(Reuters) – EU regulators hope to wrap up ongoing probes into the legality of tax deals between Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Ireland with Apple (AAPL.O), Starbucks (SBUX.O), Amazon (AMZN.O) and Fiat (FCHA.MI) by the second quarter of 2015, the EU anti-trust’s chief said on Thursday. European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager… – Continue reading
Ferrari SpA is considering moving its fiscal residence outside Italy to save on corporate taxes as the supercar maker prepares for its spinoff from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV (FCAU), people familiar with the matter said. The manufacturer, which uses the colors of the Italian flag in its logo, may follow… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS–European Union finance ministers struck two separate deals on Tuesday aimed at cracking down on tax avoidance by multinationals, an issue that is high on Europe’s political agenda as a lackluster economic recovery fails to replenish crisis-hit state coffers. At a meeting in Brussels, finance ministers agreed to update a… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Tax deals that entertainment giant Walt Disney Co., commodities group Koch Industries [KCHIN.UL] and others agreed with the Luxembourg authorities were revealed on Tuesday by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ). The ICIJ said the two companies engaged in complex restructurings, and channeled hundreds of millions of… – Continue reading
Juncker has put corporate tax reform firmly back on the EU agenda The “Lux leaks” scandal may have cast a shadow over Jean-Claude Juncker’s first months as European Commission president, but its real significance will be how it impacts the EU’s position on corporate tax. Some contend the scale of… – Continue reading
The EU’s most powerful official is under mounting pressure as dozens more multinational corporate names are dragged into the Luxembourg tax scandal following a new leak of confidential documents on Tuesday. Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European commission, has been battling to distance himself from the growing furore over the… – Continue reading
A new leak of confidential documents expands the list of big companies seeking secret tax deals in Luxembourg, exposing tax-saving maneuvers by American entertainment icon The Walt Disney Co., politically controversial Koch Industries Inc. and 33 other companies. Disney and Koch Industries, a U.S.-based energy and chemical conglomerate, both created… – Continue reading
The European Commission (Commission) has given one of its clearest indications yet that it is seeking to clamp down on unfair tax breaks or ‘waivers’ for underpaying companies through the EU rules on state aid. How does State aid apply to taxation? The EU rules on state aid prohibit the… – Continue reading
The Netherlands has ended its resistance to EU measures aimed at tightening up the way companies use European parents and subsidiaries to reduce taxes, the NRC reports on Wednesday. Junior finance minister Eric Wiebes has written to parliament, urging MPs to support the Dutch position to amend the current regulations… – Continue reading
High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Email ftsales.support@ft.com to buy additional rights. The UK has lost its top slot in a league table of multinational companies’… – Continue reading
Ireland has knocked the UK off the top spot as the most competitive tax destination, according to KPMG’s annual survey of Britain’s largest businesses However, the UK has increased the number of times it is mentioned in the companies’ top three competitive tax regimes. The KPMG Annual Survey of Tax… – Continue reading
Passage by the French assembly on 18 November 2014 of a draft Finance Bill for 2015 (which now will be presented to the Senate) Introduction by the French government on 12 November 2014 of a second draft amended Finance Bill for 2014 In general, the draft Finance Bill for 2015… – Continue reading
European tax experts say that despite rule changes, Britain has one of the clearest systems Tax professionals view the Netherlands and the UK as the most attractive European countries in which to do business, according to a new survey. The two countries scored well on how simple their tax rules… – Continue reading
Introduction On 19 September the Dutch State Secretary for Finance Mr Wiebes responded to the release of the 2014 interim reports on the OECD BEPS project. The Netherlands underlines the importance of the initial results of the BEPS project and is one of the forerunners in the international cooperation against… – Continue reading
Companies based in the United States now have over $2.1 trillion stashed overseas shielded from U.S. taxes. That’s a sixfold increase in 12 years, NBC News reported citing research provided by Capital Economics. Generally, the U.S. tax policy allows companies based in the country to defer any tax obligation on… – Continue reading
By closing the tax gap, South Africa can reap billions of rands to benefit the economy. A global crackdown on tax avoidance has begun and South Africa is forging ahead in a bid to tackle wealthy individuals and corporates who practise this tactic. The initiative is better poised to succeed… – Continue reading
The European Commission, in an “Opening Decision” published on November 14, 2014, said that an advance tax ruling provided by the Netherlands to coffee group Starbucks appears to constitute state aid, in violation of European Union (EU) rules. In a 40-page letter to the Dutch authorities, the Commission detailed the… – Continue reading
