A new initiative to monitor MNCs moving headquarters to evade taxes promises success Largely unnoticed, India has come out strongly supporting an international initiative for plugging tax avoidance by multinational corporations (MNCs). The initiative has been endorsed at the last meeting of G20 finance ministers at Cairns in Australia. Known… – Continue reading
Malta, like Cyprus, has been obliged to dismantle its old ‘offshore’ companies regime as a trade-off for joining the European Union. EU membership has, however, brought about certain benefits for Maltese companies trading across borders, and, coupled with investment-friendly government policies and some interesting tax planning opportunities, Malta remains one… – Continue reading
Monaco has become the 84th jurisdiction to commit to strengthen international tax cooperation through its participation in the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters. Welcoming the signing by José Badia, Monaco’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD’s) Secretary-General, Angel… – Continue reading
It appears as if Irish eyes won’t be smiling on U.S. corporations soon. The government of Ireland is set to change its tax code tomorrow to eliminate some of those loopholes that American companies have come to love. Among the targets– the so-called “double Irish” tax break. Both the U.S…. – 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
Reuters) – Ireland’s plan to close a “Double Irish” tax loophole could cost U.S. companies including Apple and Google billions of dollars, although a new break and pressure to tackle tax avoidance elsewhere means they are unlikely to decamp. Analysts and tax advisers predict that corporations which need access to… – Continue reading
* Ireland to end tax regime that saved multinationals billions * Swift upturn ushers in tax cuts rather than austerity * Government faces backlash over uneven nature of recovery (Adds finance minister interview, Google comment) By Padraic Halpin and Conor Humphries DUBLIN, Oct 14 (Reuters) – Ireland will phase out… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Luxembourg agreed on Tuesday to end its bank secrecy rules from 2017, yielding to a decade of pressure from Germany and the United States and marking a breakthrough in global efforts to reduce tax evasion. Luxembourg, whose banks hold deposits worth 10 times the nation’s annual economic output,… – Continue reading
The Swiss finance minister, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, and her counterparts from European Union member states have signed a joint statement aimed at ending a controversy over corporate taxes. The declaration, signed in Luxembourg on Tuesday, includes the Swiss government’s plans to push ahead with abolishing certain preferential tax regimes for foreign… – Continue reading
Hitech firms are being warned that they should take advantage of tax relief on patent related profits now before a threatened clamp down by the European Union according to Richard Hopes, Partner at Alliotts accountants based in Surrey and London. Richard Hopes, Partner at Alliotts accountants and a specialist in… – Continue reading
In the history of the old west when gun fighters survived a gun fight they might put a “notch” in their pistol as a badge of honor. Well the U.S. Department of Justice can put another notch in its weapon of choice, threat of prosecution” because Deutsche Banks’ Swiss unit… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Portugal’s government will maintain its budget deficit goal of 2.5 percent of gross domestic product next year and any income tax cuts would depend on clamping down on tax evasion and would only be made after the end of the year, two sources said. Portugal’s center-right government approved… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi on Monday promised sweeping tax and spending cuts to help boost growth and jobs next year, as the European Commission considers whether to reject his budget plan for reducing debt too slowly. Speaking to a conference of business leaders, Renzi said he would… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Italian and Swiss ministers clashed on Monday over the failure to reach an agreement aimed at fighting tax evasion that foresees Switzerland opening up its bank databases to Italian tax authorities. Both Italian Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan and Swiss Finance Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said they spoke on… – 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
Cash in companies run by businessman Declan Conway was moved to two offshore companies Shareholders in two Business Expansion Scheme (BES) companies run by businessman Declan Conway have written to him demanding to know why almost €1.6 million was transferred from both firms to a number of offshore entities. Between… – Continue reading
Tax authority set a target of 1,165 people a year by 2014/15, but analysis of the last tax year shows it prosecuted just 795 £119.4bn of UK tax went unpaid, avoided or evaded in the financial year 2013/14, with evasion totalling £82.1bn, according to campaigner Richard Murphy. Photograph: Daniel Lynch… – Continue reading
