Category: Offshore Investments
How to avoid paying double tax on your offshore investments
Clarifications on the double tax treaty between South Africa and the United Kingdom. ... - Continue reading
GTBank Urges FG to Introduce Structural Reforms
The recurring inability of government to achieve its projected non-oil revenues over the years points to the need for urgent structural reforms, a report by Guaranty Trust Bank Plc (GTBank) has stated. The bank stated this in its 2020 macroeconomic and banking sector outlook, obtained yesterday. It stressed the need… – Continue reading
Bermuda: Chambers Private Wealth 2019: Bermuda (2019)
1. Tax1.1 Tax regimes In Bermuda there is no income or profits tax, withholding tax, capital gains tax, capital transfer tax or inheritance tax. There is no exit or similar such tax based on a resident's wealth when ceasing to be resident and there are no other consequences of leaving the jurisdiction. Customs duties and stamp duty are major government revenue earners, with stamp duties charged at different rates and in different manners on a variety of legal documents, excluding wills. ... - 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
IRS releases final rules on Section 965 repatriation taxes
The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department issued final regulations spelling out how U.S.-based companies will have to pay repatriation taxes on offshore profits under Section 965 of the tax code. The IRS released proposed regulations on Section 965 in August, and the proposed rules went through a public… – Continue reading
FBR probes undeclared offshore assets of resident Pakistanis
KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has sought explanations from the resident Pakistanis regarding their undeclared foreign assets, sources said on Tuesday. These assets were identified under the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEoI), they added. Large Taxpayers Unit (LTU) Karachi summoned around 100 people from Sindh Region to appear… – Continue reading
Proportion of HNWIs investing offshore rises
The wealthy are showing a keen interest to invest offshore, as the HNWIs seek to achieve benefits from global diversification and gain tax efficiencies. The proportion of HNWIs who invest offshore has risen from 11.2% in 2014 to 16.9% by December 2018, , according to GlobalData’s HNW Offshore Investment survey…. – Continue reading
Tax havens refuse cooperation with Pakistan
Pakistan has been unable to get much cooperation from 11 countries known as tax havens around the world to share information on offshore wealth amid a global clampdown on tax evasion. Under the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development’s (OECD) new automatic exchange of information programme, effective since September 1,… – Continue reading
ASEAN taxation cooperation via automatic information exchange
IN 2015, the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint 2025 was adopted as part of the ASEAN 2025: Forging Ahead Together plan. This collaboration charts the broad trajectories of ASEAN economic integration from 2016 to 2025. It aims to strengthen and reinforce by 2025 these five AEC characteristics: 1. A highly… – Continue reading
Hong Kong To Ensure ITVF Tax Break For Offshore Investors
Hong Kong’s Government has published a draft law preserving the profits tax exemption for offshore venture capital funds who participate in the island’s new Innovation and Technology Venture Fund (ITVF). The ITVF was set up by Hong Kong’s Government in 2017 with the aim of encouraging more private investment in… – Continue reading
Even the CBO Says the GOP Tax Reform Will Incentivize Corporate Offshoring
The Congressional Budget Office’s analysis of the new tax law suggests it could incentivize companies to offshore investments and jobs, which is directly at odds with GOP claims about the tax law. After the release of the GOP’s tax reform plan, several outlets, including the Prospect, noted that new tax… – Continue reading
UK property tax changes affect GCC nationals
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
Foreign investors oppose tax amnesty scheme for offshore assets
KARACHI: Foreign investors expressed concern over a proposed tax amnesty scheme to bring back offshore investments, terming it as an injustice with compliant taxpayers, officials said on Monday. Overseas Investors’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OICCI), representing major foreign companies in Pakistan recently shared its concerns, through a letter, with… – Continue reading
Tax on offshore investments: time to come clean
