Category: Glaxosmithkline

Special investigation: Why it’s not just planes that vanish in Bermuda

Journalist Steve Topple investigates Bermuda-based big business tax avoidance and its links with UK political parties – and even some charities LAST WEEK saw the news emerge that everyone’s favourite search engine, Google, only had to pay £97m in back-tax (not the “major success” of £130m as was first reported)… – Continue reading

The Changing Landscape for IP Regimes Around the World

Patent Boxes, Innovation Boxes, Intangible Property Boxes, Knowledge Development Boxes (IP Regimes) – countries may use different names, but all of these regimes are designed to allow a preferential rate of tax to be applied to income generated from intangible property (IP). There are a number of these regimes in… – Continue reading

Big Pharma’s deal-making zeal could be on the wane

A rout in pharmaceutical and biotech stocks has altered the equation for chief executives thinking about big-ticket mergers and acquisitions. On one hand, target companies are much cheaper than they were: roughly $130 billion has been wiped off the Nasdaq biotech index since Hillary Clinton, the Democratic presidential front-runner, pledged… – Continue reading

GSK, Novartis and Crédit Suisse put Switzerland on a high

Swiss firms have bagged major business from global brands such as GSK, Novartis and Crédit Suisse this year, while their Asia ventures have come good. The legal minds behind the Glaxo-SmithKline and Novartis asset swap, global banking investigations, Schaeffler’s €2bn high yield bond issuance and Dufry’s £1.05bn takeover of Nuance… – Continue reading

Mexico: International Transactions And Cost-Sharing Limitations In Mexico

International worldwide transactions in Mexico face a weakness as a result of an old and outdated provision which disallows for income tax purposes, the deduction of payments made abroad on a prorated basis with other parties that are not subject to Mexican income tax, such as foreign residents with no… – Continue reading

Foreign companies with no permanent base may get Minimum Alternate Tax relief

Three-member AP Shah Committee has recommended extending minimum alternate tax (MAT) relief to foreign companies which do not have permanent establishment or public business in India. In an earlier version, the committee had sought to restrict MAT to foreign institutional investors and foreign portfolio investors. The committee had also not… – Continue reading

No MAT for ‘Foreign Companies’ – Shah Panel suggested in revised report

Three-member AP Shah Committee has recommended extending minimum alternate tax (MAT) relief to foreign companies which do not have permanent establishment or public business in India. In an earlier version, the committee had sought to restrict MAT to foreign institutional investors and foreign portfolio investors. The committee had also not… – Continue reading

Focus on tax avoidance, not GST hikes

What is the difference between 30 per cent of zero and 20 per cent of zero? Correct: precisely $5227.27 less than a Bronwyn-Bishop-taxpayer-funded helicopter trip from Melbourne to Geelong. A reduction in the corporate tax rate, as unrelentingly espoused by the business lobby in its pro-GST campaign, may be a… – Continue reading

Pharmaceutical companies accused of profit shifting not being taken to court

None of the pharmaceutical companies that are accused of profit shifting have been taken to court, the Australian Taxation Office has said in written responses to the Senate inquiry into corporate tax avoidance. Earlier in July executives from the largest global pharmaceutical companies operating in Australia were hauled before the… – Continue reading

Perrigo buying Naturwohl in new pharma deal

Pharmaceutical industry acquisition target Perrigo (PRGO) Wednesday said it’s buying German pharmacy company Naturwohl Pharma GMbH, the latest transaction in the sector’s surge of mergers and acquisitions. Perrigo, operated from Michigan but headquartered in Dublin following a corporate tax inversion, did not disclose terms of the deal for Naturwohl and… – Continue reading

British trade boost: How UK firms profit from Middle East commerce

Lord Sieff, then head of food at Marks and Spencer, returned from 1950s Israel having inked an agreement with horticulturalist Gordon Bickel to buy his gypsophila spray carnation. More than half a century later Bickel’s firm, Carmel Agrexco, has expanded from what he calls the ‘white gold’ that was behind… – Continue reading

Drug companies won’t deny Australia is being ‘ripped off’ on medicines

Multinational pharmaceutical companies are unable to assure Australians they are not being “ripped off” on the price of medicines as a result of their complex global supply chains. The Australian heads of nine of the biggest global drug suppliers were forced into the embarrassing admission on Tuesday after backing themselves… – Continue reading

