A secret list of account holders reveals how rich Britons are legally exploiting tax havens, despite a UK government crackdown. The identities of thousands of wealthy offshore clients of a major Channel Isles private bank have been leaked to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists. The individuals include donors to… – Continue reading
Transparency rules aimed at clamping down on tax evasion are now in force, meaning more information will be shared with the UK tax authorities Expat savers who remain resident in the UK for tax purposes now have to provide more information when they open offshore bank accounts – to be… – Continue reading
A rights group is suing Nigeria’s president and attorney general for dropping corruption charges against the son of the former military dictator accused of helping to launder millions in stolen funds. The government last month withdrew charges against Mohammad Abacha in a deal that saw $227 million looted by Gen…. – Continue reading
‘A court challenge is being prepared’Tim Harper Other news Rants & Raves Feral cat group’s efforts far from misguided Walker found digital camera near Sydney River Morrison, MacIntyre among country’s best at nationals UPDATED: Chow finishes tied for third, McKinnon tied for fifth at men’s amateur (Rowdy) Ronda Rousey’s UFC… – 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
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
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
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
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
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
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
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
Washington – US tax evaders will find it harder to hide money abroad from Tuesday, when a law comes into effect requiring foreign banks to report their offshore accounts. Banking centers like Switzerland and Luxembourg that agreed to the US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) will have to begin… – Continue reading
Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Schemes (QROPS) are becoming increasingly popular in America, due to the loophole represented by a double-tax treaty signed with Malta – a country in the top three jurisdictions of choice since QROPS were introduced. Previously it was largely viewed as near-impossible to arrange for a viable,… – Continue reading
Are you an American resident? It’s a question that Canadian “snowbirds” will have to ask themselves before celebrating Canada Day next week, when the U.S. Foreign Tax Compliance Act – or FATCA – kicks into effect. Financial institutions around the world will answer to the U.S. Internal Revenue Agency so… – Continue reading
An oldie-but-goodie tax strategy is back in the limelight thanks to the Clintons’ much-publicized attempts to soften the blow of estate and gift taxes. The qualified personal residence trust is back. Bill and Hillary Clinton are making headlines for their use of the qualified personal residence trust or QPRT —… – Continue reading
Are you an American resident? It’s a question that Canadian “snowbirds” will have to ask themselves before celebrating Canada Day next week, when the U.S. Foreign Tax Compliance Act – or FATCA – kicks into effect. Financial institutions around the world will answer to the U.S. Internal Revenue Agency so… – Continue reading
Law360, New York (June 24, 2014, 7:02 PM ET) — The Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday updated an agreement that foreign financial institutions will use to comply with the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, days before the law rolls out on July 1.The changes in Revenue Procedure 14-38 are largely… – Continue reading
Canada’s investment and banking industries hailed a key victory Tuesday in five-year fight to dull the impact of onerous new U.S. tax rules expected to affect about a million Canadian residents and dual citizens. A newly ratified inter-governmental agreement with the United States excludes registered accounts for education, retirement, and… – Continue reading
The U.S. taxman is about to extend his reach, and not even those infamous offshore accounts may be able to escape the long arm of the law. A milestone is coming July 1 in the federal government’s long-term effort to root out tax evasion by people who keep money offshore…. – Continue reading
As the Justice Department winds down its eight-year crusade against Swiss banks selling offshore tax-dodging services to wealthy Americans, the Internal Revenue Service is offering its own parting gift: softer penalties for taxpayers who come out of the woodwork to disclose their secret accounts. Call it the advent of the… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service is offering to waive steep penalties for Americans living abroad who haven’t been paying their U.S. taxes. But there is a catch: You have to be able to show that you didn’t evade U.S. taxes on purpose. American citizens living abroad are required to… – Continue reading
As the start of FATCA looms, Americans living permanently overseas are rushing to renounce their US citizenship. The IRS’s five-year campaign to uncover undeclared, taxable assets held by US expats is having an unexpected result, as many middle-income Americans living abroad are deciding to hand in their citizenships. Those who… – Continue reading
A Spanish prosecutor recommended that Lionel Messi, the captain of Argentina’s national soccer team, be cleared of tax evasion while keeping his father an official suspect. “Messi didn’t participate in the decision making of the management and use of his earnings,” prosecutor Raquel Amado said in a presentation, a copy… – Continue reading
In a June 3 speech, IRS Commissioner John Koskinen said the agency may not have been accommodating enough to U.S. citizens who have lived abroad for years. “We have been considering whether these individuals should have an opportunity to come into compliance that doesn’t involve the type of penalties that… – Continue reading
While both major candidates for U.S. Senate in West Virginia have accepted donations from big corporations accused of using offshore tax havens, some of those corporations have been significant contributors to Rep. Shelley Moore Capito, not just this year but through her entire political career. Major American companies avoid paying… – Continue reading
A Moscow City Hall official confronted with allegations of illegal business activity has sued his accuser, whistle-blowing blogger and opposition activist Alexei Navalny. Deputy Mayor Maxim Liksutov, who oversees transportation in Moscow, announced via Facebook on Thursday that he had sued Navalny for an unspecified sum. Data made publicly available… – Continue reading
