Jonathan Gruber, MIT professor and Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) architect, faced the House Oversight committee earlier this week. Gruber was grilled over his comments pertaining to the passage of ObamaCare through Congress and the law’s mechanics. The professor has been caught on camera multiple times almost bragging about the deception… – Continue reading
While some Owners create their own bespoke site to publicise their Local Lodging offering, most rely on the major websites that have become popular in recent years. However, not all Operators work in the same way. The nature of their business can influence the way the activity is classified by… – Continue reading
The Swiss banking sector, which has been forced to give up its traditional secrecy, is now looking to China for new financial investment. “One of the first ports that the Swiss financial center is steering for is the port of China,” Claude Alain Margelisch, chief executive of the Swiss Bankers… – Continue reading
The Dail’s Public Accounts Committee has declined a legal demand from former Fianna Fail Finance Minster Ray MacSharry to hand over the Ansbacher dossier to him. Lawyers acting for Mr MacSharry had given PAC seven days to hand over the Ansbacher dossier, the Irish Independent has learned. Mr MacSharry took… – Continue reading
(Reuters) – EU regulators hope to wrap up ongoing probes into the legality of tax deals between Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Ireland with Apple (AAPL.O), Starbucks (SBUX.O), Amazon (AMZN.O) and Fiat (FCHA.MI) by the second quarter of 2015, the EU anti-trust’s chief said on Thursday. European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager… – Continue reading
This Alert provides more details on the most significant measures contained in the draft Finance Bill. Draft clauses of the UK Finance Bill 2015 were published on 10 December 2014. They will now be the subject of consultation until 4 February 2015. This Alert provides more details on the most… – Continue reading
The US Treasury estimated that it will cost foreign banks and financial institutions $8 billion to comply with Fatca. This amount does not take into account the amount of time and cost that US citizens will need to take to comply with the demands of foreign banks and financial where… – Continue reading
The new EU Competition Commissioner has said there is reasonable doubt about whether Apple’s tax arrangements with Ireland were legal. In her first comments on the investigation into the US tech giant’s tax affairs in Ireland, the Danish Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said the case remained open. This is despite Minister… – Continue reading
Do trustees need to register with the US Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) before 1 January 2015? Does registration need to be made in respect of a trust? These questions need to be given due consideration by Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands (“BVI”) trustees and the trusts in respect… – Continue reading
Exports of Ukrainian goods through offshore companies fell by 90 percent in the first nine months of this year, according to the State Fiscal Service, dropping to $334 million. British Virgin Islands, a jurisdiction known for the lack of transparency, remains the most popular offshore destination with Ukrainian companies, attracting… – Continue reading
On December 10, Hong Kong and Japan exchanged notes regarding the exchange of information (EOI) provisions in their existing double taxation agreement (DTA) dated November 9, 2010. “The purpose of the exchange of notes with Japan is to expand the coverage of tax types under the EOI arrangement of the… – Continue reading
THE CONCLUSION of an air services agreement and training opportunities for Barbadians were among the areas discussed, when India’s High Commissioner, Subashini Murugesan, paid a courtesy call on Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Charles Burnett. Burnett received the High Commissioner on behalf of the Minister of Foreign… – Continue reading
In the light of new revelations in the Luxembourg tax evasion schemes, some MEPs will push to fast-track the European Parliament’s legislative reports being drafted by the legislature’s economic committee. “The new revelations show this is a European problem that needs a European solution. Citizens and SMEs pay their taxes,… – Continue reading
Dubai, 11 December 2014: The UAE signed today the final agreement for the avoidance of double taxation on income with Hong Kong, during a meeting between businessmen and commercial banks from both parties in Dubai. The agreement was signed by HE Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Minister of State for Financial… – Continue reading
Bank Leumi Le-Israel Ltd. (LUMI) expects to reach an accord with the U.S. government by next month over accusations Israel’s second-largest bank helped Americans evade taxes. “The management believes it is right to reach an agreement with authorities, just as global banks have done,” Leumi’s legal adviser Hanan Friedman said… – Continue reading
Ordinary New Zealanders are carrying the tax burden while the wealthy use every possible means to avoid paying tax, ONE News Facebook readers claim, in response to damning new IRD details released yesterday Yesterday ONE News revealed how some of New Zealand’s wealthiest people worth more than $50 million are… – Continue reading
HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has issued a new factsheet for users of tax avoidance schemes, explaining how its follower notices and accelerated payments regimes operate. The factsheet defines a tax avoidance scheme as “a set of arrangements that try to use the law to gain a tax advantage that… – Continue reading
THAILAND has offered tax incentives for regional operating headquarters and international procurement centres for more than 10 years, but there are fewer than 300 companies operating ROHs or IPCs. Recently, the Cabinet approved a measure promoting Thailand as the shared-services hub of the Asean Economic Community. It is expected that… – Continue reading
Maples and Calder Michael Gagie, Richard Grasby, Tim Clipstone, Christopher Capewell, Jon Fowler and Tim Frawley Do trustees need to register with the US Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) before 1 January 2015? Does registration need to be made in respect of a trust? These questions need to be given… – Continue reading
Scots could end up being “overtaxed” under plans to hand sweeping new powers to Holyrood as part of the Smith Agreement, MSPs have been told. Leading economists warned that big accountancy firms could start selling schemes to “avoid Scottish residence” in order to escape higher tax rates. Holyrood’s devolution committee… – Continue reading
More paperwork as governments force wealthy to declare overseas assets. What you need to know. It won’t be long before there is no place in the world to hide money from your home country. Governments have tried to catch people who aren’t paying their taxes, or worse, are laundering money… – Continue reading
Summary Corporate tax reform is getting closer, repatriation of foreign profits is a possible outcome. Reform may end the practice of deferment, meaning overseas cash hordes will no longer be part of common corporate practice. Many large U.S. companies will have decisions on how to use funds that are no… – Continue reading
The ministry of Finance acknowledges the publication by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ) and affiliated medias of a further series of advance tax decisions (“rulings”) issued by the Luxembourg tax administration. As with previous publications (“Luxleaks”), the way in which these documents were acquired is highly questionable. The… – Continue reading
Ferrari SpA is considering moving its fiscal residence outside Italy to save on corporate taxes as the supercar maker prepares for its spinoff from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV (FCAU), people familiar with the matter said. The manufacturer, which uses the colors of the Italian flag in its logo, may follow… – Continue reading
Bernard Madoff’s former teenage secretary, who went on to run the investment-advisory business at the center of a $17.5 billion fraud, was sentenced to six years behind bars by a New York judge, less than half what prosecutors sought and four years shy of what her own lawyer suggested. Annette… – Continue reading
A new UK tax on the ‘diverted profits’ of multinationals operating in the UK “is probably not needed, will be hard to apply and will raise little money” according to one expert. 10 Dec 2014 Corporate tax Tax International tax UK Europe Heather Self of Pinsent Masons, the law firm… – Continue reading
The Internal Revenue Service has issued an announcement extending the “deemed compliant” status of countries that are treated as if they had an intergovernmental agreement with the U.S. Treasury Department in place for purposes of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. FATCA, which was included as part of the HIRE… – Continue reading
Rudolf Elmer, the former employee of Julius Baer Group Ltd. accused of revealing details of client accounts via WikiLeaks, collapsed at the start of his trial, forcing the court to postpone the case. It was not clear when the trial in Zurich District Court would continue. Proceedings had been under… – Continue reading
TWICE-WORLD champion in MotoGP Marc Márquez is reported to have moved to Andorra to reduce his taxes. The 21-year-old, who scooped up the top title in his rookie year, 2013, and repeated the performance the following season, is said to be earning around 10 million euros a year – but… – Continue reading
China set up a website to collect tips about officials who have fled with ill-gotten gains, as leaders press ahead with a campaign that’s resulted in the arrests of hundreds of alleged economic fugitives so far. The Communist Party’s anti-graft watchdog, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, encouraged whistle-blowers at… – Continue reading
THE Government should do more to prevent multi-national companies from dodging their tax bills, according to Bradford Council. The authority called on the government to increase its efforts to combat the problem, saying tax avoidance was costing the country up to £12 billion a year and that public services were… – Continue reading
Minister of state stresses taxation rates remains a matter for member states Ireland has “nothing to fear” from European proposals to tackle multinational tax avoidance, the Minister of State at the Department of Finance Simon Harris said on Tuesday as EU finance ministers rubber-stamped new rules on the automatic exchange… – Continue reading
This transfer pricing dispute arose from transactions involving Vodafone in 2007-08. The I-T department had red flagged the sale of call centre business to Hutchison Whampoa Properties India and the assignment of Call Options. n the latest from Vodafone’s Rs 8,500 crore trasfer pricing case versus the Income Tax department,… – Continue reading
