CAPITAL flight to offshore tax havens, estimated at between US$21 trillion to US$32 trillion, poses a major challenge especially in tackling income inequality, poverty and debt issues. In total, 10 million individuals around the world hold assets offshore, with almost half of the minimum estimate of US$21 trillion to US$9.8… – Continue reading
NEW YORK, USA — On the heels of revelations earlier this year about questionable Clinton family activities in Haiti, the Wall Street Journal revealed last week that presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and her husband accepted cash from Swiss bank UBS, after she intervened to help it out with the IRS,… – Continue reading
The IRS published a list of Information Exchange agreements it has with state agencies, a copy of which is available here IRS State Information Exchange Table.pdf The disclosure of this list may help taxpayer’s and practitioner’s determine when and possibly whether to file late or amended state or municipal returns…. – Continue reading
What is the difference between 30 per cent of zero and 20 per cent of zero? Correct: precisely $5227.27 less than a Bronwyn-Bishop-taxpayer-funded helicopter trip from Melbourne to Geelong. A reduction in the corporate tax rate, as unrelentingly espoused by the business lobby in its pro-GST campaign, may be a… – Continue reading
HC order had exempted Mauritius-based Copal Group from capital gains tax liability in India The income tax department has approached the Supreme Court seeking to quash a Delhi High Court order that exempted a series of transactions by Mauritius-based Copal Group — having assets in the US and in India… – Continue reading
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority ordered a local unit of India’s largest bank to pay a HK$7.5 million ($960,000) penalty for failing to carry out proper checks to prevent money laundering and terrorism financing. In its first action since gaining new anti-money laundering powers in 2012, the HKMA said the… – Continue reading
Documents filed in the Federal Court on an unrelated matter have highlighted how little profit Jeep has made despite turning over almost $5 billion in six years. US car giant Jeep and its associated brands may not be paying enough tax in Australia, a document filed in the Federal Court… – Continue reading
Governments that offer multi-national firms sweetheart tax deals should not be allowed to benefit if the European Union orders them to claw back the aid, according to a new report by the European Parliament’s special committee on tax rulings. Instead, the proceeds should be “returned to the member states which… – Continue reading
Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and her husband former President Bill Clinton made almost $28 million last year and paid about $10 million or 36% of that in federal taxes, according to tax returns her campaign released Friday. The Clinton campaign made public eight years of returns — covering 2007… – Continue reading
An alliance of London minicab drivers wants the EU to probe Uber’s tax arrangements and grill founder Travis Kalanick personally on the issue. Business Insider has seen a copy of a letter sent by the London Private Hire Car Association (LPHCA) to the chair of the European Parliament’s tax committee,… – Continue reading
Since July 1, eleven more Swiss banks have entered deferred prosecution agreements with the U.S. government. 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. Meanwhile,… – Continue reading
Finland’s print media carries a mixed bag of headlines this Thursday, from former business bosses moving to tax-soft Portugal to studio apartment rents rising fast outside Helsinki. Neutral zone Åland is also under scrutiny, and the boat industry, at least, is doing well. Top tabloid Iltalehti splashes its front page… – Continue reading
For fans of creative tax dodging, the release of the Nike Corporation’s annual report is always an enlightening occasion. As we noted two years ago, the company quietly acknowledges having stashed billions of dollars in low-tax offshore destinations, and has inadvertently given some signals about how it might be achieving… – Continue reading
While preparing its bid for Tim Hortons Inc. last year, Burger King Worldwide Inc. initially wanted to set up the new parent company of Canada’s iconic supplier of double-doubles and maple-glazed doughnuts across the Atlantic in Britain, to avoid taxes. Miami-based Burger King’s first offer to buy the doughnut chain… – Continue reading
RBS’s private banking business has swung deeply into the red as litigation and conducts costs relating to Coutts mount. According to an interim update from the bank, the private banking business registered a loss of £50 million in the second quarter versus a £145 million profit in the corresponding period… – Continue reading
In the midst of the Special Investigative Team (SIT) on undisclosed money flagging concern on participatory notes (p-notes), the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) says it is probing a case of alleged round tripping. The term refers to transactions between companies that bolster their revenue but, in the… – Continue reading
Governments that dole out tax subsidies to big companies shouldn’t be allowed to reap multibillion-euro windfalls if the European Union orders them to claw back the aid, lawmakers probing tax loopholes said. Instead, the EU should consider changing the law so that money is shared among neighboring nations that played… – Continue reading
