Category: Berlin

German economics minister sees SMEs as “secret weapon”: report

German Minister for Economic Affairs and Energy Peter Altmaier had developed a strategy for the “Mittelstand” or small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the newspaper Handelsblatt reported on Wednesday. “In the eyes of foreigners, SMEs are Germany’s secret weapon and, unlike the Dax 30 companies, SMEs are proving to be extremely… – Continue reading

German gov’ts to have less-than-expected tax revenue in coming years

BERLIN, May 9 (Xinhua) — According to current tax estimates, the German federal, state and local governments will have 124.3 billion euros (139.5 billion U.S. dollars) less to spend by 2023 than previously predicted, the Federal Ministry of Finance announced on Thursday. According to the German finance ministry, expectations about… – Continue reading

Britain may become tax haven after hard Brexit, Hammond says

British chancellor Philip Hammond has infuriated German politicians for implying a “hard” Brexit would see London adopt a new role as a tax haven before the gates of the EU. Driving speculation ahead of Tuesday’s Brexit address by prime minister Teresa May, Mr Hammond said he preferred seeing Britain remain… – Continue reading

Hammond threatens EU with aggressive tax changes after Brexit

Chancellor tells German newspaper if Britain were closed off from markets it may abandon European-style social model The chancellor, Philip Hammond, has suggested Britain could transform its economic model into that of a corporate tax haven if the EU fails to provide it with an agreement on market access after… – Continue reading

Germany and Panama move closer towards information-sharing agreement

Talks on a data exchange agreement have progressed following Panama President Varela’s state visit to Berlin. Panama is looking to clean up its reputation in the aftermath of the “Panama Papers” leak earlier this year. Germany and Panama moved a step closer towards signing an information-sharing agreement, German Chancellor Angela… – Continue reading

Ashgabat, Berlin sign tax agreement

Turkmenistan and Germany signed an agreement on avoidance of double taxation with respect to income and property taxes in Berlin, the Turkmen Dovlet Habarlary(TDH) state news agency reported. According to the message, the signing ceremony took place as part of the two-day working visit of Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov to… – Continue reading

EU threatens sanctions on money laundering, tax evasion havens

BERLIN – A European Union official threatened Thursday to sanction Panama and other nations if they don’t cooperate fully to fight money laundering and tax evasion, after a leak of data showed the small country remains a key destination for people wanting to hide money. The 11.5 million documents from… – Continue reading

US, Like Panama, Is ‘Playground for the World’s Dirty Money’

Panama and the U.S. have at least one thing in common: Neither has agreed to new international standards to make it harder for tax evaders and money launderers to hide their money. Over the past several years, amid increased scrutiny by journalists, regulators and law enforcers, the global tax-haven landscape… – Continue reading

Varner: Taxes and international trade

A while back in Germany, I was driving on the straight as an arrow B-1. That is Bundesstrasse, the equivalent of a U.S. highway, a notch below the Autobahn. Roads tend to curve around farmers’ fields, having been there first. The B-1 from Cologne on the Rhine toward Berlin was… – Continue reading

France: French Tax Update – Amending Finance Bill For 2015 And Noteworthy Q4 Case Law

The present French Tax Update contains (i) an overview of the main provisions proposed by the draft amending finance bill for 2015 (loi de finances rectificative pour 2015, 2015 Draft Amending Finance Bill), (ii) an update of the parliamentary amendments adopted in respect of the draft finance bill for 2016… – Continue reading

After Outcry, Ireland Adjusts Its Corporate Tax Draw

CORK, Ireland — As lord mayor of this quiet seaside city in southern Ireland, Chris O’Leary seems to have a situation most other local politicians can only dream about. Blue-chip international companies like Apple, Dell and IBM have all set up shop in and around this city, filling newly built… – Continue reading

Transparency International: G20 failing on corruption

Corporate corruption is still prevalent in rich Group of 20 nations despite their pledges last year to close loopholes, according to Transparency International. It has listed Brazil, China and the US among the offenders. Transparency International on Thursday labeled this weekend’s G20 summit in Turkey as a mere “photo opportunity,”… – Continue reading

