As a means of encouraging the development of intellectual property (IP) in Italy, rather than elsewhere, a “patent box” preferential tax regime has been introduced with effect from January 1, 2015, at the same time as a restructuring of the country’s research and development (R&D) tax credit system. Following the… – Continue reading
Medtronic Inc. took one step closer to becoming an Irish company when shareholders voted in favor of acquiring Dublin-based medical supply maker Covidien Ltd. Covidien shareholders similarly voted on the deal early today and also approved it. The acquisition now goes before the Irish High Court, which may take several… – Continue reading
HSBC, Sovereign, FedEx, DHL & UPS all expecting summons from IRS American IRS officials are said to be carrying out investigative work concerning FATCA transgressions from the American Consulate in Hong Kong, according to a report issued in the South China Morning Post. The article quoted Travis Benjamin, a Partner… – Continue reading
The future for offshore tax planning, also known as “aggressive tax planning” is likely to be limited to if not curtailed by the global exchange of information agreement signed in October, 2014 by 51 countries and growing. The link below is to a video summary of the predicted consequences of… – Continue reading
Trusts established by Portuguese resident individuals are now to be taxed for the first time after new rules were introduced on 1 January. On 17 December last year, the Government of Portugal introduced a change to its tax law meaning distributions from trusts to Portuguese residents would be taxed at… – Continue reading
Multinationals told to be more cautious about intra-group transactions as Beijing imposes stiff measures against avoidance and evasion Multinationals have been advised to take notice of Beijing’s New Year resolution to crack down on tax avoidance and evasion, especially after the announcement of the general anti-avoidance rule (GAAR) and new… – Continue reading
FORMER Minister for Justice Gerry Collins has declined to comment on correspondence from his solicitors accusing the Public Accounts Committee of “exceeding its jurisdiction” in any further pursuit of allegations he had an Ansbacher offshore account. Mr Collins, as well as another retired Limerick minister, Des O’Malley, earlier this month… – Continue reading
New Delhi: As a probe continues into misuse of stock markets for routing black money and tax evasion, the regulatory and other agencies suspect that GDR route is being used for bringing back suspected illicit funds stashed abroad. The modus-operandi, in cases currently under scanner, involves an intricate web of… – Continue reading
We will probably never know their names, but one thing we do know – one in 20 of the richest people in Australia tried to evade paying their fair share of tax in recent years. By what authority do we know this? By none other than the Australian Taxation Office…. – Continue reading
The Price of Offshore Revisited was written by James Henry, a former chief economist at the consultancy McKinsey, for the Tax Justice Network. Tax expert and UK government adviser John Whiting said he was sceptical that the amount hidden was so large. Mr Whiting, tax policy director at the Chartered… – Continue reading
Four days out from Christmas, Blind Citizens Australia (BCA), Deaf Australia, Homelessness Australia and Down Syndrome Australia learned they were to be subject to federal government funding cuts. New Social Services Minister Scott Morrison assured concerned parties that frontline services to the disabled would not be cut, just grants to… – Continue reading
The new deoffshorisation legislation that passed with lightning speed through Russia’s Parliament and then hastingly signed by President Putin in the time span of a week and a half, comes into force on January 1, 2015. The new deoffshorisation legislation that passed with lightning speed through Russia’s Parliament and then… – Continue reading
The new year could bring important changes to the tax landscape. Here are several issues that will affect how much taxpayers owe for 2015 and beyond: Federal tax policy There is serious talk of overhauling the federal tax code. “There appears to be a consensus” on making changes, says Stephen… – Continue reading
New Zealand’s tax authorities have been given more power to pursue tax evaders who go offshore under changes which come into effect this year. Inland Revenue will have more power to go after tax evaders who leave New Zealand under changes that come into effect this year. The Convention on… – Continue reading
CMS Bureau Francis Lefebvre, a leading French law firm, has noted that the 2015 Finance Act and the Rectificative Finance Act for 2014 were adopted by the French Parliament on December 18. Certain provisions have been reviewed by the Constitutional Court, which issued its ruling on December 29. Both laws… – Continue reading
SOUTH Africa’s tax authorities need to beef up the country’s tax laws and regulations to ensure it derives its rightful dues from the digital economy and e-commerce, the Davis committee says. The committee’s interim report on base erosion and profit shifting, released for public comment last week, said gaps in… – Continue reading
The conditions for becoming tax-resident and tax non-resident vary from country to country and depend on such things as length of stay, type of accommodation, location of family, and nationality. In most tax systems, presence of an individual in a country for 183 days or more in any 12-month period… – Continue reading
