest they’ve received from the bank in past tax forms they’ve handed in, are being given more time to come forward with the details. If they don’t come forward and correct any discrepancies before the 31st… – Continue reading
SURAT: Central excise arrested Nirav Pramod Desai for evasion of service tax to the tune of Rs 60 lakh on Monday. He was sent to jail for 11 days by a court. Desai is proprietor of High Tech Engineers, Surat. In the period from 2009-10 to 2012-13, he had collected… – Continue reading
Elated by the success of their hard-won campaign to overhaul the country’s excise tax system, civil society groups are now shifting gear from raising taxes on so-called “sin products” to ensuring proper collection and preventing tax evasion, particularly on cigarettes. Anti-smoking advocate FCTC Alliance Philippines led by its president, Dr…. – Continue reading
A federal appeals court has upheld the tax-evasion conviction of a once-influential Chicago Democrat. Monday’s 26-page ruling from a three-judge panel is at least partly academic. Last month, former Cook County Commissioner William Beavers completed his six-month prison term for failing to declare campaign cash he used to gamble. His… – Continue reading
LONDON (Reuters) – Greece is planning to cut tax rates for oil and gas companies as it wants to attract them to help exploit its untapped offshore hydrocarbon resources, its energy minister said on Tuesday. Under the plan, oil and gas explorers will pay 25 percent tax, down from 40… – Continue reading
Australia’s taxing agency is doubling efforts to identify individuals with undisclosed foreign income and assets so they can participate in a streamlined tax program for individuals with offshore assets, the agency said Monday. The Australian Taxation Office said it is sorting through data to identify people with offshore assets so… – Continue reading
The Bank of N.T. Butterfield & Son Limited Chairman & CEO Brendan McDonagh commented on the implementation of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act [FATCA] in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. FACTA imposes due diligence, information reporting and control obligations on non-US financial institutions for certain US persons who maintain… – Continue reading
When Canada’s banks reopen for business on July 2, they will begin formally operating as informants for the United States Internal Revenue Service — the IRS. Financial institutions in Canada will be required to ask all new and existing clients opening a new account questions such as where they were… – Continue reading
Just days before the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act’s entry into force, China and the United States initialed a model one intergovernmental agreement (IGA) on June 26, 2014, to simplify the process for financial institutions in both territories to provide relevant information to support tax enforcement activities under the Act…. – Continue reading
Unsuspecting Kiwis could have their private details passed on to United States tax authorities without their knowledge after a new deal between the two nations came into effect this week. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca) is part of US authorities’ push to combat tax evasion. The long arm… – Continue reading
So much of what Switzerland has traditionally stood for is now anathema to its neighbours in Europe and other members of the club of developed nations: confidentiality underpinned by strong banking secrecy laws; and a liberal tax regime offering a tax sanctuary to the wealthy and multinational companies. To a… – Continue reading
HMRC and Morgan both say the proposals, announced last year in the Autumn Statement, will not be included in the Finance Bill 2014 The government has abandoned plans to introduce legislation that would make it tougher to set up a charity for tax-avoidance purposes because it would have had a… – Continue reading
President Obama yesterday signed into law a bill which contains little-publicised elements that are expected to impact non-US financial institutions, funds and collective investment structures. The bill’s passage on 8 March 2010 represents a success for certain US lawmakers who have been seeking to crack down on Americans who have… – Continue reading
Liechtenstein is betting its offer to automatically share tax data on banking clients will end the principality’s decades-long reputation as a tax haven, a top bank official said. Simon Tribelhorn, director of the Liechtenstein Bankers Association, said the announcement in November to lock in automatic-exchange agreements with five European nations… – Continue reading
SAN DIEGO (CNS) – A San Diego tax attorney and certified public accountant was convicted Monday in a complex tax-evasion scheme involving the creation of bank accounts in the names of dead children and fake churches. A federal jury deliberated for 30 minutes before finding Lloyd Irving Taylor, 71, guilty… – Continue reading
