Measures to control corporate tax avoidance to be presented at Antalya summit The final package of measures proposed by the OECD as part of its base erosion and profit shifting (Beps) project will be presented to G20 leaders in Turkey this weekend. The new Beps rules are designed to improve… – Continue reading
The taka has continued to fall against the dollar for two weeks now after nearly one year of an unchanged exchange rate, according to data from the Bangladesh Foreign Exchange Dealers’ Association. “Market forces are determining the exchange rate,” said Kazi Sayedur Rahman, general manager of Bangladesh Bank’s foreign exchange… – Continue reading
FRANKFURT (The Street) — Europe’s allure as a tax haven for U.S. multinationals may be coming to an end. That’s because European Union regulators are closing up tax loopholes that U.S. companies have been enjoying for years. The first two to feel the heat are Starbucks (SBUX – Get Report)… – Continue reading
Call to halt bank sale in favour of reform rejected by UK Government UK MINISTERS decided to “wash their hands” of a tax evasion scandal in a subsidiary of the government-owned Royal Bank of Scotland, according to damning testimony given by a former treasury official who is now a Labour… – Continue reading
Exclusive More than 100 victims of notorious conman Peter Foster have moved to freeze funds held in offshore tax havens after more than $10 million was siphoned from his online gambling company Sports Trading Club. Fairfax Media can reveal Foster and at least eight associates have been served with freezing… – Continue reading
British MEP Anneliese Dodds has accused national governments of hampering progress in tackling corporate tax dodging, warning that EU capitals are “far too focussed on their own self-interests”. On the anniversary of the breaking of the LuxLeaks scandal, Dodds said MEPs had made some progress in stamping out aggressive tax… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs is failing to prosecute wealthy tax evaders who hide their fortunes in overseas, MPs have warned, reports the Isle of Man Today. The Commons Public Accounts Committee said HMRC’s record of just 11 prosecutions for offshore tax evasion in the past five years was “woefully inadequate”… – Continue reading
One year after the announced closing off of the Double Irish tax arrangement, U.S. multinationals once again turned their attention to Dublin as Ireland announced details of the Knowledge Development Box, or KDB. This new component to its corporate tax regime will allow companies to pay a reduced corporate tax… – Continue reading
They say the only certain things in life are death and taxes, but a large number of non-U.S. citizens may have found a way to avoid at least one of those. Under U.S. tax law, the estates of foreign holders of U.S. assets, such as stocks, real estate and valuables,… – Continue reading
Speed read Europe’s highest court has turned the US into a privacy pariah, and the fallout could have a major impact on New Zealand businesses. Tech companies and cloud computing providers, big and small alike, are staring down the barrel of increasingly uncertain privacy compliance challenges, as are their customers…. – Continue reading
Claiming that a lot of information on illicit funds is lying unused by the Indian authorities, HSBC whistleblower Herve Falciani said on Tuesday that he is willing to cooperate with the investigative agencies in their black money probe but would need protection in return. He also claimed that millions of… – Continue reading
Australia hosts significant quantities of illicit funds from outside the country, according to the 2015 Financial Secrecy Index. The Tax Justice Network’s index, released every two years, rates countries based on financial transparency. The latest index rates Australia 44 out of 100 (from 47 in the previous survey) meaning it… – Continue reading
Tax systems within the European Union remain largely secretive and opaque despite leaders’ claims that measures are underway to fix loopholes, the European Network on Debt and Development (Eurodad) has said. The coalition of 46 NGOs from 20 European countries including Oxfam, Save the Children and ActionAid said that, while… – Continue reading
GENEVA – A former HSBC employee who leaked documents alleging the bank helped clients evade millions of dollars in taxes failed again to show up for his Swiss trial Monday, which opened in his absence. Herve Falciani, a 43-year-old French-Italian national who exposed the so-called Swissleaks scandal, has repeatedly said… – Continue reading
TORONTO (miningweekly.com) – Canada’s largest uranium producer Cameco expects to defend itself in court next year over a tax dispute with the Canadian Revenue Agency (CRA) about taxation years 2003, 2005 and 2006. The CRA was questioning Cameco’s practise of selling uranium at a low fixed price to its European… – Continue reading
The trial has begun in Switzerland of banker Herve Falciani, whose leaks helped uncover the HSBC tax evasion scandal. The French-Italian national is accused of financial espionage, among other charges. Herve Falciani’s trial opened on Monday in the southern Swiss town of Bellinzona and will continue despite his refusal to… – Continue reading
The UK has been rated “more of a tax haven” than the Channel Islands, in a financial transparency report. The biennial study by campaign group Tax Justice Network (TJN) ranked the UK above the islands. TJN director, John Christensen, said the islands had “made significant improvements” by signing up to… – Continue reading
