FT: companies find routes to fiscal frugality

"Politicians fret as companies find routes to fiscal frugality"
An article published by Vanessa Houlder in Financial Times (www.ft.com) on July 28 2008.

Last week, a gauntlet was thrown at the feet of business leaders who have fulminated about the complexity of Britain’s tax laws and the frequency with which they change. Lord Wallace, a Liberal Democrat peer, warned that corporate chiefs should offer a “constructive response to the erosion of the national tax base, before some populist politician or press campaigner seizes on the issue to use against them”.

The response from Martin Temple, director-general of EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, was trenchant. He argued that the “most significant threat to the UK's tax base does not come from aggressive corporate tax avoidance but from the revenue lost owing to companies moving abroad in search of greater consistency and certainty from the tax system”.

In the exchange, on the Financial Times letters page, both men have a point. But the public overwhelmingly believes big companies and wealthy individuals dodge taxes too easily, according to Trades Union Congress research. Many people were shocked last year when official figures showed that almost one-third of the UK’s biggest companies paid no tax in 2005-06.

The US – which collects relatively little revenue in spite of having one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world – has a similar problem. That shows up in Americans’ attitudes to the way they as individuals are taxed. In the decades following the second world war, they considered income tax to be the fairest tax in the nation; since 1980, that opinion has been reversed.


But governments face risks in clamping down on multinationals. In the UK, two big groups moved their holding companies to Ireland earlier this year, amid complaints about Britain’s increasingly onerous restrictions on international tax planning. Michael Devereux, a leading economist, sums up the problem: “The more successful tax collectors are in preventing firms from shifting profit out of Britain, the more they are likely to encourage firms to leave the country.”

One, perhaps unpalatable, conclusion is that governments should learn to live with avoidance. Research by James Hines of the University of Michigan and Mihir Desai of Harvard suggests that companies’ use of tax havens “appears to facilitate economic activity” in neighbouring industrialised countries. Tax dodging by multinationals may let governments collect higher corporate taxes overall by allowing highly mobile companies – which might otherwise invest elsewhere – pay a lower rate of tax than domestic businesses.

But turning a blind eye to international tax avoidance is manifestly unfair. Jeffrey Owens, head of the tax policy group at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, argues that it is tantamount to stimulating growth at any price: “The same logic could be applied to business run by the Mafia or Colombian drug dealers.”

Yet tackling the issue is easier said than done. The nature of avoidance has changed over the last few years, in a way that has sent a chill through many fiscal authorities. Their focus is no longer on outrageously artificial schemes. Instead, companies are quietly restructuring in a way that is stripping the tax base of large countries.

Over the past decade, as they have become more global, large multinationals have centralised patents, intangibles and other services in low-tax countries. Mr Owens, who calculates that about 20 per cent of US intangibles are now held in Singapore, Switzerland and Ireland, says this sort of restructuring poses real difficulties for governments. “Services are where the potential corporate tax base is, so lose your services and you have lost a significant part of your tax base, and usually in a way where the existing international rules have been respected.”

The shifting of debt around multinational groups is another headache for fiscal authorities, particularly in the UK, which is relatively generous in the tax deductions it allows for interest costs. Over the course of this decade, companies have been engaged in a cat-and-mouse game with the revenue authorities about their use of tax havens as a base for their overseas businesses. This ruse allows them to load up their foreign operations – and sometimes their British activities – with debt via intra-group loans, while paying little tax on interest received.

Governments were slow to wake up to these problems but have recently mounted a rearguard action. At the start of this year, Germany appalled businesses by ratcheting up exit taxes for intellectual property. Britain has also taken a tough stance on transfers of intangibles. One tax director from a company that forms part of the FTSE 100 index compares the Revenue’s attitude to the line in “Hotel California”, a song by the Eagles: “You can check out any time you like. But you can never leave.” Tensions in Britain were exacerbated by a proposal to impose worldwide taxes on passive income – royalties, interest and dividends – which caused such an uproar that it was dropped last week.

The OECD is trying to thrash out a coherent set of rules for taxing business restructurings. But this is proving tricky, because the restructurings are primarily undertaken for business reasons. Pat Ellingsworth, who until this month was in charge of tax at Royal Dutch Shell, is closely involved in the OECD initiative. He says the attempt to define a tax-motivated restructuring proved “spectacularly unsuccessful”. Alternatives are being explored, including a greater emphasis on the location of workers in determining the tax base, though this may prove too radical for some.

Instead, some countries want a formula that will divide tax receipts across states that adopt a common tax base. The European Commission is enthusiastic but technical and political problems are immense. France, one of the strongest advocates, has decided not to push it during its current EU presidency following the Irish No vote on the Lisbon treaty. The idea, according to Christine Lagarde, French finance minister, “is alive, but not kicking very much”.

