Shell reveals it paid no UK corporate income tax in 2018
And one more case of tax avoidance by a giant. ... - Continue reading
Category: Shell
Jersey no longer a safe haven for dormant shell companies
Mumbai: For many rich Indians, 2019 has begun on an awkward note. Jersey, one of their favourite tax havens, is questioning the lack of ‘substance’ in the nameplate firms set up to either hold undisclosed money, or invest in other countries. In the last few days, service providers in Jersey… – Continue reading
India Resident Foreign Companies to Pay 40 Percent Tax: Latest POEM Guidelines
In June this year, the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) came out with final clarifications regarding the rules on Place of Effective Management (POEM). POEM is an internationally recognized test for determining the residence of a company incorporated in a foreign jurisdiction with a view to assessing its tax… – Continue reading
India’s sweeping anti money laundering agenda comes under scrutiny
Money laundering and abuse of sophisticated financial instruments have come under increasing scrutiny from regulators. However observers warn high-profile initiatives often act as a distraction from a lack of genuine political will to tackle global financial crime. For example, India’s leading stock exchange, the BSE, de-listed 222 dormant shell companies… – Continue reading
Shell’s dubious tax arrangements
Shell avoids the dividend tax via a tax haven, which would have cost the Dutch treasury – and therefore the taxpayer – at least € 7 billion… The intervention of a ‘trust’ on channel island of Jersey seems to underline the dubious character of the ‘deal’. Pressing Rutte to exchange… – Continue reading
Bitfinex denies links to Colombian drug money
Assets seized by Polish police are reportedly linked to the cryptocurrency exchange’s account in the country. Following a couple of days of rumours, Bitfinex – currently the fifth largest cryptocurrency exchange based on volume, according to Coinmarketcap – has been moved to deny it is embroiled in an investigation regarding… – Continue reading
Zuckerberg quietly revealed a hole in Facebook’s new defenses against Russia: Shell companies
When Mark Zuckerberg told US senators yesterday (April 10) that Facebook is in an “arms race” against Russian trolls seeking to manipulate its users, his comment made global headlines. One of the steps Facebook is taking to stop US elections from being manipulated by foreign actors is to put in… – Continue reading
Tax advice under scrutiny: Halsall v Champion Consulting
Introduction As the government continues to grapple with a budget deficit and strained public finances, there remains considerable pressure on HMRC to crack-down not only on tax evasion, which is illegal, but tax avoidance, which HMRC refers to as “bending the rules of the tax system to gain a tax… – Continue reading
Tax evasion: I-T deptment, SEBI begin crackdown on penny stock firms
The I-T department and SEBI are working on a two-pronged approach that involves action against tax evaders and tightening of norms for scrips prone to price manipulation Tightening the noose around companies invloved in tax evasion, the Income Tax department and market regulator SEBI have launched a crackdown on penny… – Continue reading
Jahangir Tareen’s ‘Trust Deed’ signed and executed in Switzerland
ISLAMABAD/LONDON: The thirty-eight-page trust deed of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) leader Jahangir Khan Tareen’s offshore trust was signed and formalised in Geneva, Switzerland, and facilitated by HSBC Guyerzeller Trust Company Geneva – raising questions about Swiss bank accounts. During the hearing before Pakistan’s Supreme Court, Tareen was asked no questions about… – Continue reading
Goa emerging as a haven of tax evasion
The investigation wing of the income-tax department in Goa probing money laundering and black money has uncovered more than Rs 1,000 crore worth of tax evasion in recent months. The tax evasion cases came to light between April and October 2017 following the post-demonetisation crackdown on undisclosed income, a senior… – Continue reading
Shell transactions under vigil: Serial Income Tax raids on three businessmen
HYDERABAD: Income Tax sleuths on Wednesday conducted simultaneous searches in Hyderabad and Vijayawada on three top businessmen cum-realtors, who were allegedly evading tax, particularly in real estate transactions and unearthed documents pertaining to unaccounted investments running into hundreds of crores of rupees. These are the first big raids after shell… – Continue reading
