The Australian Taxation Office has cut 4400 jobs in the past 19 months with one staff member telling a Senate hearing many of them were “our go-to” people. On Thursday, the Community and Public Sector Union told the hearing into corporate tax avoidance Australia’s tax collection would be hurt by… – Continue reading
Treasurer Joe Hockey is working on new laws to counter tax avoidance by global companies, but the OECD is urging countries not to go it alone. The Paris-based institution has been working on a so-called base erosion and profit-shifting action plan through the G20 since 2013 and is aiming to… – Continue reading
Major accounting firms say they are not doing anything illegal in helping corporations to minimise tax liabilities. KPMG’s managing partner Rosheen Garnon faced the second day of the Senate inquiry into tax avoidance, which has so far heard Australia is missing out on billions of dollars in tax every year… – Continue reading
China has introduced measures to deny income tax deductions for certain service fees and royalties paid by Chinese companies to their overseas affiliates. They appear to stem from China’s initiatives to implement rules it sees as related to the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting project (BEPS) They will likely… – Continue reading
Executives tell Senate inquiry paying tax overseas for Australian sales is how the global tax system works, while News Corp Australia demands Netflix pays GST Senior executives from three major tech firms have defended corporate structures which allow most of the revenue from their Australian operations to be taxed in… – Continue reading
As noted in an earlier update, the deadline for the registration of Cayman Islands Financial Institutions with the Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority was recently extended to 30 April 2015. In anticipation of the upcoming go-live date of the Cayman Islands Automatic Exchange of Information Portal (Portal), the Cayman Islands… – Continue reading
Draft plans to remove tax benefits for cross-border funds to eradicate Base Erosion and Profit Sharing could significantly impact investment into Ucits, the Alfi conferences hears. New draft OECD rules designed to combat Base Erosion and Profit Sharing (Beps) could have dire unintended consequences for cross-border funds, warned Roger Exwood,… – Continue reading
The latest survey of France’s economy by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has highlighted an urgent need for more reform. The report highlights policies that are contributing to slow economic growth in France. In particular, it criticizes the “excessive tax burden” and overly complex administrative procedures, which… – Continue reading
By now, most of us know that the ruling Conservatives announced they will release the Federal Budget (calling it Economic Action Plan 2015 – the “Budget”) on April 21, 2015. Once again, I will be in attendance in Ottawa representing CPA Canada and our firm. What do I predict will… – Continue reading
Taxation experts have warned against unilateral action on corporate tax avoidance, telling a Senate Economics Committee Australia should be proactive and show leadership in the OECD and G20 tax processes already underway. The inquiry, initiated by Greens leader Christine Milne, is exploring tax avoidance and aggressive minimisation by corporations registered… – Continue reading
Our webinar, “FATCA & AIFMD: An Update on International Compliance for Latin American Managers”, provides detailed information and guidance on both FATCA and AIFMD. The discussion included; FATCA Notification and Reporting deadlines, the importance of documented procedures, U.K. FATCA, the OECD Common Reporting Standards, Marketing in Europe, Reverse Solicitation and… – Continue reading
Singapore does not condone any abuse of its tax system, a Ministry of Finance (MOF) spokesman said on Tuesday, in response to a Straits Times query following media reports that the Australian government is pursuing global miners BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto for channelling billions of dollars in iron ore… – Continue reading
The financial arrangements of some of Australia’s biggest companies will be in the spotlight this week with a Senate inquiry taking evidence on corporate tax avoidance. The inquiry was initiated by the Greens leader Christine Milne and supported by the Federal Opposition. “We have to actually start really pushing on… – Continue reading
HELSINKI–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Regulatory News: Nokian Tyres plc (HEX:NRE1V) Stock Exchange Release 7 April 2015 3:15 p.m. Board of Adjustment annulled the reassessment decision against Nokian Tyres plc concerning tax years 2007-2010 The Board of Adjustment annulled the reassessment decision from the Tax Administration, according to which the Company was obliged to… – Continue reading
Kellogg has insisted there is “no link” between its tax situation in the UK and a warning in its annual report changes to tax regulations in international markets could hit profits. A spokesperson for the company told just-food: “The comment in our annual report about potential changes in US tax… – Continue reading
• Starbucks ran its European business – including UK – through Holland • But Dutch division paid just £1.9million tax on profits of £300million • Now details of UK company at heart of new probe have started to emerge • A Starbucks spokesman said it complies ‘with all relevant tax… – Continue reading
