The Department of Justice announced today that Valiant Bank AG has reached a resolution under the department’s Swiss Bank Program. “Offshore enforcement remains a top priority of the department, and banks seeking to avoid prosecution pursuant to the terms of the Swiss Bank Program continue to accept responsibility, provide a… – Continue reading
LONDON–Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS.LN) has sold a portfolio of corporate-loan commitments related to its banking business in China for 498 million pounds ($755.1 million), as part of the bank’s strategy to focus mainly on U.K. and European customers. RBS said it has reached an agreement with China… – Continue reading
It was an American statesman, Benjamin Franklin, a gentleman of reputedly many talents, who is credited with the widely spoken remark, ‘in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.’ Technically, none of us lives forever and paying taxes is a part of life. Dodging… – Continue reading
Not going to make this easy The amazing Yahoo! / Alibaba / SpinCo tax structure has suffered a blow: America’s Internal Revenue Service has refused to say whether or not it approves or disapproves of Yahoo!’s tax-avoidance chicanery. And that usually spells trouble. Back at the start of the year,… – Continue reading
Lawyer Patrick Poulin says he helped clients set up offshore corporations in the Caribbean. And that’s what he was working on when he flew to Miami from the Turks and Caicos last year to meet with two Americans who wanted him to invest $2 million from a real estate deal…. – Continue reading
Two reviews into the Ontario Provincial Police Association reveal that “tyrannical” leaders led to a complete breakdown of governance. There were harassing, expletive-filled emails, including one telling a staffer to “hurry the f— up” and another threatening to “rip off” a board member’s head. There were employees brought to tears… – Continue reading
Glencore pays virtually no tax on Australian coal operations Glencore is in trouble and took drastic action today to shore up its finances. One place they won’t find sympathy is in the court of public opinion. Last year, the Sydney Morning Herald revealed that Glencore paid virtually no tax over… – Continue reading
Labour has demanded a review of a new tax that hits smaller banks alongside global behemoths Challenger banks and building societies threatened by George Osborne’s extra bank tax have been offered a lifeline by the Labour Party, which wants to amend the charge to help out the smaller end of… – Continue reading
MUMBAI India’s tax officials, long the scourge of foreign investors, are under government pressure to avoid aggressive claims against overseas funds and companies, as the country seeks to repair an image dented by high-profile tax battles. The latest dust-up was over a largely overlooked minimum alternate tax (MAT), which had… – Continue reading
A Russian nuclear energy official pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit money laundering on Monday in connection with his role in arranging more than 2 million in corrupt payments to influence the awarding of contracts from the Russian-state owned nuclear energy company to businesses in the U.S. Mikerin “admitted that… – Continue reading
UBS Group AG and Credit Suisse Group AG accounted for about three out of four job losses in the Swiss banking industry last year, even though they employ less than half the local workforce. At the end of 2014, 104,053 people were working full-time in Switzerland for the country’s banks,… – Continue reading
The European Commission is refusing to hand over documents to MEPs investigating whether EU member states are using special tax regimes that favour large multinational corporations such as Facebook and Amazon. EU economics commissioner Pierre Moscovici wrote to the European Parliament’s special committee on tax rulings (TAXE) this week claiming… – Continue reading
The number of Swiss banks that have entered deferred prosecution agreements with the U.S. government keeps growing. The subject is tax evasion involving American account holders. Today, banks everywhere want to know if you are compliant with the IRS. Under FATCA, the entire world is lending the IRS a hand…. – Continue reading
Schroders Plc’s Swiss bank will pay a $10.4 million penalty to avoid prosecution under a U.S. program that requires participating firms in Switzerland to say how they helped American clients avoid taxes. Schroder & Co. Bank AG’s penalty is the fourth highest among 33 banks that have settled with the… – Continue reading
Investors could be hit hard if they are taxed on the capital gains earned from the sale of holdings in FPIs Today, a stable, predictable tax and regulatory regime is a sine qua non for creating a conducive climate for foreign portfolio investors (FPI). Investors wishing to invest in India… – Continue reading
Swiss banking secrecy is no longer viable as the U.S. Justice Department closes in on agreements with most of the institutions that may have helped Americans evade taxes, according to the top American diplomat in Switzerland. Negotiations with about one-third of Swiss lenders, known as Category 2 banks, to finalise… – Continue reading
Mexico’s government withheld hundreds of millions of dollars in tax refunds owed to Procter & Gamble, Unilever, and Colgate combined as it sought to coax them and other multinationals to pay more income tax locally, according to people close to the talks. After luring foreign companies with corporate tax breaks… – Continue reading