MADRID — One part of the move had been long in the works by Grifols, a big Spanish medical company. The other came as a politically fraught surprise. When Grifols, a global leader in blood-plasma products, held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for its new $100 million distribution center outside Dublin last… – Continue reading
For the die-hard fans who lined up around the block to purchase Apple’s latest iPhone last month, it’s hardly news that the California-based company still lives up to its reputation for technological innovation. The world’s No. 1 smart phone manufacturer last week released its annual financial report revealing it also… – Continue reading
On 21 October 2015, the European Commission decided that a tax ruling between Starbucks and the Netherlands should be considered illegal state aid. As a consequence, the European Commission ordered the Dutch State to recover the aid granted to a Dutch Starbucks group company (Starbucks Manufacturing EMEA B.V.), which is… – Continue reading
As the 2016 Presidential campaign heats up with debates and public appearances replete with the candidate’s opinions on the economy, ISIS, and education, among others, few candidates have mentioned the issue of corporate tax reform, especially as it relates to a level playing field between the U.S. and foreign markets,… – Continue reading
IRDA norms on retrocession viewed as being restrictive Top foreign reinsurers, namely Swiss Re, Hannover Re and Scor Re would soon be applying to the insurance regulator for opening branch offices in India. The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority (IRDA) on Friday came out with the regulations for registration and… – Continue reading
A small team of European Union officials is spearheading an investigation that could force some of the world’s biggest companies to pay billions of euros in avoided taxes, Reuters reports. In an office block in one of Brussels’ less fashionable districts, the 10 Competition Directorate staff from across the bloc… – Continue reading
A major investigation based on the use of foreign bank cards in the Netherlands has led to the arrest of 11 people on tax evasion charges. The seven men and four women were identified after officials carried out a major data mining project involving cards attached to foreign bank accounts…. – Continue reading
How analytics will nab cheaters. Tomorrow is the Australian Taxation Office’s official cutoff for 2014-15 personal tax returns. Will you be tempted to tell fibs about your income? How will the tax man ever know? Take note: it may already know – or at least can find out – a… – Continue reading
Pfizer Inc. may be getting closer to breaking up and moving out. The largest U.S. drugmaker and Allergan Plc are considering combining operations, according to the Wall Street Journal. A deal would give Pfizer a way to move to a low-tax legal address abroad and gain valuable specialty drugs like… – Continue reading
The Department of Justice announced today that Luzerner Kantonalbank AG (Luzerner), Habib Bank AG Zurich (HBZ), Banque Heritage S.A. and Hyposwiss Private Bank Genève S.A. (Hyposwiss Geneva) have reached resolutions under the department’s Swiss Bank Program. These banks will collectively pay penalties totaling more than $25 million and continue to… – Continue reading
HSBC is moving its derivative trading book from London to Hong Kong in a bid to cut costs arising from tight regulations in the UK and EU, The Telegraph reports. Trading staff will stay put in London, but interest rate swap trades will be increasingly booked in Hong Kong. It… – Continue reading
Gold Fields and Sasol have clinched the top awards in PwC’s Building Public Trust Awards: Excellence in the field of tax reporting in 2015. Gold Fields was the overall winner in the category for tax reporting for multinational companies, while Sasol was announced the overall winner in the category tax… – Continue reading
The European Commission (Commission) has adopted a decision on 21 October 2015 on the tax rulings – also referred to as “comfort letters” – granted by Luxembourg to Fiat Finance and Trade (FFT) and by The Netherlands to Starbucks. Rejecting the decisions of domestic authorities in Luxembourg and The Netherlands,… – Continue reading
Parliament’s Special Committee on Tax Rulings recommended measures to make corporate taxes in the EU fairer and more transparent, after eight months of fact finding, in a vote Monday evening in Strasbourg, EU News reports. The report – prepared by co-rapporteurs Elisa Ferreira and Michael Theurer – was approved by… – Continue reading
Multinationals have generated big-time revenues with its subsidiaries spread all over the world, which means huge profits and that’s taxable income. In recent years, a number of conglomerates – Amazon, Apple, Google and Starbucks – have engaged in so-called profit-shifting (profit allocation) via transfer pricing methods to pay minuscule taxes…. – Continue reading
Herve Falciani, the Frenchman wanted on charges of industrial espionage in Switzerland, has opted to skip his trial at the country’s top court and instead plead his case before a jury of journalists at a French hotel, less than a mile from the Swiss border. The Frenchman was the star… – Continue reading
