A new agreement on international tax and financial information exchange aims to provide less opportunity to shelter wealth from taxation. Global wealth managers and advisors need to make sure they and their clients are in compliance. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (PRWEB) JULY 18, 2018 The Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for the automatic… – Continue reading
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts -– The Government of St. Kitts and Nevis took steps on Friday, July 13, to further strengthen its proactive cooperation on tax matters through the passage of three amendments to the Common Reporting Standard (Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information) (Amendment) Bill, 2018, in the National Assembly…. – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Inland Revenue (Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters) Order (the Order) was gazetted and came into operation today (July 13). The Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (the Convention) will enter into force in Hong Kong on September 1,… – Continue reading
From a commercial viewpoint it is important that the Holdco is located in a reputable jurisdiction when seeking to access international equity and debt capital markets. The choice of Holdco location will also be relevant in circumstances where private equity investment is envisaged or where a trade sale is planned…. – Continue reading
Money laundering and abuse of sophisticated financial instruments have come under increasing scrutiny from regulators. However observers warn high-profile initiatives often act as a distraction from a lack of genuine political will to tackle global financial crime. For example, India’s leading stock exchange, the BSE, de-listed 222 dormant shell companies… – Continue reading
The UK does still have one significant disadvantage namely the 20% withholding tax imposed by UK domestic law on “yearly interest” that arises in the UK is paid to persons whose “usual place of abode” is outside the UK. The UK is normally regarded as an attractive location for the… – Continue reading
The United Arab Emirates has more than 140 free zones across seven emirates, including 20 designated zones with separate laws, regulations and VAT treatment. This can make doing business in the UAE a complex journey. However, there is also the strong benefit of the UAE being one of the easier… – Continue reading
WELLINGTON, June 26 (Xinhua) — New measures to ensure multinational companies in New Zealand pay their fair share of tax will come into force next week. Revenue Minister Stuart Nash said the Taxation (Neutralizing Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) Bill, which passed its third reading in Parliament on Tuesday, takes… – Continue reading
(CNS): While the prospect of legal cannabis for recreational use in the Cayman Islands is not expected anytime soon, Canada is just a couple of months away from full legalisation. As that date approaches, legislators have raised concerns that the multi-billion dollar legal weed market could be taken over by… – Continue reading
US congressman Peter DeFazio (D-OR) has introduced legislation designed to amend the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act so that incentives for US corporations to shift income and production overseas are reduced. Introducing the bill, DeFazio said: “The new tax law [the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act] allows multinational corporations to… – Continue reading
The walls continue to close in on Offshore property holding companies in Portugal. Once a popular solution for home ownership, these structures are based in low-tax jurisdictions that allow shareholders to take advantage of certain “loopholes” to avoid paying Capital Gains tax when selling. Over the past 15 years, successive… – Continue reading
The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca) is a US legislation that is part of the 2010 Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act, and forming part of four new sections incorporated into the US Internal Revenue Code. It is a law designed to improve offshore US tax collection by… – Continue reading
For the next long-term EU budget 2021-2027, the Commission is proposing measures to make tax and customs cooperation between Member States better and more efficient. Continued funding of these programmes will help the EU to progress in offering businesses unfettered and easy access to the EU’s Single Market so that… – Continue reading
London and Cyprus have tightened the regulations for banking operations, and the accounts belonging to Russians face blocking. Last weekend, Britain said it could block the bank accounts of about 100 foreigners. The assets will be frozen unless their owners provide information on the source of the money. At the… – Continue reading
Existing penalties aren’t enough to stop businesses using software to hide sales and reduce their tax, a federal government minister says. Kelly O’Dwyer says tougher penalties, including fines up to $1 million, will deter those who take part in the black economy. Legislation to create offences and introduce penalties for… – Continue reading
Norway’s parliament, the Storting, has rejected a legislative proposal for the introduction of a tax on digital business models, labeled the “Google tax,” recommending instead that the Government explore the issue of digital taxation in partnership with the OECD. In rejecting the proposal, introduced by parliamentary commissioner Une Bastholm of… – Continue reading