Low corporate taxes are not incidental to Ireland’s economy. They are critical to it The “double Irish” might sound like an especially strong glass of whiskey. In fact, however, it is something far more potent – a phrase used by tax lawyers to describe the way revenues for multi-nationals… – Continue reading
The NDA government is sending a high-level delegation to Switzerland in a bid to persuade them to assist with details of the 700-odd Indians who have bank accounts with the HSBC Bank in Geneva. This is being seen as the last-ditch attempt by the Indian government since the Swiss authorities… – Continue reading
The Alternative Information Development Centre (Disclosure: AIDC’s economist Dick Forslund contributes to Daily Maverick, most recently about Lonmin) has been served with an interdict application in the Johannesburg High Court to try to prevent the organisation from holding a press conference about Lonmin’s finances, especially relating to the use of… – Continue reading
India may have to wait longer for joining “selected” countries with whom Switzerland plans to do automatic exchange of information on tax matters, even as Indian and Swiss officials will meet soon to iron out their bilateral arrangements on suspected tax evasion cases. Switzerland has started a process for putting… – Continue reading
Non-dom investors have been hit by a 45% tax if they secure loans against offshore assets to buy a property in Britain. The stealth tax has slowed down the sale of luxury homes in London’s booming property market, according to estate agents. The rule affects investors who are not children… – Continue reading
Moshe Asher is seeking information about accounts in Switzerland belonging to Israelis. The Israel Tax Authority is stepping up it efforts to combat overseas tax shelters for Israelis. Sources inform “Globes” that Israel Tax Authority director Moshe Asher is expected to travel to Switzerland next week in order to meet… – Continue reading
It is time for an inquiry into HMRC’s competence, policy, decision-making processes and duty to provide transparency Thomas Paine’s observation that what first was plunder later assumed the name of revenue is well-understood by those who have chosen to make their living abroad. Individuals move for various reasons: career development,… – Continue reading
Finance Minister Boris Lalovac has expressed his satisfaction with the numerous meetings he held during his visit to the United States where he attended the annual meetings of the World Bank and the International Fund earlier this week. During their visit to Washington, representatives of the Finance Ministry and the… – Continue reading
Say judge may find evidence inadmissible because it was supplied by a whistleblower As the AFIP tax bureau starts reviewing information it recently obtained from the French government on undeclared bank accounts held by Argentines in Switzerland, tax experts have warned that using the data might be harder than it… – Continue reading
ZURICH (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) is seeking “total cooperation” from Swiss banks in a draft agreement aimed at allowing the banks to make amends for aiding tax evasion by wealthy Americans, a Swiss newspaper reported on Saturday. About 100 Swiss banks signed up to work with… – Continue reading
LUXEMBOURG’S financial elite gathered recently for the grand opening of its free port, which will soon house troves of fine art, vintage wine, precious metals and other valuables, beyond the reach of any taxman. The facility is one of the three finest of its kind, along with those in Singapore… – Continue reading
Ireland’s finance ministry officials are weighing phasing out a tax device used by multinational companies including Google Inc., according to a person with knowledge of the matter, as the European Union looks into the practice. Ireland is considering whether to eliminate a technique known as the “Double Irish,” which allows… – Continue reading
Vodafone has emerged victorious against the Indian taxman in the latest bout of litigation between the two. The important point for the rest of us being what it tells us about those endless claims of tax avoidance and tax evasion by large companies. It’s not just that large amounts of… – Continue reading
A tax civil society has sued National Treasury Secretary Henry Rotich over an ‘illegal’ agreement signed with Mauritius, in a major litigation that could affect thousands of companies operating in Kenya. The suit filed at the High Court by Tax Justice Network-Africa (TJN-A) demands that Rotich withdraws a taxation treaty… – Continue reading
* Dublin set to change tax residency rules in Oct. 14 budget * Companies already in Ireland to be given time to adjust * Measures due to be signed off by cabinet next Tuesday By Padraic Halpin DUBLIN, Oct 10 (Reuters) – Ireland is set to announce legal changes next… – Continue reading
This week brings a wealth of news in the FATCA arena, which we summarize in today’s post. First, former acting IRS Commissioner Steven Miller speaks out against FATCA and suggests that the benefits of the new information reporting regime imposed by FATCA may not outweigh its costs. An article published… – Continue reading
