CHENNAI: The hardest thing in the world to understand is the income tax, is what Albert Einstein had famously said. Amid the long list of taxation categories, to assimilate what is taxable and what is exempted is hard. Even harder is to pay them, of course. As the June 15… – Continue reading
The United Kingdom has legislated to stop property developers from using offshore structures in the Crown Dependencies to avoid UK tax on profits. The UK has published legislation to bring into force amendments to the tax treaties between the UK and the Crown Dependencies – Guernsey, Jersey, and the Isle… – Continue reading
On 20 April 2016, the Loan Market Association (“LMA”) updated its Standard Terms and Conditions for Par and Distressed Trade Transactions (Bank Debt/Claims) (“Standard Terms”) to include language that covers FATCA (as defined below) tax withholding on certain payments of US source FDAP income and, potentially, sale proceeds (as described… – Continue reading
The Panama Papers have recently drawn a great deal of investigation and public attention. Over 230,000 organizations and individuals were named as having set up offshore companies in tax haven like the British Virgin Islands, Panama, the Cayman Islands or the Bahamas. The public’s initial reaction was suspicion and anger toward… – Continue reading
A group of tax havens have accused larger countries like the United States of “hypocrisy” when it comes to cracking down on tax avoidance. With the issue of offshore finance high on the agenda in light of the fall out from the so-called Panama Papers scandal, world leaders convened in… – Continue reading
A change to our tax rules aimed at foreign property investors is likely to affect many people, a tax expert says. A bill poised to be passed by Parliament this week may increase the red tape for anyone based overseas doing taxable business with this country. The Taxation (Residential Land… – Continue reading
The tax treatment of non-domiciled individuals is changing again from April 2017. The changes were first announced in the 2015 Summer Budget, and a Consultation document was issued in September 2015 setting out further details. The proposed changes target three key areas: The taxation of non-domiciled individuals who have been… – Continue reading
US disregarded entities owned by foreign persons would be treated as domestic corporations under regulations proposed by the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) on Friday (REG-127199-15). The new rules would apply for purposes of the reporting, record maintenance, and other compliance requirements that apply to 25% foreign-owned domestic corporations under… – Continue reading
Islamabad—The Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Bill, 2016 will enable the government to tackle with the problem of tax evasion and black money and transactions being carried out in other people’s names. The said bill will also to put an end to benami transactions, and to empower the government to recover such… – Continue reading
THE Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) recently issued Revenue Memorandum Circular (RMC) No. 32-2016 setting the amendments in the provisions of the Philippines-New Zealand tax treaty, which was originally entered into on Oct. 2, 2008. The Protocol includes the following changes: 1. The rate for dividends was changed to a… – Continue reading
A world away from Panama, the sleepy eastern Hungarian village of Komlóska has become a kind of tax haven – to survive. The village of 300 inhabitants is in one of Hungary’s poorest regions with high unemployment and a shrinking population. But in 1990 the mayor, László Köteles, decided to… – Continue reading
HMRC complicite in tax avoidance scheme after it emerged it rents its own office from tax haven based company A day on, the world is still reeling from the revelations of the Panama Papers leak, the full repercussions of which are yet to be felt. Eleven million documents leaked from… – Continue reading
Premier Li Keqiang’s message to the country’s tax and financial authorities is crystal clear: The ongoing landmark tax reform must reduce burdens on all industries. One month before the May 1 deadline of a sweeping reform that seeks to replace China’s decadeslong business tax with a value-added tax, Li visited… – Continue reading
March 31 — Minnesota Sen. John Marty (DFL) introduced legislation that would require corporations headquartered in 46 tax havens to be subject to the same taxation as domestic companies. While it’s still early in the legislative session—the bill was introduced March 29—a spokeswoman for the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce told… – Continue reading
The Association of Tax Technicians (ATT) has expressed its disappointment that the UK Government intends to press ahead with plans to introduce a stamp duty land tax (SDLT) surcharge on purchases of second homes from April 1. Higher rates of SDLT will apply to purchases in England, Wales, and Northern… – Continue reading
Pune: The property tax department of Pune Municipal Corporation has sealed 14 properties after their owners defaulted on tax payment in the last three days. The administration took action against the owners of these properties because they had refused to pay the pending tax amount worth around Rs 70 lakh…. – Continue reading
The first Budget tabled by Canada’s new Liberal Government provides for a major crackdown on tax evasion and avoidance, and streamlines the domestic tax credits system. The Budget was delivered by Finance Minister Bill Morneau on March 22, 2016. He told Parliament: “Today, we begin to restore hope for the… – Continue reading
A TAX loophole has been closed to stop Jersey developers avoiding or evading tax on profits made from UK property projects. The loophole, which was known as ‘The Island Handshake’, had been in existence since the 1950s and was used to make Jersey an ‘investment doorway’ for UK property development…. – Continue reading