Poor Oversight Fuels Corruption in Sports Federations – Transparency Int’l

The opaque governance structure of sports federations makes them less accessible to independent oversight and therefore more prone to corruption, the deputy managing director at Transparency International, a global anti-corruption movement, told Sputnik. ST. PETERSBURG (Sputnik) – Earlier this year, separate investigations by US and Swiss prosecutors uncovered deep-rooted corruption… – Continue reading

Schroder Real Estate taps into hunger for offshore investment

Plans to list its European REIT on the JSE. Feeding South Africans’ seeming insatiable desire for rand-hedge stocks, Schroder Real Estate is planning to launch a European Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), which will have a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange with a secondary listing on the Johannesburg… – Continue reading

Illicit flows worry ZRA

Zambia Revenue Authority-ZRA- Commissioner General Berlin Msiska says Africa needs to work together to address illegal Financial Flows. Mr Msiska says international cooperation is required because illegal financial flows affect all regions of the continent. He says African Tax administrations can achieve a more effective and efficient relationship through initiatives… – Continue reading

India joins the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement (MCAA) on Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI)

India joined the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information on 3rd June, 2015, in Paris, France, alongwith Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Indonesia and New Zealand. On our behalf, the Declaration to comply with the provisions of the MCAA was signed by H.E. Mr. Mohan Kumar,… – Continue reading

Edouard Perrin, French reporter, charged for role in Luxembourg tax-scheme leaks

Documents exposed secret deals to slash global tax bills of multinational companies A French journalist has been criminally charged in Luxembourg for his role in exposing how hundreds of multinational companies used secret deals with the European duchy’s government to slash their global tax bills — a scheme that CBC… – Continue reading

Global Law Experts distinguishes GRP Rainer Lawyers and Tax Advisors as a leading law firm in the field of tax law

The internationally recognized handbook for legal experts Global Law Experts has distinguished GRP Rainer Lawyers and Tax Advisors as one of the leading law firms in the field of tax law. GRP Rainer Lawyers and Tax Advisors in Cologne, Berlin, Bonn, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart and London has been… – Continue reading

European Union: European M+A News, Spring 2015

EUROPEAN M&A DOS AND DON’TS FOR NON-EUROPEAN BUYERS Inbound M&A in Europe by non-European buyers increased in 2014 by 68.6% compared to 2013, representing over a third of USD 901.4 billion total European M&A.1 For non-European buyers the basic framework of transactions may be similar, but there are a number… – Continue reading

France, German sign double tax treaty changes

BERLIN: The Governments of France and Germany signed an amendment to the France-German treaty dated (the “Treaty”), which will have an impact in the future for certain investments in real estate. For France, this amendment follows the amendment to France-Luxembourg signed on 5 September 2014 which also impacts foreign investments… – Continue reading

Global Tax Transparency Goes Live in 2016

Cross border tax fraud and tax evasion by High Net Wealth Individuals (HNWI) are serious problems for many jurisdictions. For many years exchange of information between countries has been solely upon request. In practise this procedure is not efficiently working as it requires foreseeable relevance, thus ‘fishing’ for information is… – Continue reading

Switzerland opens money-laundering probe of HSBC after tax evasion reports

BERLIN – Geneva prosecutors searched the premises of HSBC’s Swiss subsidiary on Wednesday after launching a money-laundering investigation over a report that the bank helped hide millions of dollars for drug traffickers, arms dealers and celebrities. Prosecutors said they were investigating HSBC Private Bank (Suisse) SA and persons unknown for… – Continue reading

Germany’s Bayern football boss to face tax trial

BERLIN: German football legend Uli Hoeness (pix), boss of champion club Bayern Munich, will face a high-profile tax evasion trial from Monday, accused of having stashed away millions in Switzerland. The folksy 62-year-old Bavarian club president, who also runs a flourishing sausage company, was arrested and bailed almost a year ago… – Continue reading