Meanwhile many businesses – led by the CBI, the UK employers’ group – say the solution is a sharp cut in tax rates. They suggest this would ultimately finance itself by reducing avoidance and boosting economic growth. But despite the success of small countries such as Ireland in going down that route, big nations are reluctant to gamble with corporate tax revenues.

All the while, multinationals are growing ever more restless. Last month, Joel Walters, tax director of Vodafone – a British company that now derives just 4 per cent of its profits from the UK – was blunt about the diminishing relevance of the concept of a “home country”. He recognised that governments were under pressure to raise revenues, he told a conference organised by Tax Journal. But international businesses had no choice but to manage their tax bills, he said.

“It can create an emotional reaction. But the fact of the matter is businesses are under enormous competitive pressure and tax is increasingly something boards are looking for us to manage.”

This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

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VAT at UCONN

Posted by Ruth Mason on taxprof/typepad.com:

"Rita de la Feria (Centre for Business Taxation, Oxford) presented The Pitfalls of Accepted VAT Wisdom: Lessons from the EU Experience at Connecticut as part of its Tax Lecture Series. Rather than addressing whether the United States should adopt a value-added tax, de la Feria focused on what the United States could learn from the European experience.

VAT is the world’s fastest growing tax, with 130 countries applying it in some form. De la Feria noted the irony that although the United States is the only major industrialized country without a VAT, Michigan was the first jurisdiction to apply a VAT. While de la Feria noted that the allures of VAT include simplicity, ease of assessment and collection, and effectiveness in raising revenue, she cautioned that certain aspects of the European implementation of VAT have reduced these benefits. Among other recommendations, de la Feria warned that VAT exemptions and rate differentials designed to achieve progressivity or encourage consumption of merit goods have lead to extensive tax planning and difficult line-drawing problems in Europe.

Two cases decided in the British courts illustrate her point. In Jaffa Cakes, the court had to decide whether the popular British confection was a cookie or a cake. If a cake, it would fall under the VAT exemption for food, whereas cookies were subject to the standard rate of 17.5%. With a healthy dose of humor, de la Feria described the case as well as the court’s standard of review. The court declared that the distinction between cookies and cakes could be drawn by reference to what happens when they go stale: cakes go hard; cookies go soft. In another case, relying in part on the fact that Pringles only contain 40% potato, a court found that Pringles should not be subject to the higher rate of VAT applicable to (unhealthy) “potato crisps.” De la

Feria noted the perverse effect of the Pringles ruling: the more filler in the chip, the more likely the exemption!
This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

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The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.

Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.

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Using tax to lure business away from London

"London rivals 'cherry picking' business"
An article published by Vanessa Houlder in Financial Times on September 10 2008

London's rivals are using tax to lure business away from the City, a leading City policymaker has warned.

Stuart Fraser, chairman of policy at the City of London Corporation, said the government must fight back by tackling the uncertainty and complexity of Britain's tax regime.

He warned that rival jurisdictions were "cherry picking" London's most lucrative activities. He cited Switzerland's attempt to attract wealth managers and hedge funds and a move by Paris to attract private equity firms. "They are very keen on taking us on. What they want is our business". He called for greater clarity and predictability in the UK tax system. "People need certainty. They want to be confident that if they stay here the system will not change."

His comments follow recent decisions by Krom River, a London hedge fund to move to Zug in Switzerland and five large companies to shift their holding companies to Ireland or Luxembourg. Mr Fraser said the corporate moves were symptomatic of the dissatisfaction with the tax system, although the establishment of "brass plate" operations abroad did not pose an immediate threat to jobs or the City.

The UK still attracts the largest number of headquarter functions of any European country, but its share fell from over 40 per cent to 30 per cent last year, the lowest figure yet recorded by Oxford Intelligence, which compiles data for Ernst & Young's European Investment Monitor. Peter Lemagnen, director, said the relocation trend primarily affected larger companies where there was scope for significant tax savings.

Some advisers warned that a continued exodus of holding companies from Britain would damage the City.

Peter Wyman, global head of policy and regulation at PWC, the professional services firm, said that shareholder pressure for tax savings meant that "a slow trickle is likely to become a faster trickle if not a flood". He said the likely impact of more relocations was "a mixed picture, conceivably over time a big loss". "Undoubtedly, if you move your headquarters somewhere other than London you are likely to get an increased amount of advice from where you are now based."

Chris Morgan, an international tax partner at KPMG, the professional services firm, said it was inevitable that over time financial services would move to the country where the company was managed and controlled. "I think they should be incredibly worried about it."

James Bullock, a partner at McGrigors, the law firm, said that if the trend for headquarter relocations continued, the City was likely to lose out. "It is all about key relationships. If board and strategic directors are in Switzerland, the partners [of accountancy and law firms] will want to be there too."

The Irish government has already told companies considering relocations it wants to see "real substance" in its investment, rather than merely "brass plate" operations.

