Category: Canada

Canada: Face The FATCA: US Citizen Living Abroad? The IRS Wants You To File

Since the global economic crash of 2008, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the U.S. has been trying to find other ways to generate income and much needed revenue. One avenue they are pursuing aggressively involves trying to stem tax evasion by U.S. citizens who are purposely hiding their funds… – Continue reading

Anti-FATCA group hires U.S. lawyer

Here’s a quick update on the legal challenges to Canada’s agreement with the U.S. regarding the controversial FATCA law. The group behind the suit, the Alliance for the Defence of Canadian Sovereignty, says it has retained U.S. legal counsel to challenge in Washington whether so-called “Accidental Americans” resident in Canada… – Continue reading

Tim Hortons-Burger King merger approved by Competition Bureau

Canada’s Competition Bureau says that Burger King’s plan to buy Tim Hortons does not pose a competitive threat to the fast food industry. The antitrust watchdog issued a No Action Letter (NAL) Tuesday, confirming that it reviewed the proposed transaction and concluded that it will not, at this time, “challenge… – Continue reading

WHO Meets Behind Closed Doors, Threatens A Global Tax Hike

The sovereignty of individual nations is increasingly under threat from international governance bodies that want to force a range of new regional and international taxes on states. The latest attempt to bypass state sovereignty occurred when the World Health Organization (WHO) met behind closed doors in Moscow last week. In… – Continue reading

Canada Shows How to Eliminate the Tax Bias against Saving

Since all economic theories – even Marxism and socialism – recognize that capital formation is a key to long-run growth, higher wages, and improved living standards, it obviously doesn’t make sense to penalize saving and investment. Yet that’s exactly what happens because of double taxation in the United States, as… – Continue reading

Crown seeks maximum sentence for couple who laundered money for drug kingpin

The Crown has asked that a couple who laundered millions in drug money for a prolific trafficker before he was murdered receive the maximum sentence for their crimes. Prosecutor Marie Michèle Meloche said sentences of between eight and 10 years were justified for Sy Veng Chun, 67, and his wife… – Continue reading

FATCA Tracker – October 01, 2014

Nearly 105,000 financial institutions are listed on the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) database of Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) organisations complying with the tax reporting rules for US citizens. The latest list was published on October 1, 2014 by the IRS and shows 104,344 financial organisations have signed… – Continue reading

Fourth protocol to Canada-UK Treaty eliminates withholding tax on arm’s length interest, but preserves tax exemption for gains on disposition of shares and interests deriving value from Canadian real property

On July 21, 2014, the governments of Canada and the United Kingdom signed the fourth protocol (Protocol) amending the Convention between the Government of Canada and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Evasion… – Continue reading

Harper Government Strengthens Tax Collaboration with India

Minister Findlay meets with Indian counterpart during trade mission to India DELHI, INDIA–(Marketwired – Oct. 15, 2014) – Canada Revenue Agency The Honourable Kerry-Lynne D. Findlay, P.C., Q.C., M.P., Minister of National Revenue, met today with Nirmala Sitharaman, India’s Minister of State for Commerce and Industry and Minister of State… – Continue reading

International tax avoidance: Is it eroding Canada’s tax base and how should we respond?

TORONTO , Oct. 2, 2014 /CNW/ – Aggressive international corporate tax avoidance by multinational corporations has become the subject of intense political scrutiny. U.S. politicians have called out some American multinationals, including Apple, Amazon, Starbucks and Google, for relocating profits abroad to avoid U.S. taxes. More recently, politicians accused Burger… – Continue reading

Tax-Lowering Deals Keep Coming as Steris Unfazed

The U.S. government’s attempt to prevent companies from seeking a tax address outside the country hasn’t stopped Steris Corp. (STE) The Mentor, Ohio-based provider of hospital sterilization products and services announced today that it will buy the smaller Synergy Health Plc (SYR) and establish the combined company’s tax address to… – Continue reading

Two women fighting FATCA expand lawsuit to include revenue minister as defendant

Two Canadian women mounting a legal challenge to FATCA have expanded their action to include the Minister of National Revenue as a defendant. Gwen Deegan, a graphic designer from Toronto, and Ginny Hillis, a retired lawyer from Windsor, claim the Canadian federal government doesn’t have the constitutional authority to comply… – Continue reading

Canada: OECD Issues Work On BEPS Actions

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has released the first components of its comprehensive plan for creating an agreed set of international rules for fighting base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) and ending opportunities for double non-taxation. The four model legal instruments and three reports are the first… – Continue reading

US Tax Inversion Planners Respond To Treasury Measures

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

Canada: Tax Court Of Canada Allows Foreign Tax Credit Generator Arrangement

Major changes have occurred with respect to foreign tax credit (FTC). The Department of Finance announced in the federal budget of March 4, 2010, a proposed legislation regarding FTC generators (FTCG) and released modified draft legislation on August 27, 2010. These new FTCG rules target the FTC per subsections 126(4.11)-(4.13)… – Continue reading

The Marzen decision: a typical example of BEPS

On June 10, 2014, the Tax Court of Canada (“TCC”) delivered its most recent decision on transfer pricing, one which involved a Barbados structure. In Marzen Artistic Aluminum Ltd. v. The Queen[1] (“Marzen”), Justice Sheridan upheld the Canada Revenue Agency’s (“CRA”) transfer pricing adjustment as well as the penalty under… – Continue reading

Crackdown on Apple in Ireland Opens Front in Tax Avoidance War

The European Commission’s crackdown on the deal between Irish tax authorities and Apple Inc. marks an expansion in the growing global war on tax avoidance by multinational companies. Governments that enable it are now a target. Tuesday, the European Commission said the Irish tax authorities failed to conform to international… – Continue reading