Urgent changes are needed to Australian tax laws, say experts, amid claims BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto avoided paying billions of dollars in tax during the mining boom. The Australian Tax Office has the mining giants in its sights over claims they have been saving more than $750 million a… – Continue reading
DMS Offshore Investment Services (‘DMS’) Limited was established in the Cayman Islands by Don Seymour in 2000. Over the past 15 years it has grown into one of the industry’s leading fund governance firms with over 200 people. One of the big focuses for the firm is ongoing regulation, in… – Continue reading
India’s present ‘tax to GDP ratio’ is the lowest among BRICS and OECD countries. The Dollar Business Bureau The Minister of State for Finance, Jayant Sinha, on Monday, said, India needs to turn into a US$ 4-5 trillion economy for accelerating and achieving a sustainable growth over the next decade,… – Continue reading
It’s been five years since the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) became law and while the intentions were good – to crack down on those hiding money offshore and avoiding taxes, compliance comes at a price for individuals and corporations. “The upside of FATCA is that it is forcing… – Continue reading
Law360, New York (April 06, 2015, 3:10 PM ET) — A draft report released Friday by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development on strengthening controlled foreign-company rules to crack down on tax evasion said there are substantial disagreements among member states about how to best define CFC income. The… – Continue reading
On April 3, 2015, as part of its Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS), the OECD released a discussion draft entitled “BEPS Action 3: Strengthening CFC Rules” (the Draft) for comments. The Draft stresses the importance of CFC rules in countering base erosion and profit shifting, and… – Continue reading
National tax laws are struggling to keep pace with the rise of the digital economy and the progress of multinational companies. These factors leave gaps that are susceptible to misuse and lead to cases of double non-taxation, which undermine the integrity and fairness of tax systems around the world. The… – Continue reading
Warning from Corn Flakes maker comes amid international pressure to close tax loopholes Kellogg’s has warned that its profits could be hurt by the international drive against tax avoidance, which is targeting structures that benefit multinationals. The US-based maker of Corn Flakes, Rice Krispies and Coco Pops is worried that… – Continue reading
New York, NY, April 03, 2015 –(PR.com)– The Knowledge Group/The Knowledge Congress Live Webcast Series, brings together the world’s leading authorities and industry participants through informative two -hour webcasts. It has scheduled a live webcast entitled: “Emerging Issues: FATCA Goes Global LIVE Webcast” This two-hour event is scheduled on April… – Continue reading
The likely centrepiece of Treasurer Joe Hockey’s assault on multinational profit-shifting – a so-called “Google tax” – risks breaking Australia’s international tax treaties, the Parliamentary Budget Office has found. The independent adviser warned that the unilateral introduction of a “diverted profits tax” like ones being considered by Australia and Britain… – Continue reading
A senator wants to change the law so the Canada Revenue Agency is required to annually report how much money is lost to tax evasion, after a two-year battle with “stonewalling” bureaucrats to get that information. Senate Liberal Percy Downe is tabling a private bill aimed at getting a handle… – Continue reading
AS PART of its Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, the OECD has launched a public consultation on Action 12 – the mandatory disclosure of tax avoidance strategies by multinational companies. The 83-page draft document provides examples of various disclosure regimes in place in member countries, setting out recommendations… – Continue reading
Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan has pledged the Australian Taxation Office will beat a budget target of hitting $1.1 billion in revenue from multinationals by 2017, and says it expects to clock much of it by the end of the year through audits of technology companies. In an interview with Fairfax… – Continue reading
On March 19, 2015, the Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority (“TIA”) officially opened the Cayman Automatic Exchange of Information (“AEOI”) Portal. Reporting Process The TIA indicated that the Portal is now available for Cayman Islands Reporting Financial Institutions (“Cayman Reporting FIs”) to submit their Notification (due by April 30, 2015)… – Continue reading
In 2015, Singapore celebrates its 50th year of independence and also mourns the passing of its first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew who steered Singapore’s success for many critical years. From its origins as a British trading post in 1819, Singapore has grown into one of the busiest ports and… – Continue reading
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
Hong Kong’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, K C Chan, has described the various tax policies that the Government intends to pursue in the coming year. As part of his testimony before the Legislative Council (LegCo) Finance Committee special meeting on the 2015-16 Budget, Chan stressed that the… – Continue reading
New EU plans to force governments to send quarterly reports on tax rulings are a “revolutionary” step towards overcoming corporate secrecy, the bloc’s tax commissioner has said. The blueprint published two weeks ago by the Commission would establish a system of automatic exchange of information on tax rulings and require… – Continue reading