This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

The Blog does not constitute legal advice and is not a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Any comment posted on the Blog can be read by any Blog visitor; do not post confidential or sensitive information. Any links from another site to the Blog are beyond the control of us.

By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog.

The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.

Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.

This Blog has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses the information gathering and dissemination practices for this Blog.

This Blog takes your privacy very seriously. Our customers told us they want to see clear, easy-to-read information about our privacy commitments and policies. We have made our privacy policies easier to find and easier to read. And we're listening. We welcome your questions and feedback on our privacy policies, and invite you to contact us with your thoughts.

Customer Privacy Controls and Choices:
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• You can limit certain types of solicitation communications from AT&T, including marketing contacts made via telephone, e-mail and text messaging.
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Our privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business every day. These apply to everyone who has a relationship with this Blog and visitors.
• We will protect your privacy and keep your personal information safe. We use powerful encryption and other security safeguards to protect customer data, when available.
• We will not sell your personal information to anyone, for any purpose. Period.
• We will fully disclose our privacy policies in plain language, and make our policies easily accessible to you.
• We will notify you of any revisions to our privacy policy, in advance. No surprises.
• You have choices about how this Blog uses your information for marketing purposes. Customers are in control.


This Privacy Policy identifies and describes the way This Blog uses and protects the information we collect about visitors. All use of this Blog is subject to this Privacy Policy.

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• When your wireless device is on, it sends periodic signals to the nearest cell site. We use that information to provide your wireless services;
• You can use your wireless device to obtain a wide array of services based on the approximate location of the device, referred to as Location Based Services, or LBS. The information you receive in connection with your use of LBS may include advertisements related to your request and your location;

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We collect different types of personal and other information based on your use of our products and services and our business relationship with you. Some examples include:
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We may share aggregate or anonymous information in various formats with trusted entities’ only for purposes such as:
• Our knowledge, and offer of information that may be of interest to you;
• Universities, laboratories and other entities that conduct scientific research; and
• Media research companies for general information only.

More information:

http://www.jpa-iac.com/en/
http://www.braxton-co.com/en/
http://www.tax-international.com
http://www.braxton-group.com

Corporate tax cut in UK has little impact, but low VAT raises reputation

Rate cut has little impact on global ranking
Article published by Vanessa Houlder in Financial Times (www.ft.com) on September 8 2008.

This year’s cut in the corporate tax rate has failed to push the UK decisively up the international rankings, according to a new survey that shows Britain’s efforts to improve its tax competitiveness have been blunted by similar efforts elsewhere.

The UK now has the 20th lowest corporate tax rate of the 27 European Union member states, a slight improvement for businesses on last year’s 21st position, according to the survey by KPMG, professional services firm.

The UK’s struggle to close the gap with smaller European competitors is likely to fuel criticism from businesses and opposition politicians.

KPMG said: “This continued downward pressure on worldwide and European corporate tax rates will add to the pressure on the UK authorities to address the UK’s perceived lack of competitiveness on tax.”

The impact of April’s 2 percentage point cut to 28 per cent was tempered by cuts elsewhere, which pushed average global and European corporate tax rates down by 1 percentage point. The UK’s corporate tax rate remains higher than the global average of 25.9 per cent and the EU average rate of 23.2 per cent.

But the UK is facing tough competition for holding companies from smaller low-tax European rivals, particularly Ireland, Luxembourg, Switzerland and the Netherlands, as demonstrated by recent moves out of the UK announced by Shire, UBM, Henderson, Charter and Regus.

These moves recently sparked an angry exchange between Alistair Darling and George Osborne, shadow chancellor, who called for a cut in the rate to 25 per cent which “would go some way towards undoing the damage the government has done by failing to keep pace with European tax rates”.

Mr Darling rejected Mr Osborne’s criticisms of the competitiveness of the business tax system as “wrong”.

Chris Morgan, head of international corporate tax at KPMG, said the relocation of headquarters was not driven by concern about the tax rate although bringing down tax rates was an important long-term objective. The argument was instead focused on the question of whether foreign profits should be taxed in the UK, he said.

The intensity of international tax competition was underlined by the finding that – for the first time since 1994 – no country in the 106-strong sample had raised rates. Competition has been particularly intense in the EU over the past 10 years, moving average corporate tax rates from the highest to the lowest of any group of countries in the OECD.

The relationship between tax rates and overall competitiveness is complex, with many other factors including political stability, infrastructure, access to new markets and a skilled labour force playing an important role. Sue Bonney, KPMG’s head of tax said: “Undoubtedly, the corporate tax rate is an important factor for businesses but it is far from the only factor.”

Big industrialised countries such as the UK typically have much higher rates than small countries. Countries such as Malta, Luxembourg and Switzerland have far lower effective rates than their headline rates as a result of exemptions and special rulings.