Hong Kong (HKSAR) – The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region today (December 10) exchanged notes with the Government of Japan regarding the Exchange of Information (EoI) Article in the Agreement between the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China and… – Continue reading
RUSSELS, Dec. 9 (Xinhua) — European Union (EU) finance ministers Tuesday agreed on two taxation measures towards combating corporate tax avoidance and aggressive tax planning. According to a statement, finance ministers have given their political backing to the anti-abuse clause of the Parent Subsidiary Directive and to the mandatory exchange… – Continue reading
The European Investment Bank, which gives loans and grants using taxpayers’ money, acted wrongly when it refused to disclose details of alleged tax evasion by mining giant Glencore, the EU’s watchdog has ruled. The EIB failed to disclose the results of its own investigation into the allegations surrounding a mining… – Continue reading
LUXEMBOURG — Palm Beach billionaire David Koch and his equally-loaded brother Charles got the government of Luxembourg to sign a secret, custom-made deal that allowed their companies to save hundreds of millions of dollars that otherwise would have been taxed in the United States. On its website this morning, the… – Continue reading
This publication provides a brief overview of the expected impact on entities established in Bermuda of (a) the foreign account tax compliance provisions (“FATCA”) of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act, 2010 of the United States of America (the “US”); and (b) equivalent rules implemented in relation to United… – Continue reading
Australia’s GST rate is now half the average of the developed world, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, building the case for the issue to be looked at as part of the federal government’s upcoming tax review. In an interview with Fairfax Media the OECD’s head of… – Continue reading
Peter Mac Swedish “flatpack” furniture manufacturer IKEA has suffered a number of blistering mass media attacks for business practices that reduce their Australian tax liabilities to a tiny fraction of the company’s profits here. The criticism is certainly justified. Most ordinary working taxpayers, as well as companies that don’t engage… – Continue reading
Malta continues to receive glowing reviews internationally as a stable financial services centre of repute within the European Union. Over the past fifteen years, Malta has moved seamlessly from being an offshore to an onshore jurisdiction, through the implementation of several legal, tax and regulatory rules intended to stimulate domestic… – Continue reading
In recent times there has been a welcome return to activity in the Irish real estate market. Overseas investors have been circling and private equity groups have started investing heavily in Irish real estate amid confidence that the Irish economy has stabilised and is returning to growth. In this briefing… – Continue reading
A senior figure is suspected of secretly keeping accounts in a Swiss bank that were not reported to the tax authorities in Israel, in an affair called the “Swiss Bank Affair,” sources inform “Globes.” Israel Tax Authority investigators conducted a search of the senior figure’s home. As in the information… – Continue reading
Some statistics rank London as the fourth largest ‘French’ city by population, and the number of French individuals moving to the UK is growing. This is not surprising – the UK offers a highly favourable tax regime for ‘non-domiciled’ individuals moving to the UK, while entrepreneurs, professionals and high net… – Continue reading
Quebec’s finance minister says he understands Bombardier Inc. pays its taxes according to Quebec and Canadian laws and that “we receive what we should receive.” But nevertheless, Carlos Leitão said he has asked Revenue Quebec to look into whether Bombardier is using a European tax haven to avoid provincial taxes…. – Continue reading
Grand Duchy accused of allowing multinational firms to pay virtually no tax Leaked documents reveal more firms used Luxembourg to lower tax There is no suggestion that the tax schemes used by firms are illegal But scandal has dragged in Luxembourg’s former PM Mr Juncker Giant US businesses Disney and… – Continue reading
Tax rulings “issued by the Luxembourg tax authorities are not, and have never been, secret,” the nation’s finance ministry said in an e-mailed statement. “In fact, Luxembourg, spontaneously and upon request, exchanges information on rulings with other countries, as foreseen by non-double taxation treaties as well as by directives and… – Continue reading
Rudolf Elmer, the former employee of Julius Baer Group Ltd. accused of revealing details of client accounts via WikiLeaks, collapsed at the start of his trial, forcing the court to postpone the case. It was not clear when the trial in Zurich District Court would continue. Proceedings had been under… – Continue reading
In advance of the UK Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, Geoff Cook, CEO of Jersey Finance said: “The Chancellor has shown a strong commitment to tackling tax evasion and I look forward to hearing more detail behind his future plans in this regard in the Autumn Statement. It is vital that the… – Continue reading
The Bombay High Court had in February directed the tribunal to hear both parties expeditiously and pass a ruling at the earliest. The heated debate between Vodafone India and the Income Tax Department on the Rs 8500 crore transfer pricing case will be put to rest as The Income Tax… – Continue reading