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) launched the Special Voluntary Disclosure Programme (SVDP) in October 2016, providing taxpayers with the opportunity to make good on any tax and/or exchange control contraventions of which they may be guilty in relation to offshore investments. The nine-month window period opened on October 1,… – Continue reading
FBR initiates scrutiny of offshore transactions
KARACHI: The Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has initiated audit of all those taxpayers who have made offshore transactions during the last six years, sources said on Tuesday. “All corporate and individual taxpayers, who have made offshore investments, have been selected for audit to check the tax concealment,” an official… – Continue reading
Cayman Islands’ investment in S. Korea tops 9.2 tln won
SEOUL, Feb. 16 (Yonhap) — The Cayman Islands became the largest investor as a tax haven country in the South Korean market last year, data showed Thursday, amid suspicions that some of the money could be owned by South Koreans disguised as foreign investors in an attempt to avoid taxes…. – Continue reading
China’s banking regulator issues guidelines on outbound investment
China’s banking regulator issued guidelines on Wednesday calling for the country’s financial institutions to strengthen their control and management of funding for outbound investment. The guidelines are the latest new rules on overseas investment as Beijing moves to clamp down on cross-border capital outflows and halt questionable investments. The China… – Continue reading
Govt poised to regulate offshore investments
ISLAMABAD: The government has stepped up to check corruption and regulate offshore investments in a bid to promote transparency and good governance, finance minister said on Tuesday. “New measures, such as the companies’ global register of beneficial ownership, will curb corruption, help (government) address challenges related to offshore investments and… – Continue reading
HMRC takes aim at tax dodgers hiding foreign income
The taxman plans to crack down on people who hide earnings from offshore investments, with greater powers to impose tougher penalties. People who do not reveal income from foreign accounts and investments to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) could be hit with penalties of three times the amount of tax… – Continue reading
Jakarta Plans Tax Haven Near Singapore
Indonesia has defined two islands near Singapore as its own tax havens to prevent taxpayers from keeping their assets offshore – in Singapore, for example. The two islands identified by Indonesia are Bintan and Rempang, according to a report on Monday in the Singaporean daily «Straits Times» and a story… – Continue reading
Monitor offshore investments, IMF tells Mauritius
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has askedMauritius to set up a ‘macro-prudential authority’ to monitor the offshore investments from the island. One of the largest destinations of such offshore investments is the Indian stock market. The proposed authority will have a central role for the banking regulator, the Bank of… – Continue reading
Canada Revenue offered amnesty to wealthy KPMG clients in offshore tax ‘sham’
Federal authorities demanded secrecy in no-penalty, no-prosecution deal to high net worth Canadians The Canada Revenue Agency offered amnesty to multi-millionaire clients caught using what’s been called an offshore tax “sham” on the Isle of Man — a reprieve that was supposed to remain secret and out of the public… – Continue reading
Zimbabwe’s Central Bank Blames Offshore Accounts for Economic Decline
WASHINGTON — Zimbabwe’s central bank governor, John Mangudya, on Thursday blamed the sustained decline of the country’s economy on illicit cash flows, saying more than a billion dollars was externalized last year. Presenting his 2016 Monetary Policy, Mangudya said some $684 million was exported to foreign accounts by individuals while… – Continue reading
Business down 40 per cent in Labuan
Oil is the lifeblood of Labuan and the drastic drop in the commodity’s price has affected the international offshore financial centre and tax haven. KOTA KINABALU: Business is down by 40 per cent in Labuan in the wake of the crude oil price heading south to USD32 per barrel, 50… – Continue reading
Global Private Equity Newsletter – Winter 2016 Edition: Hong Kong Profits Tax Exemption for Private Equity Funds
The Inland Revenue (Amendment) (No.2) Ordinance 2015 (the “Amendment Ordinance”) came into effect on July 17, 2015, extending Hong Kong profits tax exemption to offshore private equity (“PE”) funds. Profits Tax Exemption prior to the Amendment Ordinance This is a welcome development for the private equity industry since, in the… – Continue reading
