UN launches panel to tackle illicit finance
The United Nations has launched the High-Level Panel on Financial Accountability, Transparency and Integrity (FACTI) to address corporate tax abuse and other illicit financial flows. ... - Continue reading
Category: Tax Haven
UN forms panel to help battle tax evasion, money laundering
Thought leaders from across the globe on Monday joined a UN panel tasked with making recommendations to fix the financial system that lacks effective ways to deal with tax evasion, tax avoidance, money laundering and corruption. The High-Level Panel on International Financial Accountability, Transparency and Integrity for Achieving the 2030… – Continue reading
World Bank aid ‘leakage’ may flow to tax havens: study
“Our estimates suggest a leakage rate of around 7.5 percent for the average highly aid-dependent country,” the study concluded. ... - Continue reading
Cayman tops ranking of money hideouts
Cayman is now the top enabler of financial secrecy in the world, according to the findings from the Tax Justice Network’s Financial Secrecy Index 2020. In second and third place respectively, were the United States and Switzerland. The Tax Justice Network has called on policymakers to prioritise sanctions against Cayman… – Continue reading
British Tax Havens to Share Data With Russian Authorities
The Automatic Exchange of Information still going on strong it seems. ... - Continue reading
Netflix accused of funnelling £330million profits ‘into tax havens’
According to TaxWatch, Netflix’s corporate structure is an enabler of tax avoidance. ... - Continue reading
Panama stays on French tax haven list
Panama stays stuck onto France's blacklist. ... - Continue reading
EU to roll out sanctions against blacklisted jurisdictions
The EU has approved a plan to impose financial sanctions on countries or jurisdictions on the bloc's tax haven blacklist by the end of 2020. ... - Continue reading
How major tech companies exploit tax laws: A focus on Ghana and Nigeria
When World Trade Organisation (WTO) officials designed the territorial taxing rights back in the 1920s, not many people imagined that a century later; these guidelines would still underpin the international tax system. Today, highly digitalised companies such as Facebook and Google are able to operate internationally from their tax havens,… – Continue reading
HMRC drops further £5m from Rangers tax claim
HMRC's claim against the company which owned Rangers has fallen again, according to the latest report from liquidators BDO. ... - Continue reading
EU divided over definition of “tax paradise”
A policy proposal presented by the Danish government last week calls for a wider scope in the operative definition of tax avoidance and tax evasion. ... - Continue reading
EU to Consider Tougher Tax Haven Listing
Instant additions to EU's blacklist? ... - Continue reading
Amazon most ‘aggressive’ in $100bn global tax avoidance
Amazon has been accused of being the most ‘aggressive’ in avoiding tax, compared with other tech giants, by tax transparency campaign group Fair Tax Mark. ... - Continue reading
EU removes UAE, Switzerland from tax haven lists
EU removes UAE, Switzerland from tax haven lists Share this storyEU removes UAE, Switzerland from tax haven lists LUXEMBOURG — European Union finance ministers agreed to remove the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Switzerland from the bloc’s lists of countries deemed to be acting as tax havens, according to a… – Continue reading
Indirect linkages to Tax Havens
According to the most current Federal Tax Compliance Research Report, there is an estimated US Net Tax Gap (Tax Not Collected) of $406 Billion. ... - Continue reading
Which Countries Are Considered The Top Corporate Tax Havens?