Cabinet will recommend delay in Parliament extraordinary session to allow more time for dialogue AMMAN — The government will use all its might to defend the income tax draft law as it is presented to the Lower House for approval, a government official said on Monday. “We will use all… – Continue reading
TT may soon be the lone Caribbean country on the European Union’s (EU) list of tax havens (blacklist). The Bahamas and St Kitts are expected to be removed when EU finance ministers meet in Brussels next week. However government is one step closer to resolving the issue through legislation being… – Continue reading
Attorney General Carl Bethel QC. Photo: Terrel W Carey/Tribune Staff Legislation to create a central Beneficial Ownership Registry is “not set in stone”, the Attorney General has revealed, with the Government seeking “urgent” consultation on the issue. Carl Bethel QC, addressing a Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB)-sponsored seminar, said the… – Continue reading
As Nigeria continues to innovate and source strategies to attract foreign investors, making the country an investor destination in sub Saharan Africa and indeed the whole of Africa, the United Arab Emirates’ example is perhaps the way to go. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the Vice President and Prime… – Continue reading
Singapore has gazetted a law to repeal the income tax concession for intellectual property income derived by companies benefiting from the Pioneer Service Companies Incentive (PC-S) or the Development and Expansion Incentive (DEI) schemes. The removal of this tax concession was first announced in Singapore’s 2017 Budget at the same… – Continue reading
JURIST Guest Columnist Inès Soumhi of Pitt Law, discusses the impact of European Law on the French Tax System… In January 2018, the French Parliament formalized – as part of the 2018 Finance Act – several tax changes likely to impact companies including the repeal of the 3% additional tax… – Continue reading
There have been a number of recent legal and regulatory changes in Taiwan that have impact from a wealth management perspective. Tax Rates Changes effective 2018 Effective 1 January 2018, the new tax rates for Taiwan are: Local foundation tax rule tightened Effective 1 January 2018, dividend for local foundations… – Continue reading
(CNS): As the global cryptocurrency sector heats up, job creating international investment is seeking out suitable jurisdictions and Cayman Islands’ offshore rivals are looking to steal a march on this growth by introducing crypto-friendly laws and legislation, with Bermuda in pole position. Bermuda’s government said recently that it wants to… – Continue reading
Minister says gov’t ‘open’ to dialogue with all segments of society over new law AMMAN — The new amendments to Income Tax Law aim at serving taxpayers and “effectively” combating tax evasion, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Economic Affairs Jafar Hassan said on Tuesday. During a discussion… – Continue reading
In the wake of Armenia’s peaceful, constitutional political transition – a move broadly welcomed among Washington, DC policymakers as marking a new chapter in U.S.-Armenia relations – the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has renewed its longstanding drive for a U.S.-Armenia Double Tax Treaty, a good-governance accord needed to… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI, MAY 7 The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has notified a protocol to amend the existing double taxation avoidance pact (DTAA) between India and Kuwait. The protocol, which was signed on January 15, 2017, was notified on May 4 this year, an official release said. It had… – Continue reading
The United Kingdom’s parliament has enacted a new law requiring its overseas territories — which include notorious tax havens like Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, and the British Virgin Islands — to start disclosing by 2020 the owners of corporations they register. This could shut down a huge amount of offshore… – Continue reading
Britain’s 14 overseas territories, including the Cayman Islands, will have to introduce public registers of beneficial ownership by the end of 2020. If they do not, the U.K. government will issue an order in council to force Cayman and other territories to do so. The U.K. Conservative Party government did… – Continue reading
Alfi speaks out on the double taxation treaty signed between Luxembourg and France on 20 March 2018. Although it appreciates that it is the product of bilateral negotiation, it calls for more clarity before it is ratified. The Association of the Luxembourg Funds Industry (Alfi) has added its voice to… – Continue reading
THE Deputy Prime Minister yesterday promised that the proposed Beneficial Ownership registry will have “the most stringent controls”, amid industry concerns over the lack of prior consultation. K P Turnquest told Tribune Business that it was “not an unreasonable guess” to suggest that the Bahamas would follow the Cayman Islands’… – Continue reading
In Mahaveer Kumar Jain vs. Commissioner of Income Tax, the Supreme Court held that the income earned by the assessee from lottery prize cannot be subjected to tax under Income Tax Act, 1961 when the same tax was already paid under Sikkim State Income Tax Rules, 1948. The appellant had… – Continue reading
Doing away with the outdated and increasingly minority offshore tax system can create problems with what the Basic Law says ‘The Macau Special Administrative Region shall, on its own, make policies on tourism and recreation in the light of its overall interests,’ states the Basic Law in Article 118. Today,… – Continue reading