In May, Mr Darling acknowledged the challenge facing the tax regime, saying “Business does have a choice. Business is increasingly mobile. Tax rates have to be globally competitive.”

The UK’s corporate rate cut ensured that it continued to have a lower rate than Germany at 29.5 per cent, preserving the Treasury’s goal of having the lowest rate in the G7.

Low VAT raises reputation

Britain has the fourth lowest rate of value added tax in the EU, according to KPMG which said this relatively low rate underpinned the business-friendly reputation of the indirect tax system .

Britain’s 17.5 per cent VAT rate is well below the average in the EU of 19.49 per cent, in contrast to its position on corporate taxes. KPMG said this was in line with the “generally accepted idea” that indirect taxes compensate for reduced corporate tax yields.

This notion was partly supported by the contrast between the EU’s low corporate tax rates and its high VAT rates. Against a global average indirect tax rate of 15.7 per cent, the EU’s average rate was 19.49 per cent.

The UK’s relatively low rate, together with its stability over recent years, helped secure the UK top position in a KPMG survey of the best countries in the world to deal with from an indirect tax perspective.

The survey found that indirect tax rates have remained relatively stable, in contrast to the declines in corporate tax rates. KPMG said if indirect tax yields were compensating for declining corporate tax yields, this was being achieved by widening the indirect tax base and applying rules more strictly.
This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

The Blog does not constitute legal advice and is not a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Any comment posted on the Blog can be read by any Blog visitor; do not post confidential or sensitive information. Any links from another site to the Blog are beyond the control of us.

By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog.

The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.

Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.

This Blog has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses the information gathering and dissemination practices for this Blog.

This Blog takes your privacy very seriously. Our customers told us they want to see clear, easy-to-read information about our privacy commitments and policies. We have made our privacy policies easier to find and easier to read. And we're listening. We welcome your questions and feedback on our privacy policies, and invite you to contact us with your thoughts.

Customer Privacy Controls and Choices:
• You can review and correct your Personal Information collected by us.
• You can limit certain types of solicitation communications from AT&T, including marketing contacts made via telephone, e-mail and text messaging.
• We will provide you with notice of changes to this policy.

Our privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business every day. These apply to everyone who has a relationship with this Blog and visitors.
• We will protect your privacy and keep your personal information safe. We use powerful encryption and other security safeguards to protect customer data, when available.
• We will not sell your personal information to anyone, for any purpose. Period.
• We will fully disclose our privacy policies in plain language, and make our policies easily accessible to you.
• We will notify you of any revisions to our privacy policy, in advance. No surprises.
• You have choices about how this Blog uses your information for marketing purposes. Customers are in control.


This Privacy Policy identifies and describes the way This Blog uses and protects the information we collect about visitors. All use of this Blog is subject to this Privacy Policy.

Use of Location Information
• When your wireless device is on, it sends periodic signals to the nearest cell site. We use that information to provide your wireless services;
• You can use your wireless device to obtain a wide array of services based on the approximate location of the device, referred to as Location Based Services, or LBS. The information you receive in connection with your use of LBS may include advertisements related to your request and your location;

Online Activity Tracking and Advertising
• We collect information about your activity on this Blog for a number of purposes using technologies such as cookies, Web beacons, widgets and server log files.
• We and our advertising partners use that information, as well as other information they have or we may have, to help tailor the ads you see on our sites and to help make decisions about ads you see on other sites.

The Information We Collect, How We Collect It, And How We Use It

We collect different types of personal and other information based on your use of our products and services and our business relationship with you. Some examples include:
• Contact Information that allows us to communicate with you -- including your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;
• Equipment, Performance, Site Usage, Viewing and other Technical Information about your use of our network, services, products or Web sites.

We collect information in 2 primary ways:
• You give it to us when you register to provide comments;
• We collect it automatically when you visit our Blog.

We use the information we collect in a variety of ways, including to:
• Provide you with the best visitor experience possible;
• Deliver customized content that may be of interest to you;
• Address network integrity and security issues;
• Investigate, prevent or take action regarding illegal activities, violations of our Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policies; and
• For local directory and directory assistance purposes.

Aggregate or Anonymous Information:

We may share aggregate or anonymous information in various formats with trusted entities’ only for purposes such as:
• Our knowledge, and offer of information that may be of interest to you;
• Universities, laboratories and other entities that conduct scientific research; and
• Media research companies for general information only.

More information:

http://www.jpa-iac.com/en/
http://www.braxton-co.com/en/
http://www.tax-international.com
http://www.braxton-group.com

Is it safe to have an offshore account for UK residents?

The UK’s tax authorities, HM Revenue & Customs re-assure now investors that there is absolutely nothing wrong in having savings in an offshore account. Indeed if an individual is resident, but not domiciled, in the UK, he can, by keeping the interest abroad, increase the return on the investment because maybe will no pay taxes at all But still now it look the contrary.