After teasing the UK financial community — and the government — with a thinly-veiled threat to decamp from Britain, HSBC has continued to stoke speculation that it’s looking for more hospitable headquarters. Back in April, HSBC announced a review of whether to quit the UK, a somewhat provocative statement, coming,… – Continue reading
The Bank of Butterfield has agreed to buy the multibillion dollar private banking trust and investment arm of rivals HSBC Bermuda. The move means Butterfield will acquire the Bermuda Trust Company Ltd as well as the trust and investment business of HSBC. At the end of last year, HSBC’s trust… – Continue reading
Ireland has announced a new 6.25 per cent corporate tax rate for intellectual property research Ireland’s 12.5 per cent corporate tax rate is already one of the lowest in Europe, Economia reports. Now, companies investing in research and development (R&D) will be able to avail of the even lower rate… – Continue reading
HSBC, Google, Facebook are among firms that will now appear after threat from MEPs on access to Parliament. Several multinational companies have now dropped their opposition to appearing before a special European Parliament panel investigating allegations of tax avoidance in Europe. HSBC said Tuesday it would participate in a hearing… – Continue reading
Profit-shifting has not paid off for petroleum multinational Chevron, slugged with a tax bill for $322 million thanks to a Supreme Court decision on Friday. Chevron has been under close scrutiny this year, particularly since a senate inquiry into tax-avoidance in April which also put mining giants BHP, Rio Tinto,… – Continue reading
The offshore yuan market faced a rocky patch following Beijing’s shock devaluation in August, but the push to internationalise the currency has lost little momentum, according to The Strait Times. Similarly, Singapore’s role in the growth of the yuan is likely to continue unabated. The general manager of ICBC Singapore,… – Continue reading
Lawmakers at the European Parliament are set to vote on a controversial series of proposals to harmonize the corporate tax system in Europe in a move that will put them on a collision course with some member states which favor sovereignty over taxation. The EU lawmakers on the TAXE committee… – Continue reading
Those thinking about a job or retirement abroad should consult their foreign counterparts, who believe they’re getting a better deal stateside. According to a new survey from HSBC, foreign expats living in the United States do so for the long haul. Nearly two-thirds (65%) live here for more than five… – Continue reading
A company controlled by Mayor of Belgrade Sinisa Mali and his family obtained more than 10 hectares of agricultural land worth anywhere from €123,000 to € 250,000 (US$140,000 to US$290,000) for free from a privatized state company. Problem is, the land wasn’t the company’s to give, but was still owned… – Continue reading
The European Commission (“Commission”) ruled on 21 October that tax advantages granted by Luxembourg to Fiat and by the Netherlands to Starbucks by means of advance tax rulings were unlawful under the EU State aid rules. The two Member States will be required to recover the aid, in each case… – Continue reading
Coca-Cola might owe an additional $3.3 billion in federal income taxes following an audit, says the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Following a five year audit of the company, the IRS concluded that the company’s strategy of lowering its taxable income through transfer pricing, underestimates the amount the company should’ve been… – Continue reading
The EU tax rulings against Starbucks and Fiat Chrysler are but trifles compared to the ones extant against Apple and Amazon. Everyone lies about tax. Holland said it followed international tax standards when everyone knows it’s a corporate tax haven. That’s why ST has its HQ there. Ireland and Luxembourg… – Continue reading
Foreign companies with Indian shareholders won’t have to pay taxes here for their worldwide income unless they are managed from India on an everyday basis. If these foreign companies are managed from outside India, whether or not they are promoted by resident Indians, they will have to pay taxes in… – Continue reading
The European Commission looks highly likely to make a finding against Ireland in relation to its tax arrangements with Apple, following two similar findings during the week involving Starbucks and Fiat. It is perplexing that the EC doesn’t just come out and make the announcement. The delay is leading to… – Continue reading
The African Union Advisory Board on Corruption (AUABC) recently requested major multinationals operating in Africa to be more open about the taxes and royalties they pay governments to improve transparency and accountability. Although a reasonable request, this is a tall order when you consider that often it is the governments… – Continue reading
Rwanda has commissioned an audit into recent merger and acquisition deals involving foreign firms in its latest effort to clamp down on tax avoidance among multinational corporations. This comes amid growing concern that multinational companies move profits from the countries where they are generated and, in so doing, reduce national… – Continue reading
DOZENS of Winchester properties worth more than £100 million are owned by firms based in offshore tax havens. High street shops, restaurants, care homes, a health clinic and even a single parking space are owned by companies benefitting from low tax regimes overseas. Burma Road student village, sold by the… – Continue reading