On 11 November 2014, the UK and Germany made a joint announcement about a proposal they had developed to address some of the concerns raised over the OECD’s suggested approach to dealing with preferential IP tax regimes. These regimes will close to new entrants from June 2016, and will be… – Continue reading
Companies can be more competitive in the U.S. if they’re based outside the country, said the chief executive officer of a company that is moving its tax address outside the U.S. Heather Bresch, the CEO of Mylan Inc., described her company’s proposed tax inversion as a shield against a takeover… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS — European Union authorities have accused the Netherlands of making a special deal with Starbucks that helped the company lower its taxes, creating unfair advantages over other countries in the bloc. The report by the bloc’s competition authority, made public on Friday, is a preliminary finding in a review… – Continue reading
November 14: The European Commission (EC) today released a “non-confidential version” of its June 2014 EC decision to open an in-depth investigation concerning whether certain transfer pricing arrangements of a multinational entity with the Dutch tax authorities constitute state aid that is contrary to EU law. The investigation is identified… – Continue reading
The European Union’s 28 member states are seeking agreement on the proposed introduction of a common anti-abuse clause in the Parent-Subsidy Directive (2011/96/EU). The plans were discussed at a meeting of the EU’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) on November 7, 2014. The proposed anti-abuse clause would allow member… – Continue reading
The Dutch tax rules are attractive to large multinationals. The same is true for countries such as the United Kingdom, Switzerland and Luxembourg. This writes the General Court of Auditors in a report, which was requested by the Second Chamber. The report was published today. Large multinationals search around the… – Continue reading
BRUSSELS – Dividend, interest and royalty payments that companies let pass through the Netherlands to avoid taxation have increased substantially in the past decade, the Netherlands Court of Audit has found. In a report published on Thursday (6 November), the court writes that tax laws and treaties that originally were… – Continue reading
Vodafone sign in India. Photo: Ishan Khosla. Used under Creative Commons license. Vodafone recently won a rare – but potentially very significant – victory over Indian tax authorities. The Bombay High Court dismissed the government demand for the company to pay 30 billion rupees (about $490 million) for a share… – Continue reading
Medical device companies Wright Medical Group Inc. and Tornier NV have agreed to merge in an all stock USD3.3bn transaction that will involve the transfer of Wright’s tax domicile from the US to the Netherlands. Wright’s deal with Tornier is one of the few corporate tax inversions that have been… – Continue reading
Bruton says US multinationals will advise Government on ‘knowledge box’ tax scheme Germany has warned that corporate tax subsidy arrangements known as “patent boxes” are acceptable in the European Union only as a reward for research and investment by companies in member states, not as a new tax-avoidance tool. It… – Continue reading
Wright Medical Group Inc. (WMGI), a U.S. maker of bone implants, will merge with Tornier NV, creating a new company valued at $3.3 billion in the latest proposed tax inversion since tighter rules were announced last month. The legal address for the new company, to be called Wright Medical Group… – Continue reading
In June, the European Commission (“EC”) announced the opening of three investigations into tax rulings in Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands and, in particular, into tax rulings applied by Ireland to Apple, by Luxembourg to Fiat Finance and, last, by the Netherlands to Starbucks. In October 2014, the EC announced… – Continue reading
Ireland puts an end to a tax loophole that saved Google, Apple, Microsoft, and Facebook billions in taxes “Double Irish” might sound like a drink that corporate tax lawyers reach for at the prospect of paying higher tax bills, but it’s actually the name of a controversial — albeit legal… – Continue reading
Europe’s antitrust regulator is encroaching on what has been the preserve of national governments. There’s a new tax sheriff in town. Europe’s top antitrust regulator, the Brussels-based European Commission, has launched an unexpected assault on what it suspects are sweetheart tax deals for multinational companies, plowing into an area traditionally… – Continue reading
As the Irish government considers closing an infamous tax loophole for corporations, Wall Street has been scrambling to gauge the effect on the pharmaceutical industry. So far, the prognosis seems that damage will largely be minimal. Known as the ‘Double Irish,’ the loophole allows companies to send royalty payments for… – Continue reading
The screw is being turned on American companies that use complex structures to whittle down their tax bills. But is the latest EU probe a paper tiger or a game changer? It was supposed to be good news. Amazon’s announcement yesterday that it would hire 1,000 staff was dressed up… – Continue reading
