Category: High Networth Individuals

UK expats face ‘double whammy’ over tax affairs

The government is ready to restrict British expatriates’ tax benefits in a bid to get agreement with the European Union over renegotiating the UK’s terms of membership, according to press reports. The Guardian has reported that expats could be banned from claiming tax credits for up to four years as… – Continue reading

China to start implementing RRR for offshore banks’ domestic deposits

China’s central bank said on Monday it will start implementing a reserve requirement ratio (RRR) on offshore banks’ domestic deposits, in what appears to be its latest attempt to stem speculation in the yuan and manage money flowing in and out of the country. Confusion over China’s foreign exchange policy… – Continue reading

Investor group buys Barclays’ offshore trust business

Barclays (BARC.L) has sold its offshore trust business to an independent investor group but will keep a 20 percent stake in the new company, renamed as ZEDRA, for at least three years. The sale marks another step in the British bank’s efforts to simplify its wealth and investment management activities…. – Continue reading

European Parliament votes in favour of an EU fair tax label

The European Parliament has voted in favour of a “Fair Tax Payer” label across the EU to tackle tax avoidance. The proposal was passed on 16 December by 500 votes to 122, and drew cross-party support from members of the green, socialist, liberal, labour and conservative blocks. The plan came… – Continue reading

Anger at plans to curb UK’s business-friendly tax regime

Plans to restrict the generous tax treatment of interest costs — a key aspect of Britain’s business-friendly taxation regime — are unnecessary and potentially damaging, companies have told the Treasury. Professional bodies and business groups are voicing fears about the restrictions that are set to be introduced as part of… – Continue reading

Companies anticipate tax authorities to turn aggressive: Survey

NEW DELHI: Indian businesses are anticipating a “more aggressive” stance by tax authorities as their tax arrangements come under greater scrutiny, says a survey. The findings are part of leading consultancy Deloitte India’s BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) survey titled ‘Anticipating BEPS India impact’. Indian businesses are anticipating a… – Continue reading

A third of foreign banks in Australia had no taxable income

Nearly a third of the 26 large foreign banks operating in Australia, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, Lloyds and BNP Paribas, had no taxable income in 2014, data released by the Australian Taxation Office shows. Eight banks with total revenue of $9 billion had no taxable income, while Credit Suisse, which… – Continue reading

On tax avoidance

The only thing worse than paying taxes is the idea that other people avoid paying their fair share of them. On the subject of tax avoidance by other people, I can think of at least three principal feelings. As the kids say, I feel all the feelings. Outright tax fraud… – Continue reading

Belgium asked to recover $760 million in illegal tax breaks

The beneficiaries included Anheuser-Busch InBev NV, BP Plc, BASF SE, Proximus SA, Atlas Copco AB, Wabco Holdings, and Celio France SAS. proximus SE This estimate does not include any benefits associated with a successful appeal of the decision, nor does it reflect guidance we expect to receive from the Belgian… – Continue reading

IT companies relocating as Pakistan gets tax-hungry

LAHORE: Nearly 40% of Pakistan’s companies that provided IT services have moved their business to the United Arab Emirates, largely due to the 8% additional tax on revenues levied by the government in 2015-16, said Sajjad Syed, chief executive officer of Excellence Delivered (ExD) Private Limited . ExD outsources non-core… – Continue reading

Start-up investment in India to get capital gains tax exemption

PM Narendra Modi also announces a Rs.10,000 crore fund to provide support to innovation driven enterprises New Delhi:In an effort to give a fillip to the start-up ecosystem in the country, the government on Saturday announced its intention to exempt capital gains tax on investments in start-ups and a Rs.10,000… – Continue reading

Apple Inc. (AAPL) May Face $8 Billion Tax Bill in European Probe

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), the world’s company by market capitalization, may face more than $8 billion tax bill in connection with the investigation of the European Commission regarding its tax policies, according to Bloomberg. Matt Larson, a litigation analyst Bloomberg Intelligence analyzed the European Commission’s investigation against Apple, which was accused… – Continue reading

Expat eyes drift offshore

Offshore Financial Centres (OFCs) are jurisdictions, usually self-governing, which because of their low tax regimes, have specialized in providing commercial services to corporations and individuals, whether or not they are normally resident in that jurisdiction. The better-known offshore financial centres are small and sparsely populated countries or islands, and are… – Continue reading

Saudi Arabia third in global ranking for tax payment ease

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia has maintained third in the global ranking for ease of tax payment, according to the latest release of the Paying Taxes report by the World Bank and PwC. With the least demanding tax framework, well below the world average, the Kingdom has a total tax rate of… – Continue reading

