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
NEW DELHI: India and Japan will soon sign an advance-pricing agreement (APA), a move that will provide certainty to investors at a time the country is looking to attract big Japanese investment. “I am happy to mention here that APA between India and Japan in a particular company’s case has… – Continue reading
Both the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA) and Mindtree, a global technology services company, have pointed out the immense global compliance costs and issues posed by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) to the financial services industry. Enacted by the US Congress in 2010, and effective from… – 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
VietNamNet Bridge – Foreign automobile and electronics manufacturers often choose foreign enterprises for their parts and accessory suppliers instead of Vietnamese companies because it allows them to engage in transfer pricing, some analysts have claimed. Samsung, Toyota, Canon and other giants in the manufacturing industry have complained many times that… – Continue reading
Yahoo! just made about $9 billion in cash from Alibaba Group’s initial public offering, and investors are licking their lips at the thought of how Marissa Mayer might spend it. Snapchat? AOL? Well, here’s one area you shouldn’t expect her to invest in: offshoring more jobs to India. The company… – 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
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
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
The following joint press release was circulated by non-governmental organisations ActionAid Zambia, Christian Aid, and Counter Balance, including the full text of their letter appealing to the European Investment Bank (EIB) to publish their findings on possible tax evasion activity at the Mopani Copper Mine, which is owned and operated… – 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
Overview I have mentioned in prior articles that I was a Spanish and Portuguese major as an undergraduate. During the time that I was attending law school at the University of Miami, the early 1990’s, the Brazilians had yet to arrive in South Florida in a significant manner. The Brazilian… – 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
Colombian and Panamanian finance ministers met on Wednesday to resolve a lingering tax dispute between the two nations. On Tuesday, the Colombian government included Panama in its “gray list” after the Central American nation failed to sign a tax information exchange agreement within the allotted time period. Mauricio Cárdenas and… – Continue reading
Indonesia’s tax chief is pushing for access to personal bank accounts and wants to track car and home purchases in his fight to catch evaders and boost revenue. The department is asking parliament to amend the banking law to give it the right to get lenders to reveal customer account… – 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
The Internal Revenue Department has fined or warned scores of businesses for failing to pay taxes but has yet to file criminal charges against a single tax evader, said Min Htut, its director-general. Fines for tax evasion range from 10-150 per cent of taxes owed, he said, adding that the… – Continue reading
MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. The Russian Finance Ministry has drafted a decree that will exclude Malta from the black list of offshore jurisdictions. The decision followed the enactment of the convention between the governments of Russia and Malta of May 22, 2014 on the avoidance of dual taxation and prevention… – Continue reading
OPINION: How often do you hear governments say ‘we’re not sure if it will work, but we’ll give it a shot’? Not a lot, Chalkie would say. Lack of evidence that a policy will produce the desired effect is generally its death knell, particularly if said government was not keen… – Continue reading
According to a report published in the Sydney Morning Herald on October 6, Tim Cahill may be dealing with an irksome tax problem, stemming from investments made when he was living and working in England. The newspaper claims to have seen documents linking Cahill to a company called Phoenix Film… – 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
BANGALORE, India — One of the world’s biggest cellular phone manufacturing plants, located in the southern India city of Chennai, will stop production of mobile phones and down shutters after Nov. 1. Microsoft, its lone customer, has terminated a subcontract agreement. “Microsoft has informed Nokia that it will be terminating… – Continue reading
The UK government will continue to defend its ‘patent box’ tax break for income from qualifying intellectual property (IP) during discussions to develop a global corporate tax regime, a Treasury official has said.08 Oct 2014 Intellectual Property Tax Patents Corporate tax Life sciences Advanced Manufacturing & Technology Services UK Europe… – 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
Changes dateline, updates with Panama’s response) Panama on Wednesday rejected its inclusion on Colombia’s list of tax havens and said it will take retaliatory action against its neighbor. Panama has “a competitive and sound tax system, and therefore the national government categorically rejects any tax-haven designation,” the Central American nation’s… – Continue reading
MOSCOW, October 8. /TASS/. The Russian Finance Ministry has drafted a decree that will exclude Malta from the black list of offshore jurisdictions. The decision followed the enactment of the convention between the governments of Russia and Malta of May 22, 2014 on the avoidance of dual taxation and prevention… – Continue reading
Colombia on Wednesday declared Panama a tax haven for individuals and businesses as the government looks to curb tax evasion and seeks to pressure the Central American country to sign a financial information-sharing agreement. The move could push Colombian investors and businesses to pull out of Panama, since assets stored… – Continue reading
Simon Carter Prime Minister David Cameron pledged at Tory party conference to make tax cuts to assist 30 million “hardworking families”. However, according to tax experts, the main beneficiaries won’t be the claimed 30 million but only the rich. According to the Institute of Fiscal Studies only 15% of the gains from increasing… – Continue reading