When multinational companies look to open up a new subsidiary or a regional headquarters, they tend to prefer certain countries due to their favorable tax policies. ... - Continue reading
EU to remove Belize from tax haven blacklist this week
European Union finance ministers are set to remove the Central American country of Belize from the bloc's blacklist of tax havens in a meeting this week, an EU document said. ... - Continue reading
European Union: UAE Removed From EU Tax Haven Blacklist Along With Switzerland
The United Arab Emirates and Switzerland removed from European Union's list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes on October 10. ... - Continue reading
EU to remove UAE and Switzerland from tax blacklist
The United Arab Emirates and Switzerland are set to be removed from a European Union blacklist of countries deemed to be tax havens, according to a Reuters report citing an official document. Switzerland has delivered on its commitments, the document said, acknowledging that a tax reform passed last year –… – Continue reading
Brazil: Brazilian Tax Review – August 2019
After 20 years of negotiations, the European Union and Mercosur have moved forward with the free trade agreement between the two blocs. ... - Continue reading
Canadians for Tax Fairness concerned about inaction on Panama Papers
It is estimated that the use of tax havens is costing federal and provincial governments at least $7.8 billion in lost tax revenue. Low and middle income Canadians are the ones paying for that missing $7.8 billion in tax revenue. Ottawa (11 Aug. 2016) — The leak of the Panama… – Continue reading
CRS reveals Australians holding $100bn in offshore accounts: reports
Australians are holding more than $100bn in undisclosed offshore accounts, according to new taxation office data collected under the Common Reporting Standard (CRS), British newspaper the Guardian has reported. ... - Continue reading
UK: HSBC Is Paying Hundreds Of Millions To Settle Tax Fraud Allegations
HSBC's Swiss private banking arm has agreed to pay nearly 300 million euros to settle a tax fraud case in Belgium. The settlement comes six months after a French court ordered another Swiss lender, UBS, to pay 4.5 billion euros for illegally solicitin ... - Continue reading
Mauritius leaks latest reminder of how much we lose to tax havens
Mauritius leaks latest reminder of how much we lose to tax havensA report by Canadians for Tax Fairness Bay Street and Tax Havens revealed how over 90% of Canada’s largest corporations have subsidiaries in tax havens. Ottawa (06 Aug. 2019) — Last month Canadians for Tax Fairness reported that, while… – Continue reading
Mauritius leaks: Big firms leveraging legal loopholes to save taxes can cost developing countries $100 bn every year
Proposals made by Nirmala Sitharaman at G20 Summit could alter the stasis between large corporations and tax havens. ... - Continue reading
Journalists publish details of 200+ companies using offshore law firm, conclude Mauritius promotes tax avoidance
Data on more than 200 companies that engaged the Mauritius office of Conyers Dill & Pearman were published on the internet today by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) as a result of leak of confidential information. ... - Continue reading
CIAT releases detailed proposals aimed at stopping transfer pricing abuse
The Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations (CIAT), on July 15, released comprehensive and detailed proposals aimed at preventing abusive transfer pricing in low-income countries and in countries on the path to development. ... - Continue reading
Transfer (mis)pricing
TRANSFER pricing — the pricing of commodities traded between or within multinational enterprises — is a legal practice and a key feature of cross-border and intra-firm transactions. The United Nations prefers to use the broader phrase ‘trade pricing’ in addressing this practice and defines it as a ‘normal incident of… – Continue reading
Taiwan to join anti-tax evasion program CRS
Taiwan expected to share financial information with Japan and Australia in 2020 TAIPEI (Taiwan News) – Taiwan is expected to exchange financial information with a number of countries in September of next year as part of the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) program designed to combat tax evasion. Developed by the… – Continue reading
Experts convene in the City of London to call out ‘pin stripe mafia enablers of tax abuse’
Researchers and campaigners from around the world have been presenting radical solutions on tackling tax abuse and financial crime at the Tax Justice Network’s annual conference held in the heart of London’s finance centre, on 2 – 3 July 2019. With over 200 attendees including prominent politicians, whistleblowers and economists,… – Continue reading
The American Bar Association is fighting Washington’s efforts to tackle money laundering
This legislation will force owners of US companies to reveal their identities. ... - Continue reading
UK dependencies to reveal company ownership amid tax haven crackdown
The three British Crown Dependencies - Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man - said on Wednesday they would move to reveal publicly the true ownership of firms based in their jurisdictions, a change welcomed by anti-corruption campaigners. ... - Continue reading
Dominica removed from EU tax haven blacklist
The European Union has removed the Caribbean island of Dominica from its list of uncooperative jurisdictions in tax matters. Dominica changed its tax rules to comply with EU requirements meant to reduce the risks of tax evasion, the EU said in a statement. Dominica implemented its commitments and addressed EU… – Continue reading
Bahamas’ Corporate Tax World’s Most ‘Corrosive’
The Bahamas yesterday received no credit for laws said to have raised compliance costs by 75-80 percent after its corporate tax policies were rated as the world’s most “corrosive”. This nation achieved a “perfect” 100 out of 100, a score matched only by the Isle of Man, Turks & Caicos… – Continue reading
