Wednesday, October 22, 2014 – The BVI Advantage was the theme of a feature presentation at the recent China Offshore Summit. The summit was held from October 15-16 in Shanghai, China. Global Head of BVI Practice at Maples and Calder, Mr. Michael Gagie presented on behalf of the BVI International… – Continue reading
“The issue of substance and taxation is, and always will be, a core column of the Irish taxation system,” Michael Noonan, Ireland’s Finance Minister, said at his Department’s Tax Policy Conference on October 21, 2014, underscoring that Ireland’s strategy is to play fair but play to win. Beginning by discussing… – Continue reading
Countries that work together like Ireland and the US “need to be cognisant” of the impact their tax policies have on each other, new US Ambassador to Ireland Kevin O’Malley said in a speech yesterday. He said cross-border mergers can make the Irish and American economies stronger, but that “these… – Continue reading
23/10/14 – After a comprehensive review in October 2012, the OECD Working Group on Bribery asked France, through a series of concrete recommendations, to intensify its actions to fight the bribery of foreign public officials and undertake important reforms. In October 2014, the Working Group welcomed several significant reforms, including:… – Continue reading
Around $180 million in undeclared offshore income has now been recovered as part of the amnesty, the ATO said. A further $1 billion in assets has also been recovered. Photo: Louie Douvis The Tax Office is keeping a close eye on foreign banks as part of its push to stop… – Continue reading
Irish Finance Bill 2014: Last Sunday The New York Times in an editorial following the decision in Budget 2015 to eliminate the Double Irish tax dodge from 2021, said “Ireland, which for years used policies like the Double Irish to attract multinational businesses, appears uninterested in true reform. It will… – Continue reading
LUXEMBOURG — On the first floor of a rust-colored building near the main railway station, Marius Kohl spent years engineering this country’s most valuable export: tax relief. As head of a federal agency called Societes 6, Mr. Kohl approved thousands of tax arrangements for multinational corporations, sometimes helping them save… – Continue reading
THE OECD has signalled support for the Government’s plan to introduce a so-called “Knowledge Development Box”, but warned that the devil would be in the detail. Pascal Saint-Amans, the director of the Centre for Tax Policy and Administration at the Paris-based Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), told the… – Continue reading
The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has recommended a number of direct tax reforms to build on the French Government’s efforts to improve the nation’s competitiveness in Europe. The report points out that the tax wedge (the cumulative burden of taxes on workers) in France is among the… – Continue reading
BERN/NEW DELHI: To comply with global norms, Switzerland today began consultation process for unilaterally amending bilateral tax treaties to allow exchange of information when there is a request from another country. Amid rising international pressure, including from India, Switzerland has been taking steps to share tax information as well as… – Continue reading
A new survey by E&Y released at its 33rd Annual International Tax Conference, titled “Connecting the dots” uncovered the issues of navigating multiple challenges, led by increased scrutiny and the effects of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project. “Tax directors need… – Continue reading
ITR Correspondent • • • The G20 and OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project has rarely been out of the headlines during 2014. At the heart of the BEPS project is the assumption international tax rules make it possible for profits to be taxed in countries that are… – Continue reading
21/10/14-Tax administrations will play a central role as governments move to implement the measures they have agreed to counter offshore evasion and combat tax avoidance by multinational enterprises. Global initiatives like the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project and the move toward automatic exchange of financial account account… – Continue reading
Foreign structures are tempting targets for governments, says Vanessa Houlder. When governments around the world embarked on a drive to plug tax loopholes in 2012, the urgency of the move was underpinned by rising tensions over austerity and inequality. Widespread public outrage over alleged tax-dodging by wealthy individuals and multinationals… – Continue reading
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) plan for base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) is already affecting corporations, according to speakers participating in a Captive Insurance Companies Association (CICA) transfer pricing webinar. Polling results during the webinar revealed attendees’ opinions were in line with tax industry surveys indicating… – Continue reading
The energy company has published retrospective accounts and pledges to stay away from tax havens Energy company SSE has become the first FTSE 100 business to be awarded the Fair Tax Mark, a scheme that aims to hold companies to account over their tax affairs. SSE, which has nine million… – Continue reading
On 16 October, the Saeima (Parliament), in its final reading, passed the “Public Persons Enterprises and Capital Shares Governance Law” in order to promote more effective governance of companies owned by the state and local governments. The Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Angel Gurría, has… – Continue reading
On July 15th 2014, the OECD published its 2014 update of the Model Tax Convention (“2014 OECD Update”). This update is the outcome of the work accomplished between 2010 and the end of 2013. It does not however take into account the OECD conclusions of the “Action Plan on Base… – Continue reading
The Council agreed last tuesday, at a meeting of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council , on a draft directive extending the scope for the mandatory automatic exchange of information between tax administrations, enabling them to better combat tax evasion and to improve the efficiency of tax collection. The proposal… – Continue reading
There has been a lot of press coverage recently around the pricing and tax arrangements of multinationals, in particular Apple, Starbucks and Amazon. In this respect, the EU is undertaking in-depth investigates into these companies to establish whether the companies’ tax arrangements have breached EU State Aid rules. These cases… – Continue reading