New regulation forces Indonesians to sell their foreign shell companies
On the back of the Indonesian government’s issuance of its new controlled foreign company (CFC) regulation on July 26, many Indonesians are likely to sell their foreign shell companies because of the enforcement of double tax payments. The CFC regulation authorizes the government to charge a dividend tax on foreign… – Continue reading
Data pact targets shell firms
New Delhi, Sept. 14: A formal data sharing mechanism between the tax authorities and the corporate affairs ministry is now in place to crack down on shell companies. The income tax department and the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA) have signed a pact to regularly share data, including PAN and… – Continue reading
India cracks down on directors of shell companies
NEW DELHI (Reuters) – Directors of Indian shell companies that have not filed tax returns for at least three years have been disqualified from re-appointment or from being appointed to similar roles elsewhere, India’s finance ministry said on Wednesday. The move, part of a crackdown on illegal transactions and tax… – Continue reading
China should curb tax dodging posing as investment
According to China Merchants Bank and Bain & Company, a global business consulting firm, nearly 60 percent of China’s high net worth individuals have assets overseas in 2017, while in 2011 this ratio was only 20 percent. In 2015 and 2016, China’s annual financial assets exported overseas amounted to more… – Continue reading
Exchange of information about multinational firms will be easier
Slovakia is the first V4 country to sign the agreement on country-by-country reporting. Slovakia’s Financial Administration has obtained easier access to the information of US multinational companies. The representatives of Slovakia and the US signed a bilateral agreement on country-by-country (CbC) reporting on June 21, the TASR newswire reported. The… – Continue reading
India’s Narendra Modi cancels registration of 100,000 companies
India has cancelled the registration of more than 100,000 companies which were “in violation of laws”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, in the latest effort by the government against “black money” and tax evasion. The decision was taken based on an extensive data analysis conducted by the government after Mr… – Continue reading
Ending secret identities is the ‘new frontier’ in fighting tax evasion: OECD’s head of tax Pascal Saint-Amans
Revealing the secret identifies behind shell companies and opaque trusts is the “new frontier” in fighting tax evasion, says the OECD’s head of tax Pascal Saint-Amans. In an exclusive interview with Fairfax Media, Mr Saint-Amans also spoke about the Turnbull government’s tougher domestic laws aimed at cracking down on multinational… – Continue reading
CBI unearths 393 shell companies used to divert Rs 2900 crore
NEW DELHI: A complex web of 393 shell companies used for allegedly diverting funds unscrupulously to the tune of Rs 2900 crore has been unearthed by the CBI during its probe into such cases over the last three years. CBI sources said the shell companies were allegedly being used by… – Continue reading
China’s banking regulator urges lenders to up their risk management measures
Banks are urged to stop lending to zombie companies and shell companies in CBRC guidelines highlighting 10 types of specific risk China’s banking regulator has urged commercial lenders to be more vigilant when dishing out loans after a spate of heavily indebted companies found themselves in hot water in the… – Continue reading
Tax evasion of more than Rs 1.37 lakh crore detected in last three years
The Revenue Department on Friday said it has detected evasion of more than Rs 1.37 lakh crore in both direct and indirect taxes and identified over 1,000 shell companies which indulged in bogus transactions worth Rs 13,300 crore in the last three financial years. Warning tax evaders, it said the… – Continue reading
Time to tackle the shell companies
Hyderabad: Shell companies are becoming a common phenomenon globally and even in India. These companies are posing several challenges to governments and regulators for various reasons had been probing their involvement in large scale money laundering and tax avoidance cases. A shell company is a non-trading organisation that does not… – Continue reading
