Finance Minister Ishaq Dar on Wednesday told the National Assembly that Pakistan will sign an agreement with Switzerland on exchange of information regarding bank accounts on March 21. “The Swiss government offered to sign such an agreement with Pakistan in the third quarter of the current month that will enable… – Continue reading
New Delhi, March 9 (IANS) India and Belgium have signed a Protocol to amend the double taxation avoidance agreement to curb tax evasion, an official statement said on Thursday. “India and Belgium have signed a protocol amending the existing agreement and protocol between the two countries for avoidance of double… – Continue reading
Under increasing international pressure, the Hong Kong government is considering expanding its Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) implementation by imposing broader information collection obligations, entering into more bilateral AEOI agreements at a faster pace, and possibly joining the multilateral AEOI agreement. Background Hong Kong legislated to adopt the OECD Common… – Continue reading
The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is drafting a proposed legislation making tax evasion an economic sabotage, a heinous crime which is not bailable. This was disclosed on Wednesday (March 8) by BIR Commissioner Caesar R. Dulay as he gave an update about the on-going validation of Mighty cigarettes with… – Continue reading
Sometimes it can be hard to keep up with the avalanche of government announcements on tax avoidance and evasion. In the first of a two part series, Jason Collins, a member of the CIOT’s management of taxes sub-committee and partner at Pinsent Mason, provides an overview of the rapidly changing… – Continue reading
The Hong Kong Government has put forward a proposal to amend its tax laws to establish a dedicated tax regime for aircraft owners/lessors based in Hong Kong and leasing to offshore (including PRC) lessees/airlines (see Timeline / References below) (“Proposed Regime”). Assuming there are no surprises or drafting issues in… – Continue reading
Recently, the Finance Committee concluded its deliberations regarding the imposition of tax legislation pertaining to “wallet companies” (companies owned by individuals who provide services through them) within the scope of the Arrangements Law for 2017 – 2018. The original draft bill was softened and even sweetened for a particular period… – Continue reading
Each and every bank account is under our scanner to find out tax evasion, said CBDT chairman Sushil Chandra. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) is examining several dubious companies and they would be removed from the website of Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) if found to be shell… – Continue reading
South Korea’s tax authorities have been investigating the local importer of Toyota and luxury Lexus vehicles over suspected tax evasions since late 2016, industry sources said Friday. In November, the Seoul office of the National Tax Service (NTS) launched a tax audit into Toyota Korea over suspicions that it paid… – Continue reading
On 30 December 2016 the Commercial Court of Voronezh Oblast delivered a judgement in case No. А14-10190/2014 (the “Decision”) under the claim of Ilyushin Finance Co. Open Joint Stock Company (the “Company”). The case is an example of a broad interpretation of the list of documents confirming entitlement to a… – Continue reading
Muscat: A portal for entities subjected to taxation was launched on Wednesday by the ministry of finance. The ministry, represented by the Secretariat General for Taxation launched the portal www.taxoman.gov.om. The portal has legislations, taxation charts and agreements on avoidance of double taxation as well as developments in the field… – Continue reading
The Government recently issued a resolution to ratify an agreement and a protocol on avoiding double taxation and preventing income tax evasion between Vietnam and the United States of America. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs was asked to complete necessary procedures in accordance with law. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Finance… – Continue reading
India has entered into new bilateral advance pricing agreements (APAs) with the United Kingdom and Japan, India’s Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) announced on February 28. The two APAs were entered into over the last week. The CBDT also signed seven unilateral APAs. The APAs signed pertain to various… – Continue reading
THE ORGANISATION for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) initiated the base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) project in 2013 to address perceived gaps in international tax rules causing a loss of revenues for governments of about US$100 billion to $240 billion (Bt3.5 trillion to Bt8.4 trillion) annually. The OECD’s BEPS… – Continue reading
[HONG KONG] More Chinese companies are looking to raise debt offshore after Beijing approved a new funding structure last month that makes it easier and cheaper to tap foreign lenders. China’s foreign exchange regulator in January let domestic companies bring home cash raised through offshore bonds secured by onshore guarantees,… – Continue reading
KARACHI: Directorate Intelligence and Investigation, (DI&I) Inland Revenue Karachi has detected around 453 fake registered persons, who were reportedly involved in Rs 5.6 billion tax evasion. According to sources, the DI&I-IR, Karachi under the supervision of its Director Hyder Ali Dharejo has kicked off a crackdown against tax mafia, who… – Continue reading