It appears likely that the UK HM Revenue & Customs will be able to acquire the confidential offshore bank documents of many thousands of UK residents. The Special Commission in charge of the issue made 4 decisions. The first, decision came in December 2005 when the Special Commissioners authorized the issue of a notice to an un-named financial institution (now understood to be a High Street bank) requiring it to provide HMRC with documents detailing UK customers who held credit cards associated with offshore bank accounts. At the hearing held prior to the issue of the notice, HMRC estimated that the notice would affect 75,000 of the bank’s customers, approximately 15,000 of whom would be subject to tax investigations. The UK tax authorities adapted techniques first used by the US IRS, for example, demonstrating that information which would identify the “unknown cases” was in the ‘power or possession’ of the financial institution, and that it would not be too onerous for the institution to supply this information.

The Special Commission approved the issue of three notices to the same High Street bank and its private banking and trust subsidiaries. The notices seek copy bank statements and certain other documents containing details of the bank’s customers’ offshore bank accounts. The Special Commission held that as the UK bank held information from its offshore subsidiaries on computer systems in the UK, the information requested was in the UK bank’s “possession or power”. Importantly, the Special Commission considered that the bank’s duty of confidentiality to its customers did not alter its duty under the law to provide documents it possessed when requested under a notice. Given that HMRC estimated that the notice would give them access to information which would lead to tax investigations yielding a total of £1.5 billion, the notice will clearly affect many thousands of the bank’s customers.

Alongside the two bank decisions, HMRC have used the same method to counteract tax evasion via “offshore” share-trades. There were two Special Commission decisions involving two investment banks. A group of London share traders had made profits, which were taxable in the UK, on shares traded through a British Virgin Islands company, but had failed to make a full return of these profits to the Inland Revenue. The British Virgin Islands company’s share trades had been settled through one UK investment bank (which was acting as prime broker) with the deals being conducted through the other UK investment bank.

Both investment banks had, as part of their “Know-Your-Customer” procedures, kept a record of the UK individuals who were authorized to act on behalf of the British Virgin Islands company. HMRC had, through their investigations, established that, by obtaining these details, they could identify and therefore investigate those who had evaded UK taxation in this way. It is now standard, for example, for a bank’s internet banking customers to allow the bank, and its offshore subsidiaries, to access, store, or outsource data management to either the UK or overseas. Similarly, regulatory changes, such as the Anti Money Laundering directives have changed processes concerning information held by banks. HMRC discovered that more information is held, and is accessible in the UK, than ever before.

In an announcement re “Offshore Assets” on its website on 10 May, HMRC stated:“Following recent media publicity it is apparent that some customers or their representatives wish to contact HMRC to make disclosures in respect of assets held offshore, where there may be unpaid duties. HMRC is anxious to facilitate such approaches, and have set up a single point of contact to handle your queries.” Given the level of publicity, the UK HMRC announced the re-structuring of its investigation offices, in part to deal with the volume of cases it will be undertaking as a result of these notices. While HMRC are expected to settle the vast majority of these cases civilly, recovering the tax, interest, and penalties, the fact remains that some cases may be investigated with a view to criminal prosecution.

The success of the HMRC in these latest cases is part of the anti-money laundering drive inspired by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OCDE). This was given focus at the meeting of G7 Finance Ministers at Gleneagles in 1998 which led to moves to outlaw bank secrecy, to require financial institutions to be more deep in knowing the source, and the identity of the beneficial owners, of funds deposited with them and to encourage fiscal authorities to exchange information with each other. The fruition of these initiatives is very well known in the “know your client” requirements to which banks and other professionals must now adhere, the implementation on 1 July 2005 of the European Union Savings Tax Directive and the prohibition on the use of numbered bank accounts The fact that there is still some way to go in achieving universal compliance in implementing these measures is high-lighted in a recently published survey by the OECD entitled “Tax cooperation: towards a level playing field”.

A further step in the cementing of international co-operation in the drive against avoidance and evasion took place in April 2004 with the signature of a memorandum of understanding by Australia, Canada, the USA and the UK establishing the Joint International Tax Shelter Information Centre. The stated purpose of JITSIC is to:

· Provide support to the parties through the identification and understanding of abusive tax schemes and those who promote them.
· Share expertise, best practices and experience in tax administration to combat abusive schemes.
· Exchange information on abusive tax schemes, in general, and on specific schemes, their promoters, and investors consistent with the provisions of bilateral tax conventions.
· Enable the parties to better address abusive tax schemes promoted by firms and individuals who operate without regard to national borders.

The participating countries have each appointed trained and experienced personnel to the HQ in Washington DC and an Executive Steering group meets periodically to oversee and evaluate the work of JITSIC.