CO-OPERATION on investment within the SADC region is an integral part of achieving the overarching objectives of the SADC Treaty. Investment, be it foreign direct investment, cross-border investment or domestic investment is needed to enhance the productive capacity in the region, which is a pre-requisite for increasing trade across borders… – Continue reading
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and EU Counter-terrorism Coordinator Gilles de Kerchove visit Parliament this week to discuss security challenges and the EU’s response to terrorist threats. In addition MEPs vote on legislation to increase transparency when setting key interest rates, while the new special committee on tax rulings will… – Continue reading
Summary:A new discussion paper released by the Australian government suggests that the emergence of new financial transaction technology such as bitcoin is making it tough for the country’s authorities to clamp down on tax avoidance. The emergence of new technology is proving to be problematic for Australia’s tax system, according… – Continue reading
Government questions dividend imputation and company tax rate Australian investors appear to have dodged a bullet, with the government’s first paper on tax reform discussing the dividend imputation system but falling short of attacking it outright as an idea that has outlived its usefulness. David Murray’s inquiry into the Australian… – Continue reading
Luxembourg’s Direct Tax Administration has published a circular on February 12 clarifying issues relating to residency certificates for Luxembourg funds. These are applicable to both UCITS and non-UCITS funds regulated by Luxembourg’s investment fund legislation of December 17, 2010, which transposed the UCITS IV Directive, as well as Specialised Investment… – Continue reading
Luxembourg has been warned that it has to diversify its economy and reduce the reliance of its financial sector on providing financial functions for multinational companies if it is to survive any campaign on international tax avoidance. International economic co-operation body the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said… – Continue reading
This article continues our series on the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, and the Action Plans that have so far been submitted, by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). We now look at Action Plan 15 on Developing a Multilateral Instrument to Modify Bilateral Tax Treaties…. – Continue reading
(CS) An OECD economic report on Luxembourg has urged the country to diversify its economy to lower dependence on the financial sector, while also commenting on shortcomings in education and female labour participation. The Economic Survey of Luxembourg was presented by OECD Secretary General Angel Gurría at Neimënster on Friday… – Continue reading
The Delhi High Court has adjudicated on a host of transfer pricing adjustment cases, where the adjustment had been made by the taxman for ‘excessive’ spends on advertising, marketing and promotional expenses (AMP). The High Court’s judgment in a high-stakes transfer pricing case lends clarity on many of the questions… – Continue reading
A vote in favor of repealing FATCA sends a message: a message to foreign banks that they can get back to helping wealthy Americans hide their assets and use offshore accounts to evade tax. In anticipation of yesterday’s Senate’s budget resolution “vote-o-rama,” Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) has introduced an amendment… – Continue reading
(CNS Business): Cayman’s leader, Premier Alden McLaughlin, was joined by the COO of Dart Enterprises at the House of Lords this week in promoting Cayman when he delivered a key-note address at the Caribbean Council reception. As McLaughlin sold the crowd on the benefits of investing in Cayman and the… – Continue reading
All too often, changes to tax legislation happen at a glacial pace. As a nation, we can’t afford to let that happen with the GST changes required to modernise the law and processes to capture GST from overseas online purchases. Budget 2015 provides a suitable time for the government to… – Continue reading
HMRC’s reporting of tax reliefs does not enable Parliament to scrutinise them effectively to determine whether they are providing value for money and the complexity of tax law and the constraints on HMRC’s resources mean that it is fighting an uphill battle against those who are determined to cheat the… – Continue reading
Michael Wilson rants that a long-cherished distinction between avoidance (OK) and evasion (not OK) is being eroded by political doublespeak. And that the demise of the 1936 ‘Duke of Westminster’ legal principle has gone sadly unnoticed. Where will it end? You hardly need telling that there’s an election on the… – Continue reading
Five years after paying $413.7 million to settle a huge tax avoidance claim, ANZ bank is under fire for a $1 billion deal that appears to “double dip” on trans-Tasman tax benefits. The criticism follows the Australian bank’s issue this month of A$970 million ($995 million) of hybrid securities to… – Continue reading
Tackling tax evasion should be a top EU priority. EU countries and the European Commission should play a leading role in discussing how to fight tax fraud and aggressive tax planning in the OECD and other relevant fora, says Parliament in its resolution on tax, voted on Wednesday. The resolution,… – Continue reading
