March 31 marks the end of the tax-saving season and the beginning of the tax-filing season. Everyone will soon get busy collecting proofs of investment and try to minimise their tax outgo. However, in the hurry to get maximum deductions, do not cross the thin line between tax-saving and taxevasion…. – Continue reading
As growth slows, the government toughens its stance on the tax practices of foreign businesses. China’s slowing economy and fiscal readjustment have led central and local governments to begin a crackdown on foreign corporate tax breaks in a search of higher revenue. The central government has become increasingly vigilant against… – Continue reading
Small banks say they will be hit harder by the bank deposit levy the government is planning to introduce in the budget because they are more reliant on deposits for funding and have thinner margins than the bigger institutions. Their view has the sympathy of the Australian Greens which said… – Continue reading
Rory McIlroy, the world’s number one golfer has set up home in Dubai, according to a report in the Sunday Times. The Northern Irishman, who has a long association with Dubai throughout his professional career, has filed documents in Ireland that state his primary residence is now in Dubai. During… – Continue reading
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and EU Counter-terrorism Coordinator Gilles de Kerchove visit Parliament this week to discuss security challenges and the EU’s response to terrorist threats. In addition MEPs vote on legislation to increase transparency when setting key interest rates, while the new special committee on tax rulings will… – Continue reading
Royal Bank of Canada’s wealth-management subsidiary in the Bahamas is caught up in tax fraud and money-laundering allegations involving billionaire international art dealer Guy Wildenstein. French prosecutor Franck Charon confirmed on Monday that France’s tax-evasion watchdog – Parquet national financer – has recommended to an investigating judge that RBC Trust… – Continue reading
Government questions dividend imputation and company tax rate Australian investors appear to have dodged a bullet, with the government’s first paper on tax reform discussing the dividend imputation system but falling short of attacking it outright as an idea that has outlived its usefulness. David Murray’s inquiry into the Australian… – Continue reading
Goldman Sachs is expected to earn up to $15 million for trading Chevron’s $4.73 billion Caltex Australia stake. Sources said Goldman had done the deal at the lower end of the block trade fee spectrum, charging the global oil giant an estimated 25 basis points for underwriting and selling the… – Continue reading
ISLAMABAD: New policy measures, including by the Finance Ministry through Finance Act, 2014, have made business costly for the tax evaders and defaulters. One of the steps was introduction of a new regime for income tax returns filers and non filers on certain transactions. The higher rates of tax for… – Continue reading
More JSE-listed counters announce offshore opportunities. It is becoming increasingly difficult for JSE-listed property companies to find value and attractive deals in the local market, which has seen the offshore diversification spree continue. Industry players believe that the sector has turned over the last few years, with more property counters… – Continue reading
Charities have cautiously welcomed the coalition’s social investment tax relief, which should help organisations attract more investors As the election looms closer, the photo opportunities are coming thick and fast. Earlier this month cabinet minister Francis Maude showed up at a Scottish whisky refinery to launch a global campaign to… – Continue reading
In Washington, they haul the bigwigs up to Capitol Hill for congressional hearings. Nobody is immune from scrutiny, whether the bosses at Goldman Sachs and JP Morgan or Apple chief Tim Cook, compelled to defend his company’s “tax gimmickry” before a sardonic Carl Levin. In Westminster, the head of Google… – Continue reading
The initiative means to lobby for a harmonization of Corporation Law in Europe to tackle tax evasion and re-fund public spending. About 40,000 Spanish citizens have signed a petition demanding measures against front companies and tax heavens in Europe, explained the activists in charge of the initiative Saturday. Beyond Spain,… – Continue reading
Reports that two South Africans are involved in what is alleged to be a massive Ponzi scheme created what some of the actors in the drama this week referred to as a media storm. The storm raged for most of the week, with the bad weather clouding some South African… – Continue reading
(Bloomberg) — Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc agreed to sell its Coutts International private banking business to Switzerland’s Union Bancaire Privee, as the bailed-out British lender retreats from the Swiss wealth market. RBS is expected to sell Coutts for 350 million francs ($360 million) to 400 million francs, depending… – Continue reading
When American companies take advantage of loopholes to keep their earnings overseas and away from the American tax man, they typically justify the legal-but-embarrassing move by appealing to their responsibility to shareholders—anything to get them another buck. But a March 17 Credit Suisse report on the $2.1 trillion in cash… – Continue reading
The Luxembourg supervisory authority, the Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier (CSSF), has recently issued FAQs regarding the immobilisation of bearer shares and units, as well as a press release to remind Luxembourg alternative investment fund managers (AIFMs) and non-EU AIFMs that market alternative investment funds (AIFs) in Luxembourg under… – Continue reading