Another international initiative to combat avoidance is the Tax Haven Working Group comprising the JITSIC countries along with Japan, France and Germany. This forum aims to improve the capacity of each country to deal with the risks posed to their tax systems by tax havens. Members bilaterally exchange information, share research and information on schemes encountered and strategies adopted and conduct joint training sessions. The group also seeks to deal with offshore compliance issues arising from the use of tax havens and issues occasional international alerts on areas which might give rise to problems, such as:
- E-commerce;
- Credit and debit cards;
- Captive insurance;
- Offshore trusts and partnerships;
- Withholding tax.

Further evidence on the theme of international cooperation is the meeting of tax inspectors from around the globe in Auckland over three days in April 2004 to share strategies and experiences in tackling international tax evasion and avoidance schemes. The meeting was organized by the OECD , and more than 60 international tax specialists from 27 OECD and major non-OECD economies with expertise in the areas of international compliance, exchange of information and international tax audits, participated in the meeting. The increasing use of cross-border tax evasion and avoidance schemes was identified as a major challenge for all tax administrations.

Such practices, it is believed, can be detected and deterred through effective exchange of information between tax authorities. It would appear that offshore investors should anticipate a continuing tightening of the fiscal regime. And the recently reported spectacular success of the Irish Revenue Commissioners in tackling abuse through the use of single premium insurance policies almost certainly heralds similar action by HMRC. Although there are some indicatives to make the Irish islands a tax have, similar to Andorra. We do not think that the European Commission will allow this.

This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

The Blog does not constitute legal advice and is not a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Any comment posted on the Blog can be read by any Blog visitor; do not post confidential or sensitive information. Any links from another site to the Blog are beyond the control of us.

By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog.

The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.

Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.

This Blog has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses the information gathering and dissemination practices for this Blog.

This Blog takes your privacy very seriously. Our customers told us they want to see clear, easy-to-read information about our privacy commitments and policies. We have made our privacy policies easier to find and easier to read. And we're listening. We welcome your questions and feedback on our privacy policies, and invite you to contact us with your thoughts.

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• We will protect your privacy and keep your personal information safe. We use powerful encryption and other security safeguards to protect customer data, when available.
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• We will fully disclose our privacy policies in plain language, and make our policies easily accessible to you.
• We will notify you of any revisions to our privacy policy, in advance. No surprises.
• You have choices about how this Blog uses your information for marketing purposes. Customers are in control.


This Privacy Policy identifies and describes the way This Blog uses and protects the information we collect about visitors. All use of this Blog is subject to this Privacy Policy.

Use of Location Information
• When your wireless device is on, it sends periodic signals to the nearest cell site. We use that information to provide your wireless services;
• You can use your wireless device to obtain a wide array of services based on the approximate location of the device, referred to as Location Based Services, or LBS. The information you receive in connection with your use of LBS may include advertisements related to your request and your location;

Online Activity Tracking and Advertising
• We collect information about your activity on this Blog for a number of purposes using technologies such as cookies, Web beacons, widgets and server log files.
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We collect different types of personal and other information based on your use of our products and services and our business relationship with you. Some examples include:
• Contact Information that allows us to communicate with you -- including your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;
• Equipment, Performance, Site Usage, Viewing and other Technical Information about your use of our network, services, products or Web sites.

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• We collect it automatically when you visit our Blog.

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• Provide you with the best visitor experience possible;
• Deliver customized content that may be of interest to you;
• Address network integrity and security issues;
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• For local directory and directory assistance purposes.

Aggregate or Anonymous Information:

We may share aggregate or anonymous information in various formats with trusted entities’ only for purposes such as:
• Our knowledge, and offer of information that may be of interest to you;
• Universities, laboratories and other entities that conduct scientific research; and
• Media research companies for general information only.

Taxes Aren't Beautiful: A Singer Moves to Switzerland to Avoid British Taxes

From Taxprof/typepad.com:

"British singer-songwriter James Blunt -- best known for his hit single You're Beautiful -- has decided to establish residence in Switzerland to avoid British taxes. From press reports:
Blunt, who earned £5 million ($9.8 million) from his debut album Back To Bedlam, is the latest in a long line of high-earners to quit their homeland for Switzerland - Phil Collins resides there and French rock legend Johnny Hallyday set up residence in Gstaad only last month.
Patrick Messeiller, director of tourism for Verbier, confirmed a report in the Swiss daily Le Matin that Blunt, who is a frequent visitor to the mountain village, had registered with the tax office there.