Regulator demands Bank Leumi investigate top management in wake of U.S. tax-evasion settlement. Bank Leumi should take back bonuses it paid three former senior executives after the lender was forced to pay a huge penalty to the United States for tax violations that occurred under their watch, Banks Supervisor David… – Continue reading
Monsanto has reported that it has ended its attempt to merge with Syngenta after its latest $46.2 Billion offer was rejected This ends Monsanto’s four-month pursuit of Syngenta and its hopes of a deal that would have formed a global agriculture powerhouse by combining Monsanto’s lead in global seed enterprise… – Continue reading
WINDS OF CHANGE – GEORGE OSBORNE’S FIRST BUDGET AS THE CHANCELLOR OF A CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT BROUGHT SEVERAL SIGNIFICANT ANNOUNCEMENTS. By Mark Wingate Taking a leaf from the Labour Party’s election manifesto, there will be a further tightening of the rules for non-doms. In an attempt to provide a more level… – Continue reading
The online craft website Etsy is facing new scrutiny for its recent decision to shift some of its intellectual property into a secretive Irish subsidiary. As Bloomberg reported last week, the company’s Irish subsidiary has been made into an “unlimited liability corporation,” a form that exists primarily to avoid disclosure… – Continue reading
The UK is preparing to triple the number of prosecutions of “serious and complex” tax evaders using an arsenal of proposed new powers, reports the Financial Times. A unit combining the civil and criminal investigations teams at HM Revenue & Customs will spearhead a crackdown that George Osborne, the chancellor,… – Continue reading
Vodafone India CEO Sunil Sood’s recent comments over the call drops seems to have snubbed the government officials. Sood, off lately had said that “The (telecom) minister’s and secretary’s comments don’t count as the view of the entire government”. The matter has now been raised with the company (Vodafone) says… – Continue reading
The multinational companies in Latin America demand security, efficient services, infrastructure and good educational standards, but they are not very willing to contribute themselves by paying their fair share of tax. Honduras is a case in point, and is one of the most unequal countries on the continent. The government,… – Continue reading
According to recent estimates, Estonia, which is situated halfway between Stockholm and St. Petersburg, currently has more than 350 start-up technology companies – one for every 3,700 citizens – and the government expects this number to reach 1,000 by the year 2020. This makes Estonia the number one start-up technology… – Continue reading
What to think about when moving your money. SANDTON – Since 2000 there has been a dramatic change in how much money South African residents are legally allowed to transfer overseas. Fifteen years ago, individuals were only entitled to a lifetime allowance of R750 000, and that required a tax… – Continue reading
FATCA was enacted into law by section 501(a) of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employments (HIRE) Act 2010 as a revenue offset to help pay for the continuation of unemployment benefits for workers laid off during the 2008-2010 financial crisis. In July 2008, the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations… – Continue reading
Singapore-based wealth managers, already under pressure from a global move towards tax information sharing, face a more immediate threat as Asian countries including Indonesia and India look to chase undeclared money in the low-tax city state. A global crackdown on tax evasion launched during the 2008 financial crisis has already… – Continue reading
The private equity industry has long been known for its ability to take advantage of tax rules. But international changes are set to have an impact on their businesses. After a string of multinationals such as Apple, Google and Starbucks came under fire for paying minimal tax on their British… – Continue reading
The Senate inquiry into multinational tax avoidance will table an interim report today detailing some of its findings after holding five public hearings and receiving more than 100 submissions from some of the world’s largest companies including Apple, Microsoft, BHP, Rio Tinto and Google. The final report is due to… – Continue reading
BENGALURU, AUGUST 17: To conduct research on present tax regulations, address uncertainties arising out of interpretation and ensure higher FDI, the International Tax Research and Analysis Foundation (ITRAF) was launched here on Monday. Headed by Parthasarathi Shome, an economist and former head of the panel on General Anti Avoidance Rules… – Continue reading
The U.S. and China enjoy increasingly strong connections. Yet virtually no Chinese family or business relishes dealing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). American tax laws are famously complex, and dealing with the IRS can be like quicksand. Of course, whether they like it or not, U.S. citizens and green… – Continue reading
Introduction In 1934 distinguished US jurist Judge Learned Hand famously opined that “one may so arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which will best pay the Treasury; there is not even a patriotic duty to… – Continue reading