Summary New FATCA requirements that apply to U.S. and non-U.S. insurance brokers and insurance companies will take effect on January 1, 2015. Those requirements impose new information gathering and reporting rules when U.S. insurance and reinsurance premiums are sent outside the U.S. Background The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)1… – Continue reading
Swiss banks are training their crosshairs on Israeli customers. Legal sources said that in the past two weeks, the large banks in Switzerland have begun sending many queries to their Israeli customers demanding confirmation either that the assets deposited with the banks were reported to the Israeli tax authorities, or… – Continue reading
[HONG KONG] Asia could set another record for international bond issues in 2015 if Chinese companies continue to borrow offshore at the same voracious pace they did this year, while bankers expect a heavy redemption schedule and larger pipelines from India and Indonesia to lift activity. Barclays is forecasting volumes… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has confirmed it has extended the lifetime of the Contractor Loan Settlement Opportunity (CLSO), a chance for contractors to own up to using an offshore tax avoidance scheme, until 30th June 2015. The settlement opportunity was originally meant to be open until January 2015. HMRC… – Continue reading
The Vatican Bank is the latest to join the ranks of a hundred other countries worldwide that have agreed to the terms of the FATCA. Since its enactment in 2010, the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act or FATCA, has seen American Tax Law extend its reach further than ever before…. – Continue reading
CAPE TOWN — South Africa needs to finalise the renegotiation of its tax treaty with Mauritius as soon as possible to prevent the loss of large sums of money through “treaty shopping” the Davis tax committee has urged. The committee released its interim report on ways to prevent base erosion… – Continue reading
Currently, there is a tendency among those who take an interest in international tax developments to look to the future and try to guess how the international tax landscape will look in, say, three of four years, once countries begin to implement the OECD’s base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS)… – Continue reading
Regulator concerned over lack of reciprocity from US in Fatca norms Signing of an inter-government agreement (IGA) between India and the US on the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (Fatca) might not be smooth, despite New Delhi getting a one-month extension for this, as the Securities and Exchange Board of… – Continue reading
The OECD is urging governments to tackle interest payments made by multinationals and their subsidiaries as part of a global crackdown on profit shifting. The aim is to also stop companies artificially loading debt in no-tax or low-tax jurisdictions to reduce their tax bills. It comes as the government backs… – Continue reading
ISLAMABAD: The government has prepared draft bills to introduce amendments to four relevant laws to declare tax evasion as an offence related to money laundering, aimed at curbing misuse of foreign investment and remittance schemes. The step is being taken to meet a condition of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that… – Continue reading
The courtroom victory of the only Swiss banker to beat the U.S. in a trial over offshore tax evasion may embolden other indicted financial workers to leave a legal limbo some have endured more than five years. Twenty-five offshore bankers, lawyers and advisers have yet to answer U.S. Justice Department… – Continue reading
A mixed success record has been notched up by the US Justice Department when it comes to prosecuting offshore bankers, advisers and lawyers accused of assisting American taxpayers cheat their taxes. The United States Government, from 2008, has charged 38 individuals, including Swiss bankers like the top three managers of… – Continue reading
Nilesh Ashar, partner and head of Tax for KPMG in the UAE, analyses the impact of investment regulations and tax laws on foreign businesses foraying into the Middle East. In the last decade, the Middle East region has witnessed significant economic growth, primarily driven by the surge in oil revenues…. – Continue reading
The Budget pensions overhaul has hit the overseas pension market as new rules have been proposed which would remove the requirement for qualifying recognised overseas pension schemes (Qrops) to provide an income in retirement. Current rules around Qrops require that 70% of the amount transferred from a UK scheme has… – Continue reading
Japan has remained a cornerstone of Pakistan’s economy for the past many years. Japanese Companies have invested in all sectors across Pakistan. Be it auto, trading, manufacturing, infrastructure development, packaging, steel manufacturing, indenting, etc a large number of Japanese Companies have a strong presence in Pakistan. Pakistan’s Investment and Corporate… – Continue reading
The decision by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine and the possible future adoption by parliament of the bill dissolving a convention between the governments of Ukraine and Cyprus on the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of tax evasion regarding income tax and the related protocol does not… – Continue reading