New ranking reveals UK’s role in breakdown of global corporate tax system
Decades of tax wars among the world’s richest countries are unravelling the century-old global corporate tax system, new research finds. Forty per cent of today’s cross-border direct investments reported by the IMF – $18 trillion in value – are being booked in just 10 countries that offer corporate tax rates… – Continue reading
Uber makes $785 million in Australia in 2018 – but pays just $8.5 million tax
Uber’s local arm made a gross profit of $785 million connecting Australians to rides and restaurant meals in 2018, but most of it was wiped out by a service payment to its US parent, and it paid just $8.5 million in company tax. Uber Australia Holdings, which combines four entities… – Continue reading
Aruba is no longer a tax haven
The EU finance ministers scrap Aruba from the black list of tax havens. According to EU sources from the ANP, they will formally remove Aruba on Friday because it has amended its tax legislation. Barbados and Bermuda are also being removed, so that the list still has twelve tax culprits…. – 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
Water controversy prompts tax haven focus
Tax avoidance has crept into the tussle of the federal election campaign, as the government faces pressure to further investigate an expensive water purchase from a company based in a well-known tax haven. Labor has left the door open to supporting a Greens push for a royal commission into the… – Continue reading
FACT Coalition Calls for Corporate Tax Transparency
“Investors see the value, policymakers see the benefits, and businesses see the inevitability of greater transparency,” says the group’s executive director. The Financial Accountability and Corporate Transparency (FACT) Coalition is calling on the U.S. Congress, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Financial Accounting Standards Board to require multinationals to… – Continue reading
Taiwan removed from EU tax haven greylist
Taipei, March 14 (CNA) The European Union has removed Taiwan from the bloc’s greylist of tax havens, acknowledging the nation’s efforts at implementing anti-tax avoidance measures, Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance (MOF) said Thursday. The MOF vowed to continue to work with governments of other countries in the future and implement… – Continue reading
EU considers adding UAE, Oman on tax haven blacklist
European Union states have added ten jurisdictions to a draft tax haven blacklist, including the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bermuda, an EU official told Reuters on Tuesday, in a move that would triple the number of listed countries. The measure comes more than one year after the bloc decided… – Continue reading
EU Report Calls For Finance Authorities, AML Oversight
European Union lawmakers released a report on Wednesday (Feb. 27) recommending that the EU create a police unit dedicated to the investigation of tax and financial crimes, as well as a watchdog organization to fight money-laundering, according to a report by Reuters. The report, which is the result of a… – Continue reading
Tax Netflix and other e-commerce companies, say Canadians and CRA professionals
OTTAWA, Feb. 21, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — The federal government needn’t worry about a consumer backlash to a sales tax on Canadians’ Netflix accounts, if newly released results from an Environics Research poll and a separate survey of Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) tax professionals are any indication, says the Professional… – Continue reading
OECD pushes for corporate tax rules overhaul
The 36-member state OECD has revealed that there is growing consensus behind a US proposal for an overhaul of global corporate tax rules, which would limit the ability of multinational companies to shift profits to low-tax jurisdictions. Earlier this year, the organisation put forward four different proposals to redesign corporate… – Continue reading
TCI added to Dutch tax haven blacklist
THE DUTCH government has added the Turks and Caicos Islands and 15 other countries to a tax haven blacklist. The jurisdictions listed have no corporation tax or a corporation tax rate of less than nine percent, a press release from the Government of the Netherlands stated. The 16 countries added… – Continue reading
Report: £250 billion fraud in UK tax havens greater sum than 20 years of foreign aid budget
Russia most common place of origin for fraudsters using British overseas territories A NEW report has identified over £250 billion in fraudulent funds directed through UK tax havens, more than over 20 years of the UK Government’s foreign aid budget. The report, by Transparency International, examined the UK’s overseas territories,… – Continue reading
Tax transparency watchdog urges Israel to step up moves against money laundering
After global index puts Israel in top third of most financially secretive countries, NGO calls for more public scrutiny and regulations to stop rich from hiding their assets Israel must immediately move to pass regulations against tax evasion and money laundering if it is to protect its credit rating and… – Continue reading
Caribbean Banks support passage of tax bill amendments
THE Caribbean Association of Banks (CAB) has joined the growing list of advocates for the expedited passage of urgent legislation to strengthen this country’s international tax compliance. “Non-compliance with Global Forum Standards and Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations increases the sovereign risk profile of not only the jurisdiction (TT)… – Continue reading
KRA Reveals 6 Tricks Foreign Firms Use to Evade Tax
Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) has revealed six tricks that multinational firms use to dodge paying tax. One of the schemes involves the firms exporting very cheaply and importing good very expensively. The authority reports that most firms also under-declare they pay to expatriates a move that reduces their profits and… – Continue reading