Chinese bank becomes first to open on Swiss soil

Switzerland took an important step toward becoming a renminbi trading hub on Thursday with its inauguration of a new branch of the China Construction Bank, (CCB), one of the biggest financial institutions in the world. The Zurich branch of the CCB has been authorised by China’s central bank to operate… – Continue reading

Negative interest rates make it expensive to hold large cash reserves, writes Izabella Kaminska

I know Switzerland is renowned as a tax haven but this is surely a step too far? To be fair, they are not actually cutting tax levels. They are just discouraging early payment of taxes. Why would anyone pay the tax authorities early if they didn’t have to? The canton… – Continue reading

Brazil’s Rousseff signs amnesty to undeclared offshore assets

BRASILIA, Jan 14 (Reuters) – Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Thursday signed a bill that gives amnesty to holders of undeclared offshore assets in exchange for a fine, part of efforts to cut a swelling budget gap and revive investment in the recession-hit economy. The law offers amnesty from prosecution… – Continue reading

Lake commissioner complains of double taxes

CROWN POINT — Lake County officials are debating whether they have accidentally double taxed Cedar Lake and Schererville residents. Lake County Commissioner Gerry Scheub, D-Crown Point, argues this week a mistake by the County Council in funding the county’s E-911 public safety dispatching service has resulted in Cedar Lake residents… – Continue reading

Taxi King found to have evaded lenders via offshore trusts

Things just keep getting worse for Gene the Taxi King. A federal judge ruled Tuesday that New York taxi mogul Evgeny “Gene” Freidman illegally transferred more than $60 million in real estate assets into offshore trusts as a means of evading ex-lender Citibank. The ruling, which cited “numerous and glaring”… – Continue reading

STATEMENT FROM HE THE GOVERNOR on legislation recently passed by The Anguilla House of Assembly

Following a number of questions and concerns raised with the Governor’s Office in recent days, I thought it would be helpful to clarify the situation with respect to seven pieces of legislation passed by the House of Assembly during December 2015. Four of these Acts, which give the Government of… – Continue reading

Bloomberg BNA Provides Insights into 2016 U.S and International Tax Policy

ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 14, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — Bloomberg BNA today announced the publication of the Daily Tax Report’s 2016 Outlook on tax and accounting policy. Dozens of policy experts, along with current and former members of Congress, congressional staffers and federal agency officials provided insights on the year ahead regarding… – Continue reading

Airbnb landlords accused of tax evasion

Professional landlords are using Airbnb and other home-sharing websites to avoid taxes and evade planning laws, according to Ufi Ibrahim, chief executive of the British Hospitality Association (BHA) Ibrahim provided evidence to the Business Innovation and Skills committee this week, where he argued that home-sharing websites like Airbnb are made… – Continue reading

Fight against tax evasion in Kosovo

In cooperation with the Tax Administration, government of Kosovo has continued its action for the formalization of businesses and fight against tax evasion. The citizens will continue to earn money by collecting tax receipts even in 2016. For purchases from 250 to 500 euros, they are refunded 10 euros from… – Continue reading

Tax experts: HMRC clampdown could be unfair to elderly expats

Tough new measures targeting those who have not played by the tax rules have been criticised by a leading professional body concerned with taxation Anyone owing UK tax on their overseas income is set to face punitive penalties of at least 30pc of tax due, and potentially criminal prosecution, under… – Continue reading

McDonald’s subject to EC competition complaint

McDonald’s faces another European regulatory headache after it was the subject of a competition complaint in Brussels. Three Italian consumer groups backed by a coalition of trade unions from across the continent, including the UK’s Bakers Food and Allied Workers Union, allege that the fast-food giant abuses its dominant market… – Continue reading

2016 CHALLENGES FOR COMPANIES OPERATING IN JERSEY

Last year Jersey cemented its position as a leading centre for companies looking to list – as reflected in the rise in volume and value of Jersey companies listed on exchanges around the world. Here are some challenges that lie ahead in this jurisdiction over the next 12 months. In… – Continue reading

Ireland – the tax haven

‘We’re not a tax haven, we have never been involved in any kind of tax malpractice’ – Michael Noonan, Irish Minister for Finance 5th October 2015 ‘Nobody is using Ireland as a tax haven’ – Minister for Agriculture, Simon Conveney, The UN’s Philip Aston says, ‘When lists of tax havens… – Continue reading

Budget 2016: Modi government likely to revamp direct taxes to improve ease of doing business