U2 frontman Bono has claimed that the controversial tax laws which have helped multinationals avoid billions in tax have “brought our country the only prosperity we’ve known”. In an interview with the Observer, the singer said the Irish economy needs companies like Apple, Facebook and Google, which have been the… – Continue reading
The European Commission’s recent action to crack down on special deals some European Union governments offer to corporations could be a blow to multinational corporations’ tax-dodging strategies. As we noted in a report earlier this year, three European countries (Ireland, Luxembourg and the Netherlands) are among the top twelve tax… – Continue reading
The non-legislative measures put forward by the Treasury Department on September 22, to deter multinationals from using corporate inversions to move their tax residence abroad and move away from the high United States tax rate, have so far produced a mixed bag of results. The measures are aimed at preventing… – Continue reading
Miguel Arias Cañete, the Spanish Commissioner-designate for Energy and Climate Change, has left five important questions unanswered during his confirmation hearing in the European Parliament, writes Alicia Gutiérrez. Alicia Gutiérrez is a journalist at the Spanish online media infoLibre. (Translation by Avaaz. Original version here) 1. Has Cañete had any… – Continue reading
The European Commission has opened an in-depth investigation to examine whether the decision by Luxembourg’s tax authorities with regard to the corporate income tax to be paid by Amazon in Luxembourg comply with the EU rules on state aid. The opening of an in-depth investigation gives interested third parties and… – Continue reading
We pay our taxes. Why won’t they? It’s the topic every tax official and finance minister in the developed world is talking about and acting on, yet we hear little about it in New Zealand. Cracking down on tax avoidance by the world’s biggest technology companies – among them Google,… – Continue reading
The Californian corporation is Cork’s largest private employer, but has not won over all local hearts and minds. Now the city is at the heart of a fight over taxation that involves not just Ireland but also the European commission and the US senate Anger is mounting in Cork. The… – Continue reading
On Tuesday, September 30, 2014, the European Commission (the Commission) published its decision to open an investigation intoIreland’s transfer pricing practices. The Commission is also reviewing the transfer pricing practices of other EU Member States, including the Netherlands and Luxembourg. Any advanced pricing agreement (APA) or other tax ruling within the EU… – Continue reading
High quality global journalism requires investment. Please share this article with others using the link below, do not cut & paste the article. See our Ts&Cs and Copyright Policy for more detail. Brussels has challenged Luxembourg over a tax ruling offering potentially illicit support to a Fiat subsidiary, opening a… – Continue reading
European regulators are set to examine whether Apple violated EU law by striking special tax deals with the Irish government. The European Commission opened an initial investigation into Apple’s tax affairs in June, looking at whether the company’s two percent tax rate in Ireland — far less than the standard 12.5… – Continue reading
Ed Miliband is under pressure to “bang up” the British chief executives of overseas firms that use tax avoidance schemes, should he win next year’s general election. Speaking to The Independent on the fringe of the Labour conference in Manchester, Paul Kenny, the general secretary of the GMB, said: “Tax… – Continue reading
Labour could stop controversial cab-on-demand app Uber from operating in Britain over concerns about its tax arrangements. Shadow transport secretary Mary Creagh warned that Labour would not tolerate “tax avoidance on a large scale”, describing Uber’s tax arrangements, being based offshore, as “interesting”. She also seized on the fact that… – Continue reading
The global arms race has been replaced by a corporate tax race. Countries call for disarmament while building up their armouries. Britain is the worst offender. It led the calls for a level international playing field on corporation tax to stop multinationals from choosing where to pay tax. However, the… – Continue reading
The OECD wants to force businesses to declare their turnover and number of employees in each country where they are active. Among the multinationals targeted are digital giants Google, Apple and Amazon. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has announced an international action plan called “Project BEPS”, to target… – Continue reading
American taxpayers are being robbed by yet another giant corporation that is deserting the USA after using the country’s advantages to build untold wealth. Burger King’s recent decision to pursue a corporate inversion to Canada is the culmination of years of maneuvering to dodge paying its fair share in corporate… – Continue reading
A friend of a friend just cited (in an email) the U2 rock band for having “social consciousness.” As noted in this February 2007 posting, referencing a New York Times article on the subject, the U2 folks had never paid any income tax and decided to invert themselves into an… – Continue reading
Medical device giant Medtronic Inc. leads all corporate inverters in the amount of offshore cash waiting to be tapped if their tax inversion deals are consummated. Medtronic is buying Covidien and moving to Dublin, and it has $13 billion of cash outside the United States, according to a report from the Financial Times,… – Continue reading
