Category: Income Tax

Cyprus: The Cyprus Investment Programme And The Benefits

The Cyprus Investment Programme is rapidly becoming one of the EU’s most popular residence schemes.

  • Non Cypriot citizens (and their families) can acquire Cyprus Citizenship by investing €2.5 million* in Cyprus.
*In one specific set of circumstances as detailed below in the financial criteria, the investment required is €2.0 million. A non-Cypriot citizen who meets one of the financial criteria detailed below can apply for Cypriot citizenship ‘through naturalization by exception’.
  • Following the application, Cyprus citizenship will be granted in six months, assuming the application has been completed accurately and the correct documentation filed.
  • The applicant needs to be in posession of a residence permit for a period of six months before obtaining the citizenship.
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FBR issues 253,000 notices to non-filer industrialists

KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has issued around 253,000 notices to industrialists and businessmen, asking them to file returns, as the revenue body is expanding its broadening of tax base drive, officials said on Tuesday. An official said the FBR has so far issued 253,700 notices to consumers… – Continue reading

Canada: Transfer Pricing: What’s New In Canada (Part II)

Transfer pricing disputes in Canada have, predominately, been resolved through either a request for competent authority assistance under the Mutual Agreement Procedure ("MAP") of a treaty, or, to a much lesser extent, through the notice of objection process with CRA Appeals.  Regardless of the recent increase in transfer pricing cases being brought before the Courts, the MAP will likely continue to be the dispute resolution process most often utilized by a Canadian corporation in transfer pricing cases because, in the absence of a 100% reversal of a transfer pricing adjustment by either CRA Appeals or a Canadian court, economic double taxation may still exist as a consequence of the CRA upward transfer pricing adjustment. The correlative relief provided by the treaty partner under a MAP settlement resolves that double taxation. ... - Continue reading

FBR demands Rs992m from TV channel in alleged tax evasion case

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has served a notice on ARY Communications Limited (ARY) and raised a tax demand of Rs992 million – alleging that the entity had evaded tens of millions in taxes through misrepresentation, concealment and misuse of exemptions, thereby causing a substantial loss to the… – Continue reading

HMRC collects record £191bn in income tax

The taxman is raking in record amounts in income tax as the latest figures reveal Britons paid an extra £11bn in 2018/19. Income tax receipts have soared to a record £191bn, according to figures published, a 6% increase from the previous year. Britons are paying almost 30% more income tax… – Continue reading

Senate inquiry into foreign workers’ tax payments pushed

SEN. Sherwin Gatchalian has called on the Senate to hold an inquiry on the uncollected taxes from registered and unregistered foreign workers, especially those in the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) industry. n calling for an investigation, Gatchalian stressed that taxes properly collected are essential since revenues enable the government… – Continue reading

China issues overall plan for new area of Shanghai FTZ

BEIJING, Aug. 6 (Xinhua) — China’s State Council, or the cabinet, has issued an overall plan for the new Lingang area of the China (Shanghai) Pilot Free Trade Zone. The new area will be set up to the south of Dazhi River, east of Jinhui Port, and south of Xiaoyangshan… – Continue reading

Hong Kong: A Guide To Tax Regulations In Hong Kong 2019 – 2020

While considering moving a business into a new market, one of the key consideration is that country's tax regime. What are the incentives that would attract foreign investment? Are there any double tax treaties in place? What is the rate for corporate tax? ... - Continue reading

Pass tax reform bills — Dominguez

The Department of Finance (DOF) has expressed the hope that President Duterte’s call in his State-of-the-Nation Address (SONA) for Congress to pass reforms in the corporate tax system along with the remaining packages of the administration’s comprehensive tax reform program (CTRP) will provide lawmakers a strong impetus to pass these… – Continue reading

Netherlands draft law requires disclosure of cross-border transactions to tax authorities

On July 12 the Netherlands government published a legislative proposal implementing the EU mandatory disclosure directive. This follows an internet consultation on a draft legislative proposal which ran from December 19, 2018 — February 1, 2019. ... - Continue reading

POGOs promise to pay tax starting this month

Operators of offshore gaming companies vowed to comply with Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III’s directive to settle their income tax, seen to reach at least P24 billion in additional annual collections, beginning this month. This developed after the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGO) met with Dominguez where they agreed… – Continue reading

Greater Bay Area Releases Detailed Plan on IIT Incentives for Overseas Talents

The Greater Bay Area officially announced detailed rules for the implementation of preferential individual income tax (IIT) policy for overseas talents. Eligible overseas talents working in nine cities in the region can enjoy a preferential tax rate of 15 percent – in line with the Hong Kong IIT rate. China… – Continue reading

Mauritius rule changes may hit offshore funds

Funds may lose tax benefit after rule amendment.  Mumbai: The Mauritius government’s proposal to amend tax residency rules for companies is giving jitters to foreign funds operating from the tax haven. Mauritius has recently announced that it is amending rules for determining tax residency for companies so that a company… – Continue reading

India: Split Residency – ITAT Upholds The Taxpayer’s Claim For Treaty Exemption, Applies Centre Of Vital Interest Test

Dual Residency gets attracted when an expat in the year of move qualifies as a resident of the host country (i.e., the country in which he is deputed) as well as home country (i.e., the country of his residence). On account of dual residency, an expat can be doubly taxed… – Continue reading

NBR for 30pc job quota for Bangladeshis

The National Board of Revenue recommended that the proposed guidelines on local entrepreneurs’ overseas investment should include provisions that the interested businesses have no overdue taxes in Bangladesh and have to employ minimum 30 per cent Bangladeshis in overseas projects. The NBR made the suggestions in its observations sent last… – Continue reading

‘Fundamentally wrong’ stamp duty surcharge on non-residents will ‘dampen market’

The government’s proposed surcharge on non-resident property buyers offers real reasons for concern. John Goodchild takes out his stamp duty calculator to explain The government proposes to introduce a stamp duty (SDLT) surcharge on non-UK residents (both individuals and non-natural persons) purchasing residential property in England. The proposed level of… – Continue reading

48 KRA officers wanted for bribery, tax evasion

48 Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) officials were Monday morning expected at the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) headquarters on Kiambu road for questioning. The individuals include 32 officers from KRA’s Domestic Taxes Department, 15 from the Customs and Border Control Department and one from the Investigations and Enforcement Department. They… – Continue reading

Number of tax return filers increases to hit record 1.96 million

KARACHI: Number of tax return filers has increased around seven percent year-over-year to hit the record 1.96 million for the tax year 2018 as the government extended the deadline of filing three times to April 30, sources said on Wednesday. The FBR received 1,963,348 returns by April 30, 2019, which… – Continue reading

A perspective on tax amnesty

Tax amnesty is defines as “grant of an opportunity to a specific class of society to declare their undeclared assets by payment of a meagre amount of tax in addition to grant of immunity from default surcharge, penalties and prosecution”. It is introduced by the governments to fulfill the slogan… – Continue reading

British American Tobacco shifts nearly $1bn out of developing countries into one UK office

For every dollar British American Tobacco (BAT) paid in tax in the countries it operates in, the giant multinational shifted more than half a dollar that would have been taxed locally to a UK subsidiary where BAT paid almost no tax. New analysis by the Tax Justice Network estimates Bangladesh,… – Continue reading

PSX recommends CGT exemption for foreign investors in next fiscal year

—Says exemption to facilitate capital inflow by relaxing account opening, registration process ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) in its proposals for budget 2019-2020 has recommended exemption of capital gain tax (CGT) on disposal of securities by foreign investors. Budget proposals for next fiscal year 2019-20, available with Pakistan Today,… – Continue reading