NEW DELHI:The Narendra Modi government, which has pledged a predictable and non-adversarial tax regime, is likely to begin a sweeping revamp of direct taxes in the Budget that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley will present next month. Simplification and rationalisation will be the two themes driving the overhaul, which is aimed… – Continue reading

Survey: FATCA negatively affects Americans living overseas

Americans living abroad feel that the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act negatively impacts their professional lives and that compliance with the related tax reporting requirements is overly burdensome, a survey by Americans Abroad Global Foundation and the University of Nevada has found. But most survey respondents believe the U.S. government… – Continue reading

CYPRUS TAX UPDATE

On 10 December 2015 the remaining changes to the income tax and the capital gains tax laws aiming to improve the tax system of Cyprus and make it more attractive to both the local and international business community were voted. The changes came into effect with their publication in the… – Continue reading

IRS: Sam Wyly considered renouncing U.S. citizenship

A lawyer for the Internal Revenue Service on Monday disclosed a series of emails and legal memos from 2004 apparently showing that Dallas entrepreneur Sam Wyly was interested in knowing the legal and financial ramifications if he renounced his U.S. citizenship. The IRS also introduced testimony from previous court proceedings… – Continue reading

IRS goes after Royce Gracie claiming tax underpayment, fraud totaling $1.15 million

Royce Gracie isn’t scheduled to fight at Bellator 149 until February, but he’s in a serious fight with the IRS over his taxes, including whether he rightfully claimed a tax credit for the poor. Remember the scrawny guy in a gi who smoked the field at UFC 1 and had… – Continue reading

Banking on bringing in wealthy investors

The financial regulator has launched a public consultation on plans to create alternative models for banking. Proposals being considered by the Financial Services Authority aim to address the decline in traditional offshore banking. Two additional banking licences are mooted – one for banks serving high net-worth individuals and corporate clients… – Continue reading

United States: Global Tax Enforcement in 2016: What You Need To Know

The investigation and prosecution of tax evasion has, in the last decade, grown from a specialized subcategory of law enforcement into a first-tier policy concern for the global community. Starting with the U.S. government’s crackdown on Swiss bank UBS in 2008, there has been a steady drumbeat of news about… – Continue reading

British Virgin Islands: 2016 Updates To BVI Business Companies Act

In its continuing effort to keep the BVI Business Companies Act (the “Act”) at the forefront of offshore company law legislation, the BVI Government, in direct consultation with the private sector, has introduced several updates to the Act as follows: To allow weighted voting by directors whereby certain directors may… – Continue reading

Texas tycoon Wyly faces $2 billion tax trial over offshore trusts

(Reuters) – Texas tycoon Sam Wyly is set to face off against the Internal Revenue Service at trial on Wednesday over more than $2 billion the agency says he owes for using offshore trusts to engage in one of the largest tax frauds in U.S. history. The trial in federal… – Continue reading

How Microsoft moves profits offshore to cut tax bill

SEATTLE — When someone in Seattle buys a copy of Office at a Microsoft Store, that cash doesn’t take the short route to the company’s area headquarters. Instead, after accounting for state taxes, the profit goes to a Microsoft sales subsidiary in Nevada. From there, much of that money begins… – Continue reading

Hervé Falciani — The SwissLeaks Whistleblower

Most people with undisclosed Swiss bank accounts have, by definition, something to hide. Secrets, however, sometimes don’t remain secret, especially when they involve someone else’s money. While disclosing the names and financial details of Swiss bank account holders has recently come into vogue, a whistleblower may have just as murky… – Continue reading

How Connery’s wife could be jailed over a £5.5m fraud: A luxury villa in the sun, a ruthless Mafioso mayor – and a plot as colourful as any Bond film. DAVID JONES investigates

While the latest Bond movie, Spectre, brings glowing praise for Daniel Craig, life is running rather less smoothly for the prototype 007. In truth, Sir Sean Connery’s personal story has never remotely resembled that of the unruffled agent he so consummately portrayed. Down the years, he has faced a plethora… – Continue reading

Financial Information Sharing for 2016

Where it happens does not matter. Portugal or overseas, whether its rental income, bank interest, bond yields, dividends, or even gains from the sale of a property, such personal financial information will be automatically shared from 1st January 2016. For many who have undergone financial planning, or have been involved… – Continue reading

Swiss bank hid assets for Jews, then tax evaders

Dreyfus Sons & Co. has operated for two centuries as a private Swiss bank, catering to Jewish clients who wanted to hide assets from the Nazis during the 1930s and World War II. More recently, it helped U.S. clients hide assets from the Internal Revenue Service by concealing their true… – Continue reading