Shell companies under our radar, will take action against such firms: CBDT chief Sushil Chandra
Each and every bank account is under our scanner to find out tax evasion, said CBDT chairman Sushil Chandra. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is examining several dubious companies and they would be removed from the website of Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) if found to be shell… – Continue reading
Income-tax dept issues norms to determine residency status of companies
New guidelines aim to check tax evasion, ensure foreign firms are not taxed on their global income. New Delhi: The income-tax (I-T) department on Tuesday issued the final guidelines for place of effective management (PoEM) rules that seek to determine the residency status of a firm for calculating its tax liability. The… – Continue reading
‘Tax haven’ Canada being used by offshore cheats, Panama Papers show
Country’s reputation being exploited for ‘snow washing’ global money trails, experts warn Far from the palm-fringed beaches of the usual offshore tax havens, Canada has quietly become a go-to destination for international tax cheats eager to exploit the country’s twin benefits of a sterling reputation and rules that allow private… – Continue reading
Register of people with significant control will not affect Crown territories
The government has quashed calls to look at extending the requirement to publish a public register of people with significant control to companies incorporated in the Crown dependencies and overseas territories, as part of a bid to increase tax transparency, saying new rules on the automatic exchange of information are… – Continue reading
Bermuda is world’s worst corporate tax haven, says Oxfam
Four UK territories in list ‘undermine Britain’s efforts to be responsible member of the international community’ Bermuda is the world’s worst corporate tax haven, according to a list by Oxfam, which includes three other UK territories among those it names and shames. The charity’s list of the “world’s worst” 15… – Continue reading
UK Unveils Tough New Tax Avoidance Penalties
New laws to punish those who help set up offshore schemes to enable tax evasion were revealed Monday, as the U.K. government cranks up the heat on advisers and planners. Britain’s government has widened the Finance Bill 2017 to include further measures that will tackle tax evasion, avoidance and aggressive… – Continue reading
Cayman may find itself on EU’s ‘non-cooperative jurisdictions’ list
Cayman could find itself on a new EU list of “non-cooperative jurisdictions” in tax matters after the European Council of finance ministers published the criteria for including third countries in the blacklist last week. The provisions emphasize that a jurisdiction “should not facilitate offshore structures or arrangements aimed at attracting… – Continue reading
EU Cautioned on Plans to Regulate Tax Advisers
European Union plans to regulate tax advisers in an effort to clamp down on aggressive tax planning and tax avoidance could prove excessive, ineffective and trigger unfair competition, accountants and lawyers warn. The caution comes after EU finance ministers moved Oct. 11 to authorize the European Commission to draw up… – Continue reading
STUDY: 73% OF FORTUNE 500 COMPANIES USED TAX HAVENS IN 2015
In 2015, more than 73 percent of Fortune 500 companies maintained subsidiaries in offshore tax havens, according to “Offshore Shell Games,” released today by the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, Citizens for Tax Justice and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy. Collectively, multinationals reported booking $2.5 trillion offshore, with just… – Continue reading
Panama Papers: India asks other countries for details on tax evaders, accounts
India has made as many as 250 references to other countries asking for details about tax evaders and bank accounts related to the Panama cases, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said. This is significant as at least 500 Indians are reportedly said to have held offshore accounts in tax havens,… – Continue reading
Disingenuous Statements About Tax From Apple’s Tim Cook
Apple is a major part of why the United States is the world’s leading innovator on new technologies, particularly those involving telecommunications and computers. The company has over 66,000 domestic employees, and a large percentage of its customers are here — at least 40 percent, according to its latest annual… – Continue reading
«Delaware» Crackdown: All Bark and No Bite?