Bank Leumi Le-Israel Ltd. (LUMI) agreed to pay $400 million and admit it helped American clients evade taxes for a decade, in a case showing that U.S. prosecutors and New York regulators are extending their probes of offshore tax evasion beyond Switzerland. The Justice Department filed a conspiracy charge today… – Continue reading
In August, President Barack Obama pledged to use the powers of his office to discourage the corporate tax-avoidance technique known as inversion, in which U.S. companies claim foreign tax addresses. Four months earlier, according to a previously unreported legal document, his Department of Homeland Security did just the opposite. It… – Continue reading
Jakarta. A leading business lobby with strong ties to the administration of President Joko Widodo has called for a tax amnesty, in which the authorities will waive off past taxes and penalties to conglomerates and individuals parking billions of dollars worth of funds overseas, in a bid to reinvest that… – Continue reading
“The religion of socialism is the language of priorities,” said Nye Bevan, Labour saint and creator of the National Health Service. Now we have discovered the principal priority of one of his heirs, Ed Balls; taxing the homes of the rich. The shadow Chancellor, once so relaxed about the wealth… – Continue reading
Swiss private bank Lombard Odier will seek to tap into the growing number of high-net-worth-individuals (HNWIs) in Southeast Asia via an agreement with Thailand’s Kasikornbank. A recent report by RBC Wealth Management and Capgemini showed that Asia is leading the way in terms of the regional rise in number of… – Continue reading
Bradley Birkenfeld, the former UBS AG banker who won a $104 million whistle-blower award after serving time in U.S. prison for tax conspiracy, now wants to move back to Europe before his term of probation is set to end. Birkenfeld asked a judge to end his probation with less than… – Continue reading
NEW DELHI: The finance ministry is planning to rush through a Cabinet note seeking permission to sign an accord with the US on exchanging investment information before a December 31 deadline, ahead of President Barack Obama’s visit to Delhi at the end of January. The government has got the goahead… – Continue reading
More countries are requiring an exchange of client information In 2014, we saw a marked increase in transparency regarding foreign assets. The United States took the lead, and other countries followed suit. It looks like we’ve reached the tipping point, that is, “the magic moment when an idea, trend, or… – Continue reading
KOTA KINABALU: For Malaysian property investors, especially in the London property market where some Malaysian developers, welcomed by Mayor Boris Johnson are active in projects, the United Kingdom Government will introduce new Capital Gains Tax (CGT) on the sale of UK residential property with effect from April 6, 2015. Following… – Continue reading
Gov. Maggie Hassan has done an excellent job working with legislative leaders to craft and oversee the state’s current two-year budget. An array of problems is being effectively managed. This budget will end in balance. But looking ahead to the next two-year budget, we in state government face difficult challenges…. – Continue reading
Dec 21 (Reuters) – Authorities in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia have bought a CD containing data about several thousand German clients of a Swiss bank, German newspaper Bild am Sonntag said on Sunday without citing its sources. The clients each have accounts containing up to 5 million euros… – Continue reading
Gov. Maggie Hassan has done an excellent job working with legislative leaders to craft and oversee the state’s current two-year budget. An array of problems is being effectively managed. This budget will end in balance. But looking ahead to the next two-year budget, we in state government face difficult challenges…. – Continue reading
Mumbai: In its biggest ever crackdown for suspected tax evasion and laundering of black money through stock trading platforms, Sebi Friday barred 260 entities, including individuals and companies, from the securities markets. While Sebi would further probe these cases, it has also decided to refer the matter to the Income… – Continue reading
TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwan and South Korea are now more prepared to sign economic agreements, such as investment insurance and double taxation prevention pacts, South Korea’s representative to Taiwan Cho Baek-sang said yesterday. Cho made the comment at the first Taiwan-South Korea humanities exchange conference, held by the de facto… – Continue reading
The Qatari ruling family has been ordered to pay £38million in stamp duty They used an aggressive tax avoidance scheme to avoid the huge bill Country bought 13-acre site from the MoD for almost £1billion in 2007 By LOUISE ECCLES, BUSINESS CORRESPONDENT FOR THE DAILY MAIL PUBLISHED: 01:57 GMT, 20… – Continue reading
Rules relating to the payment of CGT by non-resident UK property owners will change in April and expats will be affected. Significantly sneaky draft legislation was published last week that will affect the way capital gains tax (CGT) is charged on the sale of UK property assets owed by expats. … – Continue reading
BRUSSELS – It was supposed to be all about investments and Russia, but the issue of tax avoidance is likely to creep onto the EU summit agenda on Thursday (18 December). In the draft summit conclusions circulated among EU ambassadors on Wednesday, there is one paragraph mentioning the “urgent need… – Continue reading