Dividend payment by an overseas company with related assets in India will not be taxable in India, the govt says New Delhi: The income tax department on Thursday clarified that dividend payment by an overseas company with related assets in India will not be taxable in India, as part of… – Continue reading
HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has secured over £260 million after triumphing against three tax avoidance schemes in tribunal battles. The Upper Tribunal dismissed an appeal brought by the investors of a scheme promoted by NT Advisors. This was HMRC’s ninth win against schemes promoted by NT Advisors. According to… – Continue reading
(Bloomberg) — South Africa’s Financial Services Board said it’s helping regulators in Mauritius and Guernsey investigate the affairs of Cobus Kellermann, a Cape Town-based money manager. “The regulators in the foreign jurisdictions have asked us to assist them in tracking particular investments” made into South Africa, Caroline da Silva, the… – Continue reading
Irish economy set to receive financial boost by world number one golfer’s decision to pay tax on earnings. World number one Rory McIlroy is moving his vast business interests to Ireland’s capital city Dublin, according to a report in the Irish Independent. The newspaper says that McIlroy’s decision will boost… – Continue reading
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) has approached Finance Minister Ishaq Dar seeking withholding tax exemption on the payments made or transactions carried out by the IFC, through an amendment in the Second Schedule of the Income Tax Ordinance 2001 along with an exemption certificate from withholding tax provisions from July… – Continue reading
(CNS Business): Cayman’s leader, Premier Alden McLaughlin, was joined by the COO of Dart Enterprises at the House of Lords this week in promoting Cayman when he delivered a key-note address at the Caribbean Council reception. As McLaughlin sold the crowd on the benefits of investing in Cayman and the… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – Australia’s medicine subsidies, Canadian films and culture, and capital controls in Chile would be carved out from investment protection rules being negotiated in a Pacific trade pact, according to a draft text released by Wikileaks on Wednesday. An investment chapter, dated Jan. 20, from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership… – Continue reading
The Democratic staff of the Senate Finance Committee has issued a report that calls nonqualified deferred compensation plans an unfair “tax avoidance” strategy and recommends ways to close “abusive loophole(s)” in the law. The report also highlights other methods of “manipulating the timing of any taxes paid and minimizing the… – Continue reading
Introduction Every non-US entity has FATCA status Passive NFFEs report substantial US owners Trustee of trust or its sponsoring entity will report US persons Other reporting FFIs in structure will carry out FATCA due diligence Reporting when US account holders are identified Enforcement Comment Introduction The policy statement in the… – Continue reading
SINGAPORE, March 27 (IFR) – China’s Bank of Communications said it would raise up to Rmb60bn (US$9.7bn) in Additional Tier 1 capital through onshore and offshore offerings. It will sell preference shares of up to Rmb45bn onshore to not more than 200 investors and up to Rmb15bn offshore. The bank… – Continue reading
On March 6 Luxembourg’s government adopted the draft legislation transposing into national law the grand duchy’s intergovernmental agreement with the US and facilitating compliance by the country’s financial institutions with the requirements of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. FATCA, which was signed into law in 2010 but only took… – Continue reading
The tiny island nation of Dominica in the Caribbean is positioning itself as another offshore banking facility. However, its prime minister warns that if one is thinking of parking ill-gotten gains in his country, to think again. “We are open for business but at the same time we have rules,”… – Continue reading
Senate hearings to question alleged links between firm behind Queensland’s Abbot Point coal port, a Cayman Islands company and a $1bn rorts investigation The Greens will use Senate hearings to question the Foreign Investment Review Board (Firb) about alleged links between Australia’s biggest proposed coal venture, a Cayman Islands company… – Continue reading
Appleby’s Gavin Ferguson examines how Guernsey has evolved to provide clients from all over the globe with innovative advice. The mandates that cross the desk of a Guernsey private client lawyer have changed considerably in the past decade, as the jurisdiction and its fiduciary offering have evolved and adapted, whilst… – Continue reading
Tackling tax evasion should be a top EU priority. EU countries and the European Commission should play a leading role in discussing how to fight tax fraud and aggressive tax planning in the OECD and other relevant fora, says Parliament in its resolution on tax, voted on Wednesday. The resolution,… – Continue reading
Labour is instructing local parties to “minimise” tax when buying and selling properties, the Daily Telegraph can disclose. A leaked document reveals that Labour is advising their constituency parties on how to cut their tax liability and that of the national party. The disclosure will be hugely embarrassing for Ed… – Continue reading