IMF President Christine Lagarde (right) poses with OECD Secretary General Angel Gurria, prior to a meeting with International economic organisations at the OECD in Paris. PARIS: The moribund French economy could get a sharp boost each year over a decade if highly controversial reforms to help businesses are enacted, predictions… – Continue reading
These crimes hinder the development of societies, prevent strengthening the legitimacy of democracy SANTIAGO — Corruption and tax evasion are flagrant violations of human rights in Latin America, where they contribute to inequality and injustice in the countries of the region, according to studies and experts consulted by IPS. “Tax… – Continue reading
17/10/2014 – Full implementation of the structural reforms adopted and announced in France would boost potential annual economic growth by one third, or 0.4 percentage points per year over ten years, according to the OECD. In a report entitled Structural reforms in France: Impact on growth and options for the… – Continue reading
Our Reaction The Irish Minister for Finance delivered his Budget 2015 (the “Budget”) speech this week. There was considerable domestic and international anticipation in advance of the Budget against a backdrop of significant recovery in the Irish economy and also international focus (including, in particular, under the OECD BEPS project)… – Continue reading
Romania wants to become a full-fledged member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), according to Romanian officials, Prime Minister Victor Ponta and Foreign Affairs Minister Titus Corlățean. The message has been sent to – and received by –the OECD secretary general William Danvers, who was on a… – Continue reading
n this second part of our overview of current transfer pricing regulations on the African continent, we focus on relevant provisions in, amongst others, Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda. The Ghanaian Transfer Pricing Regulations, 2012 (L.I.2188) (the Ghanaian Regulations) were introduced by the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) on 27 July 2012,… – Continue reading
AMONG several proposals for tax reform, the director-general of the Revenue Department has said the agency would propose an amendment to the Revenue Code concerning transfer pricing, aiming to provide greater clarity on the determination of fair transfer prices. The director-general has indicated that in past years many multinational companies,… – Continue reading
There are lots of headlines out of Dublin today about the end of the “double Irish,” a notorious tax break used by multinational companies to avoid paying government levies around the world. Don’t be fooled: The Emerald Isle isn’t giving up on its race to the bottom of the tax… – Continue reading
Taxes on fuel and corporate benefit need to rise significantly, says agency The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) has launched a war of words on diesel fuel and company cars, claiming that the taxation levels on both are costing governments billions and seriously harming the environment. “The cost… – Continue reading
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
The Isle of Man is showing great enthusiasm for crypto-currencies – from the landlord at a popular Douglas drinking hole to the Lieutenant Governor, everyone is talking about digital currency and the potentially huge benefits to the Island. The Isle of Man Financial Supervision Commission (FSC) has announced plans to… – Continue reading
A vast majority of companies headquartered in the United States expect increased scrutiny of their transfer pricing practices in the short-term as a result of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD’s) base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project. A recent EY survey, Connecting The Dots, concluded that 30… – 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
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
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
It is said that Argentina faces an economic and political crisis every 10 years. Whenever a crisis arises, Argentinians’ right of ownership is at risk. Devaluation, asymmetric pesification and the current foreign exchange restrictions are a few examples of the challenges we face. What’s more, according to a recent OECD… – Continue reading
Americans for Tax Reform is one of 20 taxpayer and free market groups from 15 countries which have signed a letter to world leaders to outline their opposition to transnational tax initiatives and any increase or harmonization of excise taxes. In 2012, the World Health Organization proposed to raise certain… – Continue reading
Foreign investors, not to mention the country itself, need a more stable and predictable regime Foreign companies are depressingly used to run-ins with the Indian taxman. A string of groups, including Vodafone, IBM and Cairn Energy, have been hauled into the dock for not paying their dues in recent years…. – 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
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
* 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
Introduction Action 1: the digital economy Action 2: hybrid mismatch arrangements Action 5: harmful tax competition Action 6: preventing tax treaty abuse Action 8: guidance on transfer pricing and intangible assets Action 13: transfer pricing documentation and country-by-country reporting Action 15: developing a multilateral legal instrument Next steps Introduction On… – Continue reading
On October 7, 2014, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) published comments received from various stakeholders regarding the OECD’s work on establishing methodologies to collect and analyze data on base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) and the actions to address it (Action 11). In the main, many commentators… – 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
Findings that New Zealand’s tax system is the second most competitive of all 34 OECD countries reflect changes that should be promoted more internationally, says Greg Thompson, Partner and National Director, Tax at Grant Thornton New Zealand. The Tax Foundation’s International Tax Competitiveness Index ranks tax systems on the basis… – Continue reading
The question has often arisen whether “international law” is an oxymoron – whether “obligations” in income tax treaties and other international agreements are really binding upon the parties, when they are not buttressed by some sort of enforcement mechanism. That question has never been more relevant in the tax world… – 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 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