Legislation led by U.S. Rep. Peter Roskam (R-IL) to reform Internal Revenue Service (IRS) civil asset forfeiture tools and his other priorities to protect taxpayers cleared the U.S. House last week as part of a larger IRS modernization initiative. The House on April 18 passed the Taxpayer First Act, H.R…. – Continue reading
RIGA – The Saeima national economic, rural, environment and regional policy committee today supported amendments to Public Procurement Law, deleting the ban for the companies registered in low-tax or tax-free countries, or the so-called offshore countries, from taking part in public tenders in Latvia. As reported, the Latvian parliament on… – Continue reading
Capital gains taxes will always remain a controversial topic. This is especially true in Thailand, by the look of things, as the cryptocurrency community wants the nation’s Finance Ministry to rethink its guidelines in this regard. For most people, this is also an effort to create a more lenient ecosystem… – Continue reading
Saving American jobs from going overseas was the cornerstone of candidate Trump’s populist campaign for president. “We’re just shipping company after company after company is leaving this country and leaving jobs behind,” Trump said in March of 2016. “And I’m going to get it stopped.” In October of 2017, while… – Continue reading
IMF Section 2 – Article 8 “No member may impose restrictions without the approval of the International Monetary Fund on payments and remittances in respect of current international transactions” KUWAIT CITY, April 15: The thirty-first report of the National Assembly’s Finance and Economic Committee on bills on taxation of expatriate… – Continue reading
The OECD has published new transfer pricing country profiles for Australia, China, Estonia, France, Georgia, Hungary, India, Israel, Liechtenstein, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, and Uruguay, bringing the number of such overviews published by the OECD to 44. The profiles explain the current transfer pricing legislation and practices of each country…. – Continue reading
ISLAMABAD: President Mamnoon Hussain on Sunday issued the Foreign Assets (Declaration and Repatriation) Ordinance bringing into effect a tax amnesty scheme announced by the prime minister earlier this week. The ordinance encompasses assets obtained on installments, declaration of property as per the “fair market value” and its confiscation by the… – Continue reading
Formula One has been handed £187.5m by HMRC to settle a dispute after the Government put the brakes on a perfectly legal tax avoidance scheme it had been using for a decade. The build up for this year’s F1 campaign began to rev up on Thursday as the sport’s ten… – Continue reading
The Agencia Estatal de Administración Tributaria (AEAT), more commonly known as the Agencia Tributaria, the tax agency of the Spanish government is set to take a hard-line stance on what it suspects to be tax evasion activities aided and abetted by cryptocurrencies. The move comes as yet another chapter in… – Continue reading
PROPERTY in the UK, particularly London, has always been popular with GCC investors for many years. It has remained a safe haven and an attractive destination for investors and their families from the GCC region perhaps more than any other major city. Depending on the level of investment, well… – Continue reading
Tax authorities reviewed a case in which a doctor worked at a limited partnership firm and was paid via a limited liability company. The court described the arrangements as tax evasion. Many professionals would prefer to pay taxes on capital income because the tax burden is lighter than on earned… – Continue reading
ASTANA, 29 March (BelTA-Kazinform) – The Senate (upper house) of the Parliament of Kazakhstan passed the law on the ratification of the protocol between the Government of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the Government of the Republic of Belarus on amendments and additions to the agreement on the avoidance of… – Continue reading
The federal government wants to block multinational companies using trusts and partnerships to escape paying tax in Australia. Assistant to the Treasurer Michael Sukkar introduced legislation to parliament on Wednesday that would bring artificial or contrived arrangements involving trusts and partnerships under the multinational tax avoidance laws introduced in 2016…. – Continue reading
THE Bahamas’ ‘blacklisting’ response threatens to “cause a lot of damage” to its IBC business and create “much less certainty” for the financial services industry, a top attorney is warning. Michael Paton, a former Bahamas Financial Services Board (BFSB) chairman, told Tribune Business that the proposed Multinational Entities Reporting Bill… – Continue reading
One of the fastest growing crypto exchanges over the past year, Binance, announced on its official blog its intention to move operations to the European island of Malta. This decision comes after the difficulties experienced to operate under the conditions imposed by the Japanese government. A few weeks ago the… – Continue reading
The Government’s planned legal reforms pave the way for the introduction of “corporate taxation” on a wide range of Bahamian financial services products, it was revealed yesterday. Carl Bethel QC, the Attorney General, confirmed to Tribune Business that legislation intended to address the European Union’s (EU) ‘blacklisting’ concerns was designed… – Continue reading
The European Commission is to take steps to ensure that EU external development and investment funds cannot be channelled or transited through entities in countries included on the EU’s “blacklist” of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions. The Commission has published guidelines which set out the applicable legislation on how EU funds should… – Continue reading