Each Swiss canton (state) sets its own tax rates, and can cut special deals with wealthy foreigners that allow them to pay only a fraction of what they would have to pay elsewhere. "
This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.
The Blog does not constitute legal advice and is not a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Any comment posted on the Blog can be read by any Blog visitor; do not post confidential or sensitive information. Any links from another site to the Blog are beyond the control of us.
By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog.
The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.
Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.
This Blog has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses the information gathering and dissemination practices for this Blog.
This Blog takes your privacy very seriously. Our customers told us they want to see clear, easy-to-read information about our privacy commitments and policies. We have made our privacy policies easier to find and easier to read. And we're listening. We welcome your questions and feedback on our privacy policies, and invite you to contact us with your thoughts.
Customer Privacy Controls and Choices:• You can review and correct your Personal Information collected by us.• You can limit certain types of solicitation communications from AT&T, including marketing contacts made via telephone, e-mail and text messaging.• We will provide you with notice of changes to this policy.
Our privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business every day. These apply to everyone who has a relationship with this Blog and visitors.• We will protect your privacy and keep your personal information safe. We use powerful encryption and other security safeguards to protect customer data, when available.• We will not sell your personal information to anyone, for any purpose. Period.• We will fully disclose our privacy policies in plain language, and make our policies easily accessible to you.• We will notify you of any revisions to our privacy policy, in advance. No surprises.• You have choices about how this Blog uses your information for marketing purposes. Customers are in control.
This Privacy Policy identifies and describes the way This Blog uses and protects the information we collect about visitors. All use of this Blog is subject to this Privacy Policy.
Use of Location Information• When your wireless device is on, it sends periodic signals to the nearest cell site. We use that information to provide your wireless services;• You can use your wireless device to obtain a wide array of services based on the approximate location of the device, referred to as Location Based Services, or LBS. The information you receive in connection with your use of LBS may include advertisements related to your request and your location;
Online Activity Tracking and Advertising• We collect information about your activity on this Blog for a number of purposes using technologies such as cookies, Web beacons, widgets and server log files.• We and our advertising partners use that information, as well as other information they have or we may have, to help tailor the ads you see on our sites and to help make decisions about ads you see on other sites.
The Information We Collect, How We Collect It, And How We Use It
We collect different types of personal and other information based on your use of our products and services and our business relationship with you. Some examples include:• Contact Information that allows us to communicate with you -- including your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;• Equipment, Performance, Site Usage, Viewing and other Technical Information about your use of our network, services, products or Web sites.
We collect information in 2 primary ways:• You give it to us when you register to provide comments;• We collect it automatically when you visit our Blog.
We use the information we collect in a variety of ways, including to:• Provide you with the best visitor experience possible;• Deliver customized content that may be of interest to you;• Address network integrity and security issues;• Investigate, prevent or take action regarding illegal activities, violations of our Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policies; and• For local directory and directory assistance purposes.
Aggregate or Anonymous Information:
We may share aggregate or anonymous information in various formats with trusted entities’ only for purposes such as:• Our knowledge, and offer of information that may be of interest to you;• Universities, laboratories and other entities that conduct scientific research; and• Media research companies for general information only.

David R. Francis has published an article entitled "Secretly, tiny nations hold much wealth" in CS Monitor:

"Although they have only 1 percent of the world's inhabitants, they hold a quarter of United States stocks and nearly a third of all the globe's assets.
They're tax havens: 70 mostly tiny nations that offer no-tax or low-tax status to the wealthy so they can stash their money. Usually, the process is so secret that it draws little attention. But the sums - and lost tax revenues - are growing so large that the havens are getting new and unaccustomed scrutiny.

For example: When London's Tax Justice Network (TJN) reported a month ago that rich individuals worldwide had stashed $11.5 trillion of their assets in tax havens, it caused a fuss in Europe. "Super-rich hide trillions offshore," blazed a British newspaper headline.


Although that report received little notice outside Europe, there are rumblings of concern in the United States. That's not surprising. Nations lose an estimated $255 billion in tax revenues a year because of the havens, according to TJN. The US alone probably loses $60 billion a year, a tax expert estimates.

The loss hits not only prosperous industrial countries, but also developing nations. As a result, dozens of church groups and other nongovernmental organizations concerned with world poverty are joining tax reformers in what will probably become a major political battle. They aim to stem the outflow of money from poor nations into tax havens - an outpouring that may exceed today's global foreign aid of some $60 billion a year.

"If we are serious about reducing poverty, one of the first things we need to tackle is an international financial system run by the rich, for the rich, at the expense of the poor," states David Woodward, director of the New Economics Foundation, a London think tank.

Corrupt officials in poor nations, illegally, and multinational corporations, mostly legally, siphon huge amounts of money into bank accounts and shell companies in 70 tax havens, such as the Cayman Islands, Bermuda, and Jersey.

"It's going to be the next major issue," forecasts Lucy Komisar, a New York journalist writing a book on offshore banking. She compares the drive against tax havens with the civil rights movement of the 1960s, in which she participated, and the feminist and environmental movements of more recent decades.