Inquiry to examine pharmaceutical tax arrangements

THE focus of a high-level inquiry into corporate tax avoidance will move to some of the globe’s biggest drug companies during hearings today. After revealing details of the tax minimisation strategies at Google, Apple and Microsoft, the Senate’s Standing Committee on Economics will hear from pharmaceutical executives in Sydney. Among… – Continue reading

Drug companies give their tax affairs a clean bill of health ahead of Senate grilling

Multinational drug companies are presenting a united front ahead of their appearance at the Senate’s corporate tax avoidance inquiry, insisting they are honest, ethical and pay their fair share of tax. Nine pharmaceutical companies, which between them receive billions of dollars in taxpayer-subsidised sales via the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, will… – Continue reading

Unnerved by tax demands on capital gains, foreign funds flee for safety

The minimum alternate tax row has damaged the credibility of government promises to enforce an investor-friendly tax regime and made the Indian stock market Asia’s worst performer this year New Delhi/Mumbai: Castleton Investment Ltd, a unit of GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK), in 2012 asked an arm of the Indian finance ministry… – Continue reading

Pfizer Inc. (PFE) Rumored To Be Eyeing British Giant GlaxoSmithKline plc (ADR)

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) went big exactly a year ago when it announced a takeover offer for UK-based AstraZeneca plc (ADR) (NYSE:AZN). The company’s decision to lap up AstraZeneca was seen as opportunistic; it being laced with controversy on many accounts, with some allegations behind the company’s proposition to acquire AstraZeneca… – Continue reading

Canada: Increasing Corporate Penalties And Risk Management (Update To “Seven Corporate Sins As A Source Of Government Revenue And Economic Stimulus”)

Introduction Soft commodity prices, divergent monetary policies across major economies, high unemployment rates and weak world trade have all conspired to slow down global economic recovery over the past seven years. Consequently, governments have had to cut spending as future revenues remain uncertain. This has led governments to look for… – Continue reading

EU halts probe of tax breaks for drug and technology patents

THE European Union (EU) will not pursue a probe of national programmes that create tax breaks for research and development, giving a boost to drug and technology companies that generate revenue from patents. The EU’s hands were tied by a 2008 decision to approve a “patent box” tax break in… – Continue reading

Puerto Rico Expands Tax Haven Deal For Americans To Its Own Emigrants

Puerto Rico’s Acts 20 & 22, tax incentive laws aimed at luring wealthy American investors to move there and at reviving the Island’s economy, are celebrating their third anniversary this month. While Puerto Rico’s economic situation remains bleak (it currently has more than $73 billion of “junk” status debt, unemployment… – Continue reading

GlaxoSmithKline transfer pricing case settled

The landmark transfer pricing case involving GlaxoSmithKline has settled on the eve of the second Tax Court of Canada trial in the matter, scheduled to commence on January 12, 2015. “Counsel for Glaxo confirmed the settlement but the details remain confidential,” writes William Innes of Rueter Scargall Bennett in Bill… – Continue reading

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) Accused of Tax Evasion

Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), once again finds itself deep in controversy and this time, on foreign shores. The company has been hit with a $140 million in taxes and interests presented by the Chinese government. This came to light in a rare incident of cross-border tax invasion. An article was published by… – Continue reading

George Osborne’s Patent Box tax break policy is watered down after complaints by Germany

One of George Osborne’s flagship policies is set to be reformed in next week’s Autumn Statement following the resolution of a protracted spat with Germany over the controversial tax break. The so-called Patent Box took effect last year and allowed companies to pay lower tax bills on profits derived from… – Continue reading

Patent box tax break for innovation “does not facilitate profit shifting”, says UK Treasury

The UK government will continue to defend its ‘patent box’ tax break for income from qualifying intellectual property (IP) during discussions to develop a global corporate tax regime, a Treasury official has said.08 Oct 2014 Intellectual Property Tax Patents Corporate tax Life sciences Advanced Manufacturing & Technology Services UK Europe… – Continue reading

AstraZeneca Shares Tank on US Tax Avoidance Crackdown Pledge

AstraZeneca shares are leading the losers on the FTSE 100 after the US Treasury department revealed that it forging new rules that will make it more difficult for companies to move their bases abroad to avoid tax. The AstraZeneca stock price has tumbled by over 5% to 4348.50p by midday while rival GlaxoSmithKline was hit by 1.25% at… – Continue reading