Transfer pricing—the price charged for intercompany transactions between entities in different tax jurisdictions—can be used to shift funds within a multinational corporation (MNC), and serves as an effective means to manage a firm’s finances. Transfer pricing—the price charged for intercompany transactions between entities in different tax jurisdictions—can be used to… – Continue reading
Global banking giant HSBC has disclosed being probed by tax authorities in India and several other countries, including against its Swiss and Dubai units, for allegedly abetting tax evasion of four Indians and their families. Besides, the bank has been approached by the regulatory and law enforcement agencies of various… – Continue reading
Muscat: Dodging taxes can lead to a jail term of up to three years and a maximum fine of OMR50,000 under tax law amendments published by the Ministry of Finance, as government begins its crack down on evaders. Out of the 300,000 companies registered by the Oman Chamber of Commerce… – Continue reading
Jane Moir says the authorities’ plan to require companies to reveal their controlling owners, in the wake of the Panama Papers scandal, does not go far enough Last year’s Panama Papers revelations put Hong Kong in the crosshairs of global anti-money laundering bodies. The dump of 11.5 million documents from… – Continue reading
Finance Minister, Sri Mulyani, says that Indonesia continues to make preparations for implementing exchange of information in financial services and taxation sectors like alignment of the rules in the Law on the General Rules and Procedures of Taxation (KUP). “We will try various ways to incorporate various articles for KUP… – Continue reading
MPs propose tweaks to the Union Revenue Bill. The solution to widespread tax evasion on land purchases is the creation of a fairer, more even taxation system. This was the prevailing opinion of MPs assembled in Nay Pyi Taw last week to deliberate the Union Revenue Bill prescribing three tax… – Continue reading
ABU DHABI, 16th February, 2017 (WAM)–The Ministry of Finance, MoF, has signed two final agreements on the avoidance of double taxation and the protection and promotion of investment with Burundi. The agreements came as part of the Ministry’s strategy to expand its international relations and to protect and promote Emirati… – Continue reading
ISLAMABAD-Pakistan and Hong Kong on Friday signed the pact on avoidance of double taxation and prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income. Pakistan’s Ambassador to China Masood Khalid signed the agreement while the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury, Professor KC Chan signed on behalf of… – Continue reading
On February 16, 2017, the Presidium of the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation approved the Review of Court Practice in the Consideration of Cases Involving the Application of Certain Provisions of Section V.1 and Article 269 of the Tax Code of the Russian Federation (the “Review”). There is no… – Continue reading
The Netherlands has signed a protocol to its double tax avoidance treaty with Uzbekistan, designed to prevent the treaty from being inappropriately used to avoid taxes. The anti-abuse provision was signed by the Netherlands and Uzbekistan on February 7, 2017, and “prevents the benefits of the treaty only [being] used… – Continue reading
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
Following Moody’s Investors Service affirmation of Indonesia’s sovereign credit rating at Baa3 with a stable outlook in January 2016, there has been renewed interest in the international bond market for Indonesian credits. This bulletin seeks to summarise the regulatory changes in Indonesia over the last 24 months as well as… – Continue reading
EU lawyers are preparing to mount a legal challenge against President Trump’s hugely controversial US border tax proposals in what could be the biggest case in World Trade Organisation history. Mr Trump’s proposed “border adjustment system” would see US imports subjected to tax, while export revenues exempted. The reforms have… – Continue reading
Selection of Foreign Company as a tested party – practical considerations Introduction Transfer pricing regulations adopted by India are based on the arm’s length principle which revolves around the concept that the price or margin determined in a controlled transaction involving two Associated Enterprises (AE) should be commensurate with an… – Continue reading
Summary: NAGPUR: Prominent doctors across the state were raided by income tax department on Saturday suspecting major evasion of tax through cash deals. The income tax department has got a disclosure of Rs30 crore from the action against jewellers. Last month the taxmen covered jewellers across the state. One of… – Continue reading
In the latest published data from the US Treasury Department and Federal Reserve Board in respect of November 2016, the value of Treasury Securities held by foreigners was $5.9tn with Japan’s holdings at $1.1tn and China at $1.0tn, followed by Ireland at $275bn. However, some further data show that the… – Continue reading
The State Administration of Taxation (SAT) is about to hold Chinese citizens’ foreign account information in 101 countries and regions, as the regulation on the localization of the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) in China was put into effect on January 1, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday. Under the… – Continue reading