For a large majority of the ever-increasing number of British expatriates with pensions which remain in the UK, a Qualifying Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme (QROPS) provides a viable and sometimes integral role in retirement planning. This counts for those now residing in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, however arguments… – Continue reading
On October 8, 2014, Swiss officials announced that they intend to negotiate a reciprocal Model 1 FATCA IGA to replace the Model 2 IGA that they signed in 2013. The motivation for the change is unknown, but the automatic exchange of information under Model 1 is more in line with… – Continue reading
TORONTO, Oct. 10, 2014 /CNW/ – The Global Citizen Forum 2014, hosted in Toronto, proved to be a launch platform for significant initiatives. On October 3, 2014, its second day, in front of more than 260 delegates, Mykolas Rambus, CEO, Wealth-X, announced the establishment of the Global Residence and Citizenship… – Continue reading
Mission Hills businesswoman Cheryl Womack is scheduled to appear in federal court in Kansas City on November 12 for a change of plea hearing in her criminal case. Womack had earlier entered a not guilty plea to charges of avoiding income taxes and lying to investigators. (Update, 9:03 p.m) It’s… – Continue reading
Illegal Gambling Crackdown in Italy…A “Report on Tax Evasion“ Illegal Gambling Crackdown in Italy…A “Report on Tax Evasion“ Italy’s Report on Tax Evasion Runs Gamut on GamblingItaly is cracking down on illegal gambling operations. Pier Carlo Padoan, Italian Finance Minister, has disclosed the chain of new procedures that is being… – 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
Asian financial institutions could come under closer scrutiny by US authorities that are seeking to expand a probe into offshore tax avoidance activities across more jurisdictions, according to consultancy firm AlixPartners. The US government has stepped up efforts to counter tax evasion activities by its citizens in recent years. Last… – Continue reading
Medical device giant Medtronic is close to finishing a deal to move its tax headquarters to Ireland and boost its stock price. But while shareholders face taxes on those gains, the company is shelling out more than $60 million to make sure its CEO and 25 other top officials won’t… – Continue reading
Endo International Plc (ENDP) agreed to buy Auxilium Pharmaceuticals Inc. (AUXL) for about $2.6 billion to gain testosterone products. Endo will pay $33.25 a share, and Auxilium holders will be able to choose cash, stock or a combination of the two, the companies said today in a statement. The price… – Continue reading
Advisers should notify their insurers early if they think they may be facing claims from advice to invest in tax avoidance schemes, a professional indemnity insurance (PII) lawyer has warned. Solicitor at commercial claims resolution firm Triton Global, James Field, said acting late could mean advisers risk “falling between the… – 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. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/ba95cff0-4fcd-11e4-a0a4-00144feab7de.html#ixzz3G77zeNBz Brussels is challenging the “double Irish” tax avoidance measure prized by big US tech… – Continue reading
Australian tax authorities allege multinational oil giant Chevron used a series of loans and related party payments worth billions of dollars to slash its tax bill by up to $258 million. New documents filed in a long-running dispute in the Federal Court show how Chevron allegedly engaged in a complex… – Continue reading
European body adds another high-profile name to its crackdown on multinationals’ tax avoidance in bloc. The European Union is broadening its crackdown on multinationals’ tax avoidance schemes, opening an investigation yesterday into Amazon’s practices on suspicion the online retailer is not paying its dues on profits made across the 28-nation… – Continue reading
There are reportedly about to be major moves in the fight against tax evasion within the European Union. The region’s finance ministers are said to be close to an agreement on automatic sharing of bank data so that the authorities could spot tax dodging or illicit money flows more easily…. – Continue reading
As a part of the OECD/G20 project to combat base erosion and profit shifting (“BEPS”), the OECD released the first set of reports and recommendations on September 16, 2014. These reports address seven of the actions described in the 15-point action plan to address BEPS published in July 2013 (the… – Continue reading
The UK Finance Act 2014, enacted in July 2014, contains new legislation to deal with cases of purported tax avoidance, which marks a radical departure from previous policy in this area. Until Finance Act 2014, it was generally the case that where a taxpayer contested a direct tax assessment made… – Continue reading
LONDON – The Espírito Santo Financial Group, which at one point held about 25 percent of the bailed-out Portuguese lender Banco Espírito Santo, said on Thursday that it would file for bankruptcy after it was denied creditor protection by a Luxembourg court last week. Espírito Santo Financial is part of… – Continue reading