Yet another American company has announced its intention to carry out a corporate inversion, a fancy term for buying a smaller company, completing some paper work and, for tax purposes, declaring its new headquarters are in a foreign nation. This time it’s Terex, a Connecticut-based heavy equipment and crane manufacturer,… – Continue reading
Revenue authorities need to be “vigilant” in monitoring the super-rich, according to research that called on many of them to improve their scrutiny of their richest taxpayers, reports the Financial Times. The study by the Paris-based OECD is a further sign of the pressure on tax departments to squeeze more… – Continue reading
With the UK announcing new tax rules for foreigners living in the country, the government has been careful not to damage the country’s appeal to wealthy foreigners. The “non-dom” tax status “plays an important role in allowing those from abroad to contribute to our economy”, says George Osborne, the UK’s… – Continue reading
After a landmark win for HMRC against Abbey National Treasury Services (ANTS) and Cater Allen International in June, the Revenue has yet more cause to celebrate After a first-tier tribunal decision in June secured £16m in unpaid tax from ANTS, HMRC successfully protected a further £45m late last week. The… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON, D.C. (WDAM) –This is a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice. Two tax return preparers with offices located in California, Maryland and New York were sentenced today in Los Angeles for facilitating an offshore tax fraud scheme, announced Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo of the… – Continue reading
NAIROBI: The civil society in Kenya wants Parliament to join them in the push to end tax evasion through enactment of laws that enhance compliance from international trade. This, they argue, will boost revenue collection by the State. They say tougher laws will criminalise tax avoidance and spell harsher penalties… – Continue reading
Would businesses really be willing to pay more tax if they had more certainty on what is acceptable for cross-border tax planning? According to a recent Grant Thornton International Business Report, three quarters of business leaders would in fact be ready to pony up more taxes in exchange for greater… – Continue reading
LOS ANGELES (CN) – Two tax preparers convicted of running an offshore tax-fraud scheme were given federal prison sentences on Monday, the Justice Department said. David Kalai and his son Nadav, both principals of United Revenue Service, were convicted of one count of conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service… – Continue reading
For the third year on the trot, Shell service stations generated billions of dollars and revenue but not a cent in company tax. In fact the owners of the sunny yellow servos reported tax benefits in all three years despite total sales which may be in excess of $60 billion…. – Continue reading
Prime Minister Narendra Modi needs to offer much more than just his best intentions to clean up India’s whimsical tax regime to help convince insurers. Companies from Allianz SE to American International Group Inc. are avoiding offering tax-liability coverage in India’s cross-border mergers and acquisitions market because of a relatively… – Continue reading
The Stunning Altera Case Employee stock options are an important part of compensation—both as income to the executives and as a deduction for the employer. But when stock options are used by multinational companies, the tax implications are complex and sometimes baffling. A new Tax Court case has just given… – Continue reading
Shire, the giant pharmaceutical company that relocated its head office from the UK to Ireland for tax reasons a number of years ago has surprised investors by launching a US$30bn hostile bid to acquire the American company, Baxalta, which is also involved in the manufacture of drugs to combat rare… – Continue reading
Muscat – H E Christian Winter, Switzerland’s Ambassador to Oman has said that the recently signed Double Taxation Agreement (DTA) between his country and the sultanate reflects the broader ties Switzerland seeks with GCC. “The conclusion of the agreement takes into account the growing economic and political importance of the… – Continue reading
Tax evasion by Canadian companies using offshore havens promises to become election issue Canadian corporations that use tax havens like Switzerland and the Cayman Islands to reduce the taxes they pay at home have good reason to worry. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) has been stepping up its scrutiny of… – Continue reading
HMRC has won £45 million in a second tax avoidance case against Abbey National Treasury Services, a subsidiary of Santander. The tribunal ruling means £45 million is now liable to taxation in addition to another £40 million in a second case that will be decided by this ruling. The scheme… – Continue reading
Until 2009 Switzerland had the questionable reputation of being the ideal parking spot for all kinds of money. The USA action against the UBS was the start of a series of actions to change old practices. Being the world number one in offshore money management, inevitably resulted in Switzerland being… – Continue reading
When it comes to opening its $5.7 trillion bond market to global central banks, China is rolling out the red carpet. The world’s top underwriters are struggling to get in the back door. Morgan Stanley set up a joint venture that’s helped manage 30.2 billion yuan ($4.9 billion) of note… – Continue reading