IRS goes after Royce Gracie claiming tax underpayment, fraud totaling $1.15 million
Royce Gracie isn’t scheduled to fight at Bellator 149 until February, but he’s in a serious fight with the IRS over his taxes, including whether he rightfully claimed a tax credit for the poor. Remember the scrawny guy in a gi who smoked the field at UFC 1 and had… – Continue reading
B.C. government, with accounts flush from property tax earnings, cool on petition calling for real estate market intervention
Spokesman for B.C. finance minister downplays tax loophole issue A new petition urging B.C. politicians to limit offshore investment and exploitation of tax loopholes in Vancouver real estate is getting a cool reception from Victoria as provincial coffers overflow with property transfer tax revenues in a red-hot housing market. The… – Continue reading
PATH Act Enacts Notable Changes to REIT and FIRPTA Provisions
On Friday, December 18, 2015, President Barack Obama signed the “Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015” (“PATH Act”). Our December 10, 2015 client alert discussed significant proposed changes to the rules governing real estate investment trusts (“REITs”) and the Foreign Investment in Real Property Tax Act of 1980… – Continue reading
New dividend withholding tax of 1.69 per cent for foreign shareholders
Non-Belgian shareholders with a participation in a Belgian company with an acquisition value of at least €2.5m (but not reaching the 10 per cent participation threshold under the Parent–Subsidiary Directive) are now entitled to the Belgian participation exemption regime. In C-384/11 (Tate & Lyle Investments), the European Court of Justice… – Continue reading
Exclusive: More banks pay no UK tax, Labour wants tougher approach
Two more investment banks have reported paying zero tax in Britain in 2014, prompting the opposition Labour party to urge the government to reverse a tax change it made for banks last year. Citigroup and Credit Suisse disclosed in the past fortnight that their main UK subsidiaries paid no corporate… – Continue reading
8% Withholding Tax on investments for foreigners begins today
Returns on Treasury Bills or Bonds, will incur 8 percent income tax. Beginning today 1st January, 2016 all foreign investors on Ghana’s local capital or investment markets will pay 8% Withholding Taxes on their returns. This is according to the new Tax Act passed in Parliament in September 2015 and… – Continue reading
Cyprus: Latest Tax Updates To Attract International Corporations Investing Through Cyprus
As the year comes to an end, the Cyprus Parliament in its last session before the holidays passed a series of tax updates attempting once again a balancing act between flexibility and tax transparency. Some of the most important provisions passed include the FOREX Neutralisation which targets the significant exchange… – Continue reading
Global dragnet puts pressure on tax evaders as year-end deadlines loom
Tax cheats are facing a series of year-end deadlines to come clean, as an international dragnet affecting both wealthy Canadians with offshore accounts and Americans in Canada who have failed to file U.S. tax returns keeps tightening. Lawyers say some Canadians with Swiss bank accounts have received letters demanding written… – Continue reading
Latin America business potential for Island
The World Captive Forum takes place in Florida next month Bermuda’s business chiefs will be out in force at next month’s World Captive Forum. The event, to be held in Florida, will include several speakers from Bermuda including lawyers, regulators and business leaders. And Bermuda delegates will use the event… – Continue reading
MF investors: Less than a 4th comply with US tax law
Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act is a US global tax law. Countries must agree to the law or face the stick Less than 25 per cent of mutual fund (MF) investors have given out details in line with Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, or Fatca, a US tax law, said… – Continue reading
BEPS Action Plan 2: Neutralizing the effects of hybrid mismatch arrangements
Hybrid mismatch arrangements are the focus of the 2-part Action Plan 2 of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) initiative. Hybrid Mismatch Arrangements abuse differences in the tax treatment of an instrument (i.e., a hybrid instrument) or an entity (i.e., a hybrid… – Continue reading
UK taxman warns expats that tax evasion penalties will get tougher in 2016
With a new year on the horizon it is often at this time when people start thinking about fulfilling a dream of moving abroad and making plans. Others may be thinking about moving back home. For people paying tax in the UK, the country’s tax man has come up with… – Continue reading