The U.S. has used judicial might to successfully pursue offshore tax cheats all over the world. A little-noticed new rule introduced by Barack Obama’s administration gets tough on U.S. states such as Delaware and Nevada, which are notorious for murky shelters often used for illicit purposes. But there is a… – Continue reading
Jakarta Plans Tax Haven Near Singapore
Indonesia has defined two islands near Singapore as its own tax havens to prevent taxpayers from keeping their assets offshore – in Singapore, for example. The two islands identified by Indonesia are Bintan and Rempang, according to a report on Monday in the Singaporean daily «Straits Times» and a story… – Continue reading
CRA convicts a fraction of offshore tax evaders: Exclusive
As worldwide pressure grows to fight offshore tax evasion, new statistics obtained by the Star show the Canadian government has convicted only 49 people and levied just $13.4 million in fines for what it calls offshore activity since 2010. These numbers are far lower than in comparable countries and show… – Continue reading
Oxfam in call for crackdown to combat money launderers using Scottish shell firms
OXFAM has called for action to close a legal loophole that has seen a booming number of Scottish shell firms used for tax dodging and money laundering. The global charity warned that the country was becoming one of the world’s “secret tax havens where the privileged minority hide billions from… – Continue reading
India Revamps Its Treaty Provisions With Mauritius
The Government seeks to curb revenue loss, prevent double non-taxation, streamline the flow of investment, and stimulate the flow of exchange of information between India and Mauritius The India – Mauritius double taxation treaty was under negotiation for the last 4 years. The Treaty has now been amended by way… – Continue reading
Practically Untouchable: Going Offshore Still Has Benefits
THE RECENT LEAK of millions of documents from Panamanian law firm Mossack Fonseca served as a reminder of what wealthy Americans should already know: Hiding assets offshore can be risky and hiding them from Uncle Sam is a crime. Yet law-abiding folks continue to stash money offshore for reasons that… – Continue reading
EU agrees anti-tax evasion deal
Brussels (AFP) – The European Union agreed a raft of anti-tax evasion measures Tuesday that would make it harder for multinationals to shift profits to countries with lower taxes, but critics said they were too watered down. The proposals were agreed on provisionally by the EU’s 28 finance ministers on… – Continue reading
Panama Papers Point to Tax Evasion
It was quite a revelation when leaked documents, made public in April, showed that Mossack Fonseca, a Panamanian law firm, had helped 14,000 clients worldwide create offshore accounts to conceal assets or dodge taxes. On Monday, a report by The Times found that there were at least 2,400 clients based… – Continue reading
Panama to now comply with OECD standards for exchanging tax information
Panama has officially signed on to comply with OECD standards on exchanging tax information, a move that comes more than a month after the Panama Papers data leak. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) officials say they have long tried to get Panama to agree to their common… – Continue reading
India-Mauritius Tax Treaty Renegotiated
On 10 May 2016, the Government of India issued a press release1 stating that India and Mauritius have signed a protocol (New Protocol) amending the double tax avoidance treaty between the two countries (the Treaty). Based on the press release and the New Protocol, following are the key changes to… – Continue reading
Investors making money must pay taxes, no fear of FDI fall: Arun Jaitley
India had in August 1982 signed the treaty with Mauritius to eliminate double taxation of income and capital gains to encourage mutual trade and investment. Investors must pay taxes on money they earn in India and the domestic economy is now strong enough to depend on any “tax-incentivised route” to… – Continue reading
GAAR to override bilateral tax treaty provisions: Official
New Delhi, May 11 (IANS) Following the revision of India’s bilateral tax treaty with Mauritius, the government on Wednesday said the General Anti-Avoidance Rule (GAAR ) provisions, with effect from April next year, will override the Double TaxationAvoidance Agreement (DTAA) in case of abuse. “GAAR being anti-abuse provision can prevail… – Continue reading
US should be added to tax haven blacklist, says EU report
Tensions between the EU and the US over tax follow investigations into Apple in Ireland The US should be added to a new European blacklist of tax havens being drawn up by the European Commission, according to a report commissioned by the Green group in the European Parliament. The report,… – Continue reading
Who gains, who loses in new tax pact with Mauritius? Will FIIs run away?
India and Mauritius have signed a protocol amending the double tax avoidance arrangement between the two countries. The protocol is the outcome of an extensive and long-drawn-out negotiation process that has been going for more than a year and a half. While the text of the protocol is yet to… – Continue reading
Anti-tax evasion measures approved by EU finance ministers
Ministers agree to propose joint list of tax havens and approve plan to automatically exchange data on shell company owners EU finance ministers have approved a series of measures to tackle tax-evading methods that were exposed by the Panama Papers. Speaking on the second day of talks in Amsterdam, Jeroen… – Continue reading
EU tells companies to reveal how much tax they pay by country in latest avoidance crackdown
Businesses will be forced to declare how much they make in each European country and in certain tax havens as part of an attempt to curb schemes that shift profits out of the reach of tax collectors. The plan to introduce country-by-country reporting in Europe is the latest global curb… – Continue reading