Tax savings drove the acquisition strategy of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. and led to Burger King’s move to Canada, according to a U.S. Senate committee report. Taxes appear to be much more important to the deals than the companies say, according to an advance copy of the report and testimony… – Continue reading
If former Fiat Chrysler Australia boss Clyde Campbell goes down over allegations he misused tens of millions dollars of company money, he might just threaten to take the entire Australian operation of the global automaker and several executives with him. Mr Campbell on Wednesday opened the door for a tax… – Continue reading
Understanding FATCA and having a comprehensive FATCA compliance program is essential for financial firms to limit non-compliance risk and meet obligations with relevant IGA’s. The US has made inroads on the Exchange of Information front and tax havens like Switzerland have declared a willingness to meet or even exceed OECD… – Continue reading
An investor, who purchased shares of Silver Wheaton Corp. (USA) (NYSE:SLW), filed a lawsuit in the U.S. against Silver Wheaton Corp. in connection with certain allegedly false and misleading statements made between March 30, 2011 and July 6, 2015. Investors who purchased a significant amount of shares of Silver Wheaton… – Continue reading
A U.S. Senate investigative subcommittee, which has used its power for more than a decade to scrutinize corporations and financial institutions for wrongdoing, is shifting its focus to keeping tabs on the government. The U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations is slated to hold its first hearing under new leadership… – Continue reading
Why stop at $221 billion? Drug companies are entering another round of dealmaking, after plowing past the global record. Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.’s $40.5 billion agreement Monday to purchase Allergan Plc’s generic-medicines business puts the mechanism in place to trigger more takeovers. For starters, the remaining Allergan company — with… – Continue reading
None of the pharmaceutical companies that are accused of profit shifting have been taken to court, the Australian Taxation Office has said in written responses to the Senate inquiry into corporate tax avoidance. Earlier in July executives from the largest global pharmaceutical companies operating in Australia were hauled before the… – Continue reading
FEW tax hikes have been timed so badly – and retracted so fast – as that imposed on mineral royalties by Zambia’s President Edward Lungu in January. After threats of divestment from major mining houses and an outcry from the country’s Chamber of Mines, the massive hike in royalty taxes… – Continue reading
Billionaire offshore tax cheat Igor Olenicoff has won a big one in his long running court battle with his former Swiss bank, UBS AG, and his former UBS banker turned whistleblower, Bradley Birkenfeld. In a ruling from the bench Thursday, Orange County Superior Court Judge Kim G. Dunning shot down… – Continue reading
Thwarted in its attempt to acquire the generic and specialty pharmaceuticals company Mylan, the Israeli–based Teva will purchase Ireland-based Allergan Generics for $40.5 billion in an acquisition that executive and investors at both companies — if not consumers — are applauding. “Teva’s deal with Allergan will create a market behemoth… – Continue reading
San Jose, California, USA – As a result of the much anticipated initial public offering of transportation game-changer Uber, more and more executives of start-up companies and their investors are interested in tax planning related to their own company’s IPO or buyout. Whenever a well-known start-up company appears that it… – Continue reading
Recent revelations that Wal-Mart, the world’s biggest corporation, is maintaining secret subsidiaries in well-known offshore tax havens are outrageous but far from surprising to small business owners. That’s because we’re used to seeing large corporations abuse the tax system in ways that hurt our businesses, communities and families. Wal-Mart’s hidden… – Continue reading
Russian businesses are preparing to issue a blitz of foreign debt, despite financial sanctions that have all but closed the country’s access to international capital markets for the last year, according to the head of one of its leading banks, reports the Financial Times. Igor Vayn, chief executive of investment… – Continue reading
EDF is now an global player in providing electricity, relying on France’s 58 nuclear reactors, as well as developing new plants, notably the controversial Hinkley Point project in Britain. The European Commission’s investigation found the energy company, which is the main electricity provider in France, benefited from tax breaks that… – Continue reading
Hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb was singled out for criticism by labor leaders who are urging the U.S. to limit investors’ ability to lower tax obligations through offshore reinsurance ventures. “When just one hedge fund takes advantage of this loophole, it means hundreds of millions of dollars are lost that… – Continue reading
The government wants the UK’s largest businesses to sign a voluntary code of conduct on tax which would see them renounce aggressive tax planning and vow to follow the spirit as well as the letter of the law. Big businesses would also be obliged to publish an annual tax strategy,… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON — Two more Swiss banks will pay penalties to the United States as part of settlements that mean they will not face criminal charges for helping Americans avoid taxes, US authorities said on Thursday. SB Saanen Bank AG will pay nearly $1.4m and Privatbank Bellerive AG will pay $57,000,… – Continue reading