Tens of thousands of Irish people and foreign nationals who have worked and lived in the UK or US and still have investments, property or pension funds there, are particularly vulnerable to those countries’ tax regulations. Soon, one group in particular – the nearly 12,000 American citizens living in Ireland… – Continue reading
One of America’s best-known stores may soon decide that it’s no longer American. If it does, you will pay the price and feel real sick about it. Walgreens pharmacy is in every way an American company. It was founded in Chicago in 1901 and maintains its headquarters in Illinois. It… – Continue reading
GENEVA, June 4 (Reuters) – Switzerland is working hard to prevent ill-gotten assets of corrupt leaders from reaching Swiss bank coffers and an international clampdown on tax evasion could help the campaign, a senior Swiss foreign ministry official said on Wednesday. Swiss authorities are already working closely with Egyptian counterparts… – Continue reading
The United States government has actively been pursuing NRIs who have undisclosed offshore assets and income. The United States law requires citizens and residents (i.e., green card holders, H1-B visa holders, and other tax residents) to report their worldwide income and complete a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts… – Continue reading
Sir Owen Glenn’s $400million court battle has spread to the Caribbean tax haven of Nevis, where his daughter has been drawn into the bitter fight for control of his fortune. Last week, the Herald on Sunday revealed that Sir Owen was suing business associates David Miller and Peter Dickson in… – Continue reading
Increasing numbers of the wealthy global elite are saying goodbye to their home country and taking up residence elsewhere in an effort to preserve their riches. Popular destination countries like Cyprus, Spain and Australia have programs that offer a path to citizenship or permanent residency — for those who can… – Continue reading
Former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness began a 3-1/2-year jail sentence on Monday after being convicted in March of evading $40 million in taxes, German media reported on Monday. The state prosecutor in Munich declined to comment on the report and said there would be no official confirmation. Daily Bild… – Continue reading
Uncle Sam is poised to poke his pointy nose into the financial affairs of millions of Canadians who have no connection to his country, and – no matter how distasteful you find this – pushing back will only make it worse. This is the gloomy – but credible – conclusion… – Continue reading
NASSAU, Bahamas — The government has been urged to implement an investor-citizenship program that would effectively allow high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs) to trade investment in The Bahamas for citizenship rights as a means of spurring growth in the economy. Sean McWeeney QC, a partner with law firm Graham Thompson and Co., is advocating… – Continue reading
TAIPEI: Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou on Wednesday categorically denied a report that he holds a US green card and owes the US government Tw$500,000 ($16,556) in taxes, saying he would resign if the claim turned out to be true.The report, appearing in the latest issue of Taiwan’s Next Magazine, alleged… – Continue reading
The head of Canada’s investment industry association is urging the federal government not to defer legislation that will facilitate handing tax information of U.S. citizens living in Canada to authorities in the United States. Ian Russell, chief executive of the Investment Industry Association of Canada, made his pitch to the… – Continue reading
Luiz Felipe Scolari is the subject of a criminal investigation in Portugal, authorities said Wednesday, bringing an unwelcome distraction for the Brazil coach as his country prepares to host the World Cup. Officials wouldn’t say what the investigation is about. In Portugal, ongoing investigations fall under the country’s judicial secrecy… – Continue reading
Samuel and Charles Wyly used a web of offshore trusts to illegally hide their stock holdings and evade trading limits, a jury found, leaving Samuel Wyly and his brother’s estate potentially liable for as much as $550 million. The panel of eight women and four men today delivered the verdict… – Continue reading
Three members of Take That are reported to have invested in a tax avoidance scheme – so will they join our festival line-up of stars who, through schemes or leaving the country, have avoided tax? Whether by moving country or through schemes and accountants, celebrities finding ways to avoid tax… – Continue reading
According to Treasury Department statistics published in the Federal Register, 1001 United States taxpayers gave up their passports or their green cards in the first quarter of 2014, an increase of 47.4 percent over the 679 individuals that did so in the first quarter of last year. This figure was… – Continue reading
The tax evasion trial and conviction of former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness triggered a wave of self-disclosures resulting in 16,926 tax dodgers turning themselves in during the first four months of the year, a newspaper reported on Sunday. The Welt am Sonntag newspaper said it had surveyed finance authorities in Germany’s… – Continue reading
Yesterday, headlines in the majority of the press focussed on allegations that Gary Barlow and his Take That band mates had used a “shady investment scheme” in order to avoid paying taxes on their whopping incomes… The Sun reported that following a tribunal, Gary and band mates Mark Owen and… – Continue reading
Beanie Baby creator H. Ty Warner’s sentencing for tax evasion left him on probation, but the recent appeal filing seeks to change his fate. In September 2013 H. Ty Warner, creator of the mid-’90s craze of animal-shaped Beanie Babies, was charged with federal tax evasion stemming from an illegal offshore… – Continue reading
BERLIN — The high-profile tax evasion trial against former Bayern Munich president Uli Hoeness has prompted a surge in the number of Germans turning themselves in to authorities for failing to properly declare their taxes. Munich daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported Wednesday that some 13,000 sought to escape prosecution by submitting… – Continue reading
Texas businessman Sam Wyly told jurors on Wednesday he relied on the advice of his former lawyer in determining whether he needed to disclose stock holdings in offshore trusts at the center of a fraud case brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Wyly, who took the stand for… – Continue reading
Potato king Paul Rennie has told a court he is unable to explain why he sent millions of dollars to tax havens in transactions revealed by a Project Wickenby investigation. The Federal Court heard Mr Rennie had been raided by federal police, who seized documents related to his Griffith-area potato… – Continue reading