Yahoo keeps Alibaba, but spins off core business
The new plan shelves one in the works to spin off Yahoo’s vast holdings in ex-commerce giant Alibaba – which could have exposed it to a huge tax bill – but the tech firm still intends to separate out its activities under the new structure. Yahoo stated it has made… – Continue reading
Column: MNEs must start test runs fast
Group companies, irrespective of the jurisdiction, will have to conform to common standards The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recently released 15 action-plans to address the issue of “Base Erosion & Profit Shifting” or BEPS, which has led to misalignment between where taxes are paid and where value… – Continue reading
Tax issues out of future bilateral treaty
Tax disputes are to no longer form a part of a Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) signed by the government with another country, the Union Cabinet decided on Wednesday, clearing a revised model text The idea is that foreign companies finding themselves in a tax row with the government will not… – Continue reading
Out of Bangladesh
According to a research report titled “Illegal Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2004-2013”, recently published by the Washington based research institute Global Financial Integrity (GFI), Bangladesh stands 26th in the list of 149 developing nations, in terms of flight of capital including money laundering (The Daily Star, December 10, 2015)…. – Continue reading
Incentives for innovations in Intellectual Property (IP) and State Aid: the current legal framework
A review of the application of EU State Aid rules is crucial for determining if a national tax incentive scheme for IPs is being implemented lawfully. The result of such a compatibility analysis is not certain. In some decisions, the Commission considered ‘Tax Box’ regimes as not being State aid… – Continue reading
Will Sri Lanka follow the dismal road to tax havenry?
An article in today’s edition of Sri Lanka’s Mirror newspaper draws attention to that island’s plans to develop an offshore financial centre in Colombo. According to the article the proposal is modelled on the Dubai International Financial Centre, a notorious centre for moneylaundering and illicit financial flows. Now this doesn’t… – Continue reading
British Virgin Islands: What Structure Should I Use For My Offshore Fund?
There are a number of ways to structure your offshore fund and the best option for you will depend largely on the location of the manager, your investor base and the type of investments that the fund will make. I have set out a summary of the three most common… – Continue reading
UK releases Finance Bill clauses and consultation documents
Executive summary On 9 December 2015, the UK released draft clauses for Finance Bill 2016 as well as consultation documents. The key items released include: A new requirement for large businesses to publish their tax strategies as they relate to or affect UK taxation. This sits alongside new ‘special measures’… – Continue reading
DYK: Dividend from investing in shares of foreign companies is taxable in India
Dividend income from foreign companies is not treated the same as dividend from domestic companies, for tax purposes The two key advantages of investing in equities are the possibility of higher returns and tax efficiency. In the long term, equity has outperformed other asset classes. And, according to Income tax… – Continue reading
Reforms create many new opportunities
Italian Trade Agency (ITA) President Ricardo Monti is actively working to get more companies and individuals to invest in his country. Monti was recently in Japan as part of a push to attract Japanese businesses and individuals to invest in the country. To assist with investment in the country, the… – Continue reading
Icahn Says Stop Corporate Inversions By Giving Tax Break
Billionaire investor Carl Icahn has a strong opinion on almost every subject, especially politics. He’s also quite happy to share that opinion with anyone who will listen to or read what he has to say. Icahn’s comments this week on how to stop future tax-motivated corporate inversions such as the… – Continue reading
Common Reporting Standard Enters Into Effect for Investment Funds in Early Adopter Jurisdictions
Many jurisdictions have agreed to implement the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s multilateral system of automatic exchange of information called the “Common Reporting Standard” (CRS). In furtherance of its objectives, the CRS imposes a variety of diligence and reporting requirements on “financial institutions,” which includes many master funds, offshore… – Continue reading
