Two major reports are worth highlighting here. First, and most recently, from the U.S. Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations (via Senator Carl Levin), a report on tax avoidance by U.S. multinational Caterpillar: "Caterpillar Inc., an American manufacturing icon, used a wholly owned Swiss … [Read more...]
Corporate Tax
Shareholders to get chance to vote on Google’s tax policy at AGM
From Responsible Investor, a story about a shareholder resolution about Google’s tax strategies has been placed by a group of responsible investors onto the agenda of its forthcoming annual shareholder meeting. "The proposal calls on the company’s board to “adopt a set of principles to address the … [Read more...]
Links Mar 31
Lord Blencathra’s contract with Cayman Islands stated he would lobby MPs and Lords The Bureau of Investigative Journalism A senior UK politician who denied he had ever lobbied MPs and peers on behalf of a Caribbean tax haven had signed a £12,000 per month contract that stated he would do so. See … [Read more...]
Tanzania: parliamentary inquiry on tax abuses, tax havens, illicit flows
Adapted from an email from Tove Maria Ryding, Eurodad: Good news from Tanzania - the Public Accounts Committee there has kicked off an inquiry on tax evasion and avoidance, amid severe concerns about illicit financial flows and capital flight. We might have some interesting times … [Read more...]
New “Corporate Tax Explorer” reveals wealth of US tax data
From Citizens for Tax Justice in the U.S. New "Corporate Tax Explorer" Site Details What Fortune 500 Companies Pay in Corporate Taxes A new web tool, the Corporate Tax Explorer, from Citizens for Tax Justice (CTJ) and the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP), is a one-stop shop for … [Read more...]
Links Mar 28
Measuring OECD Responses to Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries Report examines OECD's members progress in tackling money laundering and transnational financial crime. See also: Money laundering, bribery and tax evasion: how to freeze illicit flows The Guardian … [Read more...]
EU steps up probe into tax haven activities. Hit ’em hard
From the Financial Times: "Brussels has stepped up its probe into alleged illegal sweeteners offered to multinationals by expanding the investigation to cover arrangements for patent-holders and ordering Luxembourg to reveal its promises to specific companies. … [Read more...]
Tax Justice Focus 2014 – the COUNTRY-BY-COUNTRY REPORTING edition
This edition of Tax Justice Focus is guest edited by Richard Murphy, the originator of the idea of country-by-country reporting. A little more than a decade after he first began to develop the concept, Murphy has brought together authors from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and … [Read more...]
Swiss tax treaty policy thwarts new era of automatic information exchange
We recently wrote about a new double tax agreement (DTA) signed on March 20th with Argentina. This is the latest in a series of worrying DTAs that Switzerland has been signing with countries from the Global South, despite the OECD Global Forum’s explicit criticism of Switzerland for signing only … [Read more...]
TJN response: the UK Law Commission and investment intermediaries
PRESS RELEASE The UK Law Commission consultation on the fiduciary duties of investment intermediaries: Response from the Tax Justice Network … [Read more...]
Links Mar 21
Luxembourg Signs Up to EU Savings-Tax Agreement, Ending Deadlock Bloomberg Bettel: “With Austria, Luxembourg can go ahead and give the green light for the EU savings directive”. See also: Austria, Luxembourg Accept EU Bank-Secrecy Law The Wall Street Journal - Bloc Promises to Push Switzerland, … [Read more...]
Links Mar 20
Havens set deadline for reporting investors’ tax details Financial Times (paywall) The British Virgin Islands, Liechtenstein and Jersey are among 44 countries that have set a deadline of September 2017 for reporting investors’ tax details to their home governments, under pioneer plans aimed at … [Read more...]
Links Mar 19
US Virgin Islands Lures Businesses With Tax Breaks International Business Times "These generous tax breaks don’t render the Virgin Islands a corporate or offshore tax haven, like such well-known rivals as Bermuda or the Cayman Islands ... That’s because the Virgin Islands’ tax benefits are legally … [Read more...]
Guest blog: should Argentina sign a tax treaty with Switzerland?
Not long ago we published a Switzerland edition of our newsletter Tax Justice Focus, in which a contributor wrote: "Developing countries wanting OECD-type tax agreements with Switzerland risk being forced into tax concessions on Swiss foreign investments, in exchange for information sharing on tax … [Read more...]
UK government believes in country by country reporting. Or does it?
From an exchange in the UK parliament, via Tax Research, the UK Exchequer Secretary David Gauke: "A year or so ago I had a meeting at Euston tower with the HMRC [the UK tax authorities] officials who deal with transfer pricing matters. They said it would help them to have a relatively simple form … [Read more...]