The digital economy is an increasing concern for taxpayers, especially in light of impending BEPS guidance, but how it will impact different industries will vary. The fundamental principle behind the digital economy, in terms of transfer pricing, is its reliance on intangible assets and the difficulties when deciding which jurisdiction… – Continue reading
Pharmaceutical industry acquisition target Perrigo (PRGO) Wednesday said it’s buying German pharmacy company Naturwohl Pharma GMbH, the latest transaction in the sector’s surge of mergers and acquisitions. Perrigo, operated from Michigan but headquartered in Dublin following a corporate tax inversion, did not disclose terms of the deal for Naturwohl and… – Continue reading
LAUSANNE — Julius Baer Group should have cash to purchase rivals even as it prepares to settle a four-year probe into tax evasion by the US justice department. Switzerland’s third-largest wealth manager said last month it set aside $350m to fund a financial agreement over the bank’s role in helping… – Continue reading
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will seek the Union Cabinet’s approval for a model investment protection agreement that will enable India to safeguard against offshore arbitration and international litigation from global companies and also resume talks with the U.S. on a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT). One of the reasons talks between… – Continue reading
New Delhi has proposed the setting up of a bilateral high-level group to discuss with Washington its concerns on the long-pending issue of US “visa restrictions” affecting the easy movement of Indian skilled professionals, especially in the IT sector. New Delhi has proposed the setting up of a bilateral high-level… – Continue reading
Recent revelations that Walmart, the world’s biggest corporation, is maintaining secret subsidiaries in well-known offshore tax havens are outrageous but far from surprising to small business owners. That’s because we’re used to seeing large corporations abuse the tax system in ways that hurt our businesses, communities and families. Walmart’s hidden… – Continue reading
Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement or DTAA is an agreement between two countries which aims to avoid taxation of the same income in both countries. India has signed the DTAA with several countries. During assessment of an assessee to whom DTAA applies, the provisions of the Income Tax Act apply only… – Continue reading
The European Parliament’s special tax committee is seeking to punish multinationals for refusing to send representatives to a hearing in June by revoking lobbyist passes and preventing access to senior European Commission officials. AB InBev, AmazonEU, Barclays Group, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Google, HSBC Bank, Ikea, McDonalds and The Coca-Cola Company… – Continue reading
Thousands of expats living in Australia, many of them British with temporary retirement visas, want to become permanent residents but are told they are unable to do so despite funding their own lifestyle. Some have lived in Australia for over 20 years but the visa they hold was withdrawn to… – Continue reading
Lord Sieff, then head of food at Marks and Spencer, returned from 1950s Israel having inked an agreement with horticulturalist Gordon Bickel to buy his gypsophila spray carnation. More than half a century later Bickel’s firm, Carmel Agrexco, has expanded from what he calls the ‘white gold’ that was behind… – Continue reading
Swiss banks can more easily take on clients in neighbouring Germany, the Swiss government said on Thursday, after a deal that ends a lengthy standoff between the two countries over hidden offshore accounts, Reuters reports. Germany’s wealthy have traditionally been the largest client base for Swiss private banking services, but… – Continue reading
Swiss national Xavier Andre Justo will remain under Thai police custody for another 60 days, after investigators uncovered money laundering besides international corporate espionage-cum-extortion. Thai police have assured prosecutors Justo will be charged before his 85th day of detention, but sought further extension for his detention as more details are… – Continue reading
The British government said on Thursday it would step up efforts to boost competition in banking and rejected criticism that its tax changes would leave the sector worse off, Reuters reports. The government surprised banks earlier this month by announcing a new eight per cent surcharge on profits from January,… – Continue reading
The Justice Department announced Thursday that its Swiss Bank Program snared another three financial institutions in its battle against offshore tax evasion. Mercantil Bank will pay a $1.2 million fine, Banque Cantonale Neuchâteloise (BCN) will pay $1.1 million and Nidwaldner Kantonalbank will fork over $856,000 the federal government. By joining… – Continue reading
The taxes of large French companies grew 1% in 2014 globally. Concerned about their reputation, they are more cautious on tax optimization. Total, BNP Paribas and Credit Agricole, the leading trio of CAC 40 companies who have scored more tax in 2014 globally, according to calculations by PwC Law Firm… – Continue reading
Over the past few months, several foreign portfolio investors registered in India have received notices from the Indian tax authorities demanding payment of Minimum Alternate Tax in respect of transactions which took place over the course of prior assessment years. The Indian Government has indicated that it could raise several… – Continue reading