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) has issued a guideline asking its income tax offices across the country to start ‘scrutiny assessment’ of the tax returns submitted for the tax year 2015-16. As per the guideline, the taxmen have to complete the scrutiny assessment known as ‘return process’ by December… – Continue reading
The Williams Mullen Southeast State and Local Tax (SESALT) team is pleased to provide you with a comprehensive recap of important tax developments around the Southeast. VIRGINIA CORPORATE INCOME TAX Conformity with Internal Revenue Code. Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe signed emergency legislation on February 5, 2016 that advances the state’s… – Continue reading
Summary The pace of change in international tax is dramatic. Each month brings new initiatives and developments at both national and supra-national levels. In this update, we focus on recent changes which are relevant to our clients. The OECD Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“BEPS”) reports were finalised in October… – Continue reading
Only the little people pay taxes. For a small, select cohort of rich Australians, the famous quote of New York property billionaire Leona Helmsley rings not as an outrage but as an inspiration. In the most recent documents released by the Australian Tax Office, there were 55 people who had… – Continue reading
Tax evasion has always been a criminal offence in India. Few know that this can even land you in jail. Persecution in any related offence can come under Chapter XXII of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Under this act, 3-6 months of rigorous jail will be given to offenders under these… – Continue reading
The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has updated Publication 515, Withholding of Tax on Nonresident Aliens and Foreign Entities, which covers the obligations of the persons responsible for withholding tax (withholding agents). It is specified that the Publication is for withholding agents who pay income to foreign persons, including nonresident… – Continue reading
Maltese individuals resident and domiciled for tax purposes, that is people whose permanent residence is in Malta, are required to pay tax in Malta on their worldwide income, according to the Income Tax Act. This essentially means that Minister Konrad Mizzi is required to pay tax on foreign earnings. However… – Continue reading
Pakistan and Czech Republic have implemented a convention to avoid double taxation and prevent tax evasion, the Federal Board of Revenue notified on Monday. An official said the convention on avoidance of double taxation will come into force on July 1. “This is an epoch-making event in the consolidation of… – Continue reading
‘Multinational corporations complain all the time of excessive demand about excessive taxation, but it is also true that MNCs across the world tend to find tax avoidance and sometimes tax evasion as an appropriate technique’ Blaming multinational corporations squarely for tax controversies, Reserve Bank Governor Raghuram Rajan has said their… – Continue reading
The OECD’s final reports on the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) Project aim to target aggressive tax planning strategies which have the effect of shifting profits from high tax jurisdictions to low tax jurisdictions. The BEPS Project has been divided into 15 Actions, of which one of the most… – Continue reading
Tempur Sealy swung to a loss in the fourth quarter as a tax dispute with Denmark that may take years to resolve continued to weigh on the world’s largest mattress maker. The net loss of $11.3 million, or 18 cents a share, reflected in part a balance sheet charge related… – Continue reading
While the central government is pursuing its objective to provide a certain and stable tax regime, it is critical that instances of dual levy of VAT and service tax on the same transaction are addressed urgently The levy of service tax as well as Value Added Tax (VAT) on the… – Continue reading
Ireland will be forced to ban many of the tax advantages it offers multinationals under proposals to be published by the European Commission tomorrow. This is the first step in an effort to have all EU countries introduce similar tax rules to prevent companies in the 28 member states avoiding… – Continue reading
Anguilla levies a 3% flat rate of personal income tax and is otherwise a tax haven with a stunning climate and amazing Carribean lifestyle Whilst there are various categories of flat tax, including marginal flat tax and Hall-Rabushka flat tax, in its simplest form flat tax is simply a rate… – Continue reading
Once the thrill of deciding to retire overseas has subsided, you normally start to think of all the things you need to do before you go. Picking the right removal firm, a lawyer to help you buy a new home are a couple, but the tax & financial implications of… – Continue reading
A group of businesses in the Welsh town of Crickhowell have gone offshore as part of a campaign to try and get HMRC to change tax laws. The Welsh town of Crickhowell is spearheading a unique campaign to get HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) to change the laws so companies… – Continue reading
It’s a whopping four and a half thousand miles away from the UK but the Cayman Islands is a slice of British-overseas paradise. Watched over by a Governor appointed from Whitehall, the Caymans are technically British. But there’s a huge difference between that island and the UK: no-one seems to… – Continue reading
Court of Appeal decision on tax residence provides more certainty In a case potentially impacting all New Zealanders who move overseas, the Court of Appeal has decided in favour of the taxpayer, finding that property which a person has never lived in nor intends to live in cannot be their… – Continue reading
Main principles of Indirect Taxation In our fifth article in a series of articles on the tax challenges of the digital economy, we shall be providing you hereunder with a brief overview of the principles of indirect taxation, with a focus primarily on the VAT and the destination principle applicable… – Continue reading