Ghana and the Netherlands have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the Automatic Exchange of Information to help in efforts to fight tax evasion. The agreement would allow the tax authorities of the two countries to automatically provide each other with information about income from immovable property earned by… – Continue reading
The Revenue Department estimates it will miss its tax collection target by no more than 160 billion baht for fiscal 2015 after it was off target by 35 billion in the five months through February. The government’s largest revenue contributor has striven to collect new taxes such as those on… – Continue reading
WASHINGTON (AP) — Cash-strapped Americans anxious for tax refunds are increasingly turning to payment advances, prepaid cards or other costly services when getting tax preparation help, according to new federal data raising concerns among regulators about whether consumers are fully informed about the fees. Regulators are looking to increase oversight… – Continue reading
Rather than installing a territorial tax system, the federal government should change U.S. securities rules, a law professor contends. Changing to a “territorial” tax system in the United States won’t ultimately stem the exodus of U.S.-based multinationals to lower-tax countries and could come at a significant cost in terms of… – Continue reading
In recent years, the miscellaneous tax bill has largely been a laundry list of technical corrections to Vermont’s tax code. Changes in sales and income tax rates haven’t been approved since 2006 and 2009, respectively, and upticks in the property tax rate have been made in the past two years… – Continue reading
Fifteen people suspected of running a smuggling scam that bilked the state out of tens of millions of shekels in taxes were indicted Tuesday for a series of conspiracy and fraud charges. Early this month, 200 investigators from the police and the Tax Authority raided Ashdod Port and homes belonging… – Continue reading
President Barack Obama’s proposal to impose a minimum tax on the foreign income of US companies would place them at a substantial competitive disadvantage in global markets, Pamela Olson, former assistant secretary for tax policy at the US Department of Treasury, has said. As well as including proposals for a… – Continue reading
Jakarta (ANTARA News) – The Indonesian and Japanese governments agreed to review the Indonesia-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (IJ-EPA) to derive mutual benefits, according to a press release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs received by Antara here on Tuesday. The review of IJ-EPA was agreed during a bilateral meeting between… – Continue reading
Earlier today the UK government delivered its last budget before the UK general election in May. Many of the measures were, as one might expect so close to an election, focused on personal rather than corporate taxation. However, below is a summary of some of the business related announcements: Diverted… – Continue reading
Clearstream now offers five offshore RMB accounts in four leading financial centres and will give customers more options and flexibility in managing offshore RMB liquidity Clearstream, the international central securities depository of Deutsche Börse Group, is making further progress in its Asia strategy: the company will open three new offshore… – Continue reading
Many investors are unaware of high charges that can eat into their wealth, according to finance experts Expat investors using offshore bonds as a way to boost their wealth could be paying nearly £89,000 in fees on a £100,000 investment over 20 years, it has been claimed. This would leave… – Continue reading
Cobus Kellermann, Stellenbosch University graduate now in his late 30s who runs Cape-based money manager Clarus Capital, has been fingered as a mastermind behind a massive global Ponzi scheme run out of Mauritius. Kellermann’s company also manages eight South African unit trusts under the Met Collective Investments banner. They have… – Continue reading
HM Revenue & Customs contacted foreign governments on 490 separate occasions in one year as it sought information on suspected tax evasion, a drop of 150 information requests compared to the previous year. During the 2012-13 tax year, the Revenue made nearly 500 information requests to tax authorities to find… – Continue reading
The governor released her budget for the biennium fiscal years 2016 and 2017 a month ago. The budget called for revenue $338 million more than the House Ways and Means Committee (HW&MC) estimates. On an apples to apples basis, a $100 million of the total is simply the governor’s more… – Continue reading
The Investment Association has hit out at Labour plans to widen the tax net for hedge funds, arguing this could harm the economy and increase the costs of UK funds. The Financial Times reports that Labours wants to remove “intermediaries relief” tax which allows investment funds to avoid paying stamp… – Continue reading
America’s tax code is riddled with problems. It imposes high rates on families, businesses, investors, and entrepreneurs. Its double taxation of capital gains and dividends creates a bias against savings and investment—activities essential for economic growth. Its convoluted system of deductions, credits, and exemptions distorts incentives and inefficiently allocates resources,… – Continue reading
Blackmoney stashed abroad will entail a 10 year rigorous imprisonment and a whopping 90% tax under the proposed stringent law that provides for a limited window of opportunity to offenders to disclose illicit wealth and escape prosecution. Blackmoney stashed abroad will entail a 10 year rigorous imprisonment and a whopping… – Continue reading