After India’s banknote ban, private companies are using the country’s biometric database to bring financial services to millions For two years, Indian officials have been trawling the country, from city slums to unelectrified villages, zapping eyeballs, scanning fingerprints and taking photographs. Last month, Indian shoppers started to see the results…. – Continue reading
HYDERABAD: Tennis player Sania Mirza has been issued notice by the Service Tax department over alleged non-payment or tax evasion. Service Tax office in Hyderabad has issued summons to the tennis star on February 6 and she will have to appear before it in person or by an authorised agent… – Continue reading
With the arrival of the new year, don’t be surprised if your bank asks for information about yourself and your accounts that you didn’t have to provide before. These questions signal an important development as banks in Hong Kong and around the world prepare to share certain information with tax… – Continue reading
For avoiding double taxation and for the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income, India and Austria signed a protocol, amending the existing convention between the two countries. On behalf of India, the protocol was signed by the Chairman of CBDT, Shri Sushil Chandra, and on behalf… – Continue reading
Adoption as a means of reducing inheritance taxation is said to be common among wealthy people. In overturning a lower court decision that invalidated a late Fukushima Prefecture man’s adoption of his grandson in 2012 on the grounds that the step was a tax-saving measure, the Supreme Court has ruled… – Continue reading
WITH THE PROPOSED transfer-pricing law now under review by the Council of State, the landscape for transfer pricing is expected to undergo a major facelift once the law is enacted. One significant change would be the requirement for taxpayers to disclose their transfer-pricing information when they file their year-end tax… – Continue reading
The signing of a double taxation agreement between the UK and the UAE in April 2016 was undoubtedly much anticipated and marks a new milestone in the successful expansion of the UAE’s international tax treaty network. Following ratification of the agreement by the two countries reacting parties, it came into… – Continue reading
India has revised 40 treaties for avoidance of double taxation so that the information exchanged with partner nations on tax matters can also be utilised for other purposes including criminal proceedings, Parliament was informed on Friday. “Treaty partner countries have been requested to modify the tax treaties, so as to… – Continue reading
In a move that will facilitate ease of business, domestic transfer pricing provisions will apply only if one of the parties to a deal is availing of tax benefits. Traditionally, transfer pricing applied to international transactions entered into by a company in India with related parties, such as its foreign… – Continue reading
The Kuwait Ministry of Finance (MOF) has issued a ministerial resolution announcing that Deloitte & Touche, Al-Wazzan & Co in Kuwait has been certified with the ministry for the provision of Foreign Account Tax Compliance (FATCA) services. FATCA is a US legislation which aims to combat tax evasion by US… – Continue reading
SMUGGLING of petroleum products has been rampant in the last couple of years. The value-added tax (VAT) and excise-tax exemptions of free-port and economic zones (FEZs) are being abused by enterprising individuals. To curtail this problem, the Bureau of Internal Revenue in 2012 required the payment of VAT and excise… – Continue reading
Among other things, Union Budget 2017 will be remembered for two firsts – the introduction of secondary adjustment and thin capitalisation rules. Both are transfer pricing provisions which will have a far-reaching impact on corporates. Secondary Adjustment Since the concept of secondary adjustment is introduced for the first time in… – Continue reading
Indonesia has entered the third phase of its tax amnesty program, which was first launched in July 2016 to boost the country’s meagre revenue by collecting previously unreported funds hidden by wealthy citizens abroad and at home. The country, which has long struggled to increase its tax revenue, has so… – Continue reading
THE scope of the withholding tax — a tax imposed on non-residents for services rendered to Malaysia-based companies — has been widened. It is one of the major tax changes that came into effect on Jan 17 under the Finance Act 2017. Under the changes, non-residents must pay withholding tax… – Continue reading
A key outcome of the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation’s (OECD’s) final Report on Action Plan 13 (Transfer Pricing Documentation and Country-by-Country reporting) is the commitment of OECD and G20 countries to introduce Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting along with the associated master file and local file documentation for large Multinational… – Continue reading
CROSS-border taxation in current times is poised for significant changes. Tax is key in foreign ventures. Absent tax strategies and foreign tax leakages would erode margins and return of investment. Although international tax-efficient strategies to mitigate capital gains tax (CGT), withholding tax (WHT) and the risk of creating a taxable… – Continue reading
Deutsche Bank will pay a $425 million fine in relation to a money-laundering scheme that regulators say moved $10 billion out of Russia, the New York State Department of Financial Services said Monday. The department said Deutsche was moving money out of Russia by using a stock “mirror trading” strategy,… – Continue reading