Another view: Low tax rates no way to build economy

Canada should not count on building its economy by luring U.S. multinationals over the border with low tax rates in light of an announcement from the U.S. Treasury Department this week. The department outlined new measures to block companies from escaping U.S. taxes by moving earnings outside the country. This… – Continue reading

IRS scam targets financial professionals, too

Now some in the financial services industry, as well as some consumers, are being warned that they could get a call one day from a fake IRS agent seeking bank account information. We’ve heard about the con artists who pretend to be from the Internal Revenue Service and demand immediate… – Continue reading

Lack of fairness with overseas tax evasion: We pay the price

The Government of Canada has been moving ahead with its plans to solve the deficit by cutting services to Canadians and yet, there are billions of dollars in taxable assets illegally hidden by some Canadians in overseas tax havens. Overseas tax evasion is a serious problem requiring assertive action. Eight… – Continue reading

The Obama administration’s tougher rules on offshore corporate inversions had…

Stricter tax inversion rules punish stocks of firms mulling such moves. The Obama administration’s tougher rules on offshore corporate inversions had an immediate effect Tuesday, pushing down the stock prices of companies considering such moves.But the highly technical changes to the tax code di Stricter tax inversion rules punish stocks… – Continue reading

‘I was terrified we’d lose all our money’: banks tell US customers they won’t work with Americans

Thousands of Americans abroad are giving up their citizenship as the implementation of a complex new tax law causes banks to shut down accounts for US expatriates Angry Canadians are rare. But Patricia Moon qualifies. Until 2012, Moon was actually an American – albeit one who had lived in Canada… – Continue reading

Canada Revenue Agency tax dodge informant line receives 1,000 calls

Ottawa’s program that pays for tips to the Canada Revenue Agency about tax cheats has received more than a thousand calls since being set up earlier this year. In January, the federal government enacted the Offshore Tax Informant Program, which encourages citizens to become informants about Canadians trying to hide… – Continue reading

Lack of fairness with overseas tax evasion: Canadians pay the price

The Government of Canada has been moving ahead with its plans to solve the deficit by cutting services to Canadians and yet, there are billions of dollars in taxable assets illegally hidden by some Canadians in overseas tax havens. Overseas tax evasion is a serious problem requiring assertive action not… – Continue reading

Tory crackdown on tax evasion lost in a fog: Goar

After promising to flush out companies that stash their cash in offshore tax havens, the Harper government has lost its enthusiasm for ruffling corporate feathers. By: Carol Goar Star Columnist, Published on Tue Sep 23 2014 There has been scarcely a peep out of Ottawa since last winter’s promise to… – Continue reading

Treasury’s Inversion Rules Create Uncertain Environment For US Multinational Companies

The Obama administration’s new rules intended to stem the tide of inversions, in which U.S. companies reincorporate abroad to dodge taxes at home, won’t be completely effective because they don’t address the high corporate tax rate in the U.S. that compels such behavior, say tax experts and analysts. The rules announced… – Continue reading

New US Tax Rules Chill ‘Inversion’ Deal-Making

WASHINGTON/NEW YORK, Sept 23, (Agencies): Tough new US rules on corporate “inversions” on Tuesday sent a chill through the market for the tax-avoidance deals, both pending and potential, with share prices falling sharply in nearly a dozen companies on both sides of the Atlantic. As investors sold stocks involved in inversions,… – Continue reading

U.S. Treasury moves against tax-avoidance ‘inversion’ deals

(Reuters) – Moving against tax avoidance by corporations, the Obama administration took several actions on Monday to curb “inversion” deals that allow companies to escape high U.S. taxes by reincorporating abroad. The Treasury Department announced new rules, effective immediately, that will reduce the tax benefits available to companies that have… – Continue reading

Global watchdogs take on the corporate tax dodgers

As the finance ministers and central bank governors from the world’s 20 largest economies gather in a convention centre in the Australian city of Cairns this weekend, anti-capitalist protesters will likely accuse them of doing the bidding of the globe’s all-powerful multinational corporations. But the Group of 20’s financial chieftains… – Continue reading

Canada: FATCA Is Not Your Enemy

Over the past six years, the United States has become increasingly concerned that Americans are stashing money offshore, essentially evading U.S. tax. The IRS has increased filing requirements around foreign assets through the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which requires financial institutions around the world to report activities of… – Continue reading

Corporations vs. Canada: The threat of treaty shopping

With an eye to next year’s federal election, the Harper government has begun to sprinkle tax-relief treats across the country. Small businesses got theirs last week with a break on employment insurance premiums. Sometimes, however, what governments don’t do can be as telling as their actions. The Finance Department has… – Continue reading

Spelling out the high cost of tax inversions

Company after company are fleeing tax oppression in the United States by seeking mergers and acquisitions in lower corporate-tax rate nations. Ireland with a tax rate of 12.5 percent and the United Kingdom with 20 percent, in particular, are attractive alternatives to the United States with a world-leading corporate-tax rate… – Continue reading

Since 2010, Burger King Has Reduced Its World Wide Tax Rate by 60%

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

How to Avoid Foreign Dividend Withholding Tax

Using foreign stocks to diversify your portfolio can be a good move for investors looking to collect dividends and protect capital. But owners of dividend paying foreign stocks can find themselves being hit by another type of tax: foreign dividend withholding tax. Keeping as much of your dividends as possible… – Continue reading

Canada: Appeal Filed With The Federal Court Of Canada Seeking A Declaration That FATCA Is Unconstitutional And Should Not Be Enforced In Canada

On Monday the 11th of August, an appeal was filed with the Federal Court of Canada in Vancouver seeking a declaration that the enforcement by the Canadian Government of the United States’ Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”) on Canadian soil is unconstitutional. Under FATCA financial institutions enter into an… – Continue reading