The UK government will continue to defend its ‘patent box’ tax break for income from qualifying intellectual property (IP) during discussions to develop a global corporate tax regime, a Treasury official has said.08 Oct 2014 Intellectual Property Tax Patents Corporate tax Life sciences Advanced Manufacturing & Technology Services UK Europe… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is consulting on draft regulations that will exclude two types of persons from the definition of “promoter” for the purposes of the Promoters of Tax Avoidance legislation. The regulations are intended to meet concerns raised during the development of the primary legislation. They are relieving… – Continue reading
The Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (“MiFID”) is a European Union law that aims to harmonise the regulation of investment services across the member states of the European Economic Area and came into effect from 1 November 2007. Following the 2008 financial crisis, amendments to MiFID became the focus of… – Continue reading
The taxman is willing to “negotiate and strike a balance” with multinationals being audited for transfer pricing misconduct, a drive it says has a potential to realise over Sh30 billion. The Kenya Revenue Authority told a workshop organised by the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants in Nairobi that this will… – Continue reading
Eight of the top 200 companies publicly listed on the Australian stock exchange (ASX200) paid no taxes on profits averaging $50 million to more than half a billion dollars over the decade to 2013! More than 20 (10 percent) corporations paid an average tax rate of five percent or less…. – 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
In Starr International Company, Inc., v. United States, the taxpayer (“Starr International Company, Inc.” or “SICO”) filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia seeking a tax refund from the IRS of approximately $38 million. The refund is allegedly due to an overpayment of… – Continue reading
The relationship between the IRS and Canadians is not great. Groups like the Alliance for the Defense of Canadian Sovereignty want relief from the horrendous double filing and higher taxes Ameri-Canadians often face. Add to that the Canadian suit to block Canada’s FATCA deal with the U.S. It adds up… – Continue reading
UBS AG (UBSN), the Swiss bank facing French allegations of helping clients evade taxes, has handed over details on about 100 accounts, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Swiss authorities at the start of the year notified UBS of a request from France for information on 300… – Continue reading
(CS) As part of a European tour organised by Republicans Overseas, US Senator Mike Lee on Tuesday visited Luxembourg to rally support for the repeal of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, more commonly known as FATCA. Luxembourg and the US signed FATCA as an inter-governmental agreement in March this… – Continue reading
The UK Tax authority is to use new powers to try and crack down on alleged avoidance schemes. Anyone who bought into three companies promoted by investment company Ingenious Media has received a final deadline from HMRC calling for them to settled owed tax. A number of these people have received… – Continue reading
Amazon’s tax arrangements with Luxembourg are being investigated by E.U. regulators, as the online retailer becomes the latest global company to be accused of striking tax-minimising deals with member states that may break bloc rules. Corporate tax avoidance has come under the spotlight on both sides of the Atlantic in… – Continue reading
In view of the frenzy in the profession over compliance with the new FATCA rules, it seems appropriate to take an overview of how FATCA applies to a major source of inbound investment by foreign individuals – “FIRPTA” investments in U.S. real property. This commentary considers the extent to which… – Continue reading
For Europeans looking for a slice of the good life, Spain has long been the most popular destination. At the time of the last census in Spain, almost 12% of the country’s population was born overseas, up from less than 1% only a few decades earlier. These days Spain is… – Continue reading
Telstra’s billion dollar share buy back, which only made financial sense for zero-tax shareholders, has been a roaring success. So much so, a scale-back by almost 70 per cent of tenders was required and the firm paid out at the bottom of the agreed range — just $4.60 a share,… – Continue reading
On top of his many boxing titles, including world championships in eight weight classes, Manny Pacquiao is on tap for a possible Senate seat in 2016. First, he has to get his taxes resolved. The Supreme Court of the Philippines ordered the boxing champ and potential Senator to answer the… – Continue reading
Amazon, the online retailer, is to face a formal investigation into its European corporate tax practices, the European Commission has announced. The Commission – the executive division of the 28-member European Union – says it will look at the tax agreement made between Amazon and Luxembourg. It suspects the deal… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) is CONSULTING on draft regulations that will exclude two types of persons from the definition of “promoter” for the purposes of the Promoters of Tax Avoidance legislation. The regulations are intended to MEET concerns raised during the development of the primary legislation. They are relieving… – Continue reading
Romanian authorities have ordered the closure of Lukoil’s Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, Romania. Oleg Malginov, Russia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Romania, announced that the oil refinery had been closed sue to an investigation for tax evasion and money laundering. Malginov, as cited by ITAR-TASS, pointed out that the halt… – Continue reading
Romanian authorities have ordered the closure of Lukoil’s Petrotel refinery in Ploiesti, Romania. Oleg Malginov, Russia’s Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Romania, announced that the oil refinery had been closed sue to an investigation for tax evasion and money laundering. Malginov, as cited by ITAR-TASS, pointed out that the halt… – Continue reading