Ms. Komisar helped organize a meeting on Capitol Hill April 7 to get an American branch of the TJN going. Representatives of several members of Congress, the AFL-CIO and a few other unions, several prominent tax research groups, and the United Church of Christ attended. About a dozen well-known activist groups were also present, including Public Citizen, Greenpeace, and the National Council of La Raza.

By cracking down on capital flight and corruption in developing countries, "we wouldn't have so much poverty in the world," says Robert McIntyre, executive director of Citizens for Tax Justice. He offered at that meeting to find funding for the TJN group in the US and recruit a paid director.

Not everyone sees it this way. The Center for Freedom and Prosperity in Washington, for example, sees tax havens as "an escape hatch for overburdened taxpayers." It relishes "tax competition" between nations. The center also argues that bank secrecy in countries like Switzerland can protect the money of those who face persecution by repressive regimes.

The tax-haven numbers in the TJN report were calculated by a British research firm from conservative sources - such as Merrill Lynch's "World Wealth Report" and the Boston Consulting Group's "Global Wealth Report." The trillions of dollars reported don't include money parked in tax havens by companies - probably also a massive sum.

There are about 3 million shell companies (set up largely to duck taxes) in offshore tax havens, Komisar reckons. These tiny tax havens hold 31 percent of total world assets and 26 percent of the stock of US multinationals.

"As our economies have globalized, our tax systems remain nationally based and measures that should have been put in place decades ago to improve international tax cooperation have not been put in place," says John Christensen, international coordinator in London of TJN. "So the tax burden has been shifted from those who can afford it to middle- and low-income households, and from businesses to working people and consumers."

In the late 1990s, industrial-nation negotiators reached an agreement to pressure tax-haven countries to stop facilitating money laundering, drug dealing, and tax evasion. The deal was championed by the Clinton administration. But it was squashed by the new Bush administration, keen for tax cuts.

Then came 9/11 and a recognition that terrorists and drug dealers use the same international finance channels as tax dodgers. So the Bush administration "has become less strident in its support for bank secrecy and other nondisclosure policies," notes Mr. McIntyre.

Now, a pioneer opponent of tax evasion through tax havens, Sen. Carl Levin (D) of Michigan, has joined with Sen. Norm Coleman (R) of Minnesota to sponsor the Tax Shelter and Tax Haven Reform Act. It would enable the Treasury secretary to designate a tax haven as "uncooperative" with Internal Revenue Service investigations. Though not a panacea, the bill, soon to be reintroduced in the current Congress, would give tax investigators a weapon: Income from such designated tax havens would lose some tax advantages.

This Blog/Web Site ("Blog") does not to provide specific legal advice, it is for educational purposes only. This Blog is made available by the international adviser, lawyer or law firm for educational purposes only as well as to give you general information and a general understanding of the law, not to provide specific legal advice.

The Blog does not constitute legal advice and is not a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed attorney in your state. Any comment posted on the Blog can be read by any Blog visitor; do not post confidential or sensitive information. Any links from another site to the Blog are beyond the control of us.

By using this blog site you understand that there is no attorney client relationship between you and the Blog.

The Blog should not be used as a substitute for competent legal advice from a licensed professional adviser or lawyer in your country.

Our firm and do not convey their approval, support or any relationship to any site or organization. The use of this Blog does not implicitly or explicitly convey any warranties or representations as to the accuracy of the information contained herein.

This Blog has created this privacy statement in order to demonstrate our firm commitment to privacy. The following discloses the information gathering and dissemination practices for this Blog.

This Blog takes your privacy very seriously. Our customers told us they want to see clear, easy-to-read information about our privacy commitments and policies. We have made our privacy policies easier to find and easier to read. And we're listening. We welcome your questions and feedback on our privacy policies, and invite you to contact us with your thoughts.

Customer Privacy Controls and Choices:
• You can review and correct your Personal Information collected by us.
• You can limit certain types of solicitation communications from AT&T, including marketing contacts made via telephone, e-mail and text messaging.
• We will provide you with notice of changes to this policy.

Our privacy commitments are fundamental to the way we do business every day. These apply to everyone who has a relationship with this Blog and visitors.
• We will protect your privacy and keep your personal information safe. We use powerful encryption and other security safeguards to protect customer data, when available.
• We will not sell your personal information to anyone, for any purpose. Period.
• We will fully disclose our privacy policies in plain language, and make our policies easily accessible to you.
• We will notify you of any revisions to our privacy policy, in advance. No surprises.
• You have choices about how this Blog uses your information for marketing purposes. Customers are in control.


This Privacy Policy identifies and describes the way This Blog uses and protects the information we collect about visitors. All use of this Blog is subject to this Privacy Policy.

Use of Location Information
• When your wireless device is on, it sends periodic signals to the nearest cell site. We use that information to provide your wireless services;
• You can use your wireless device to obtain a wide array of services based on the approximate location of the device, referred to as Location Based Services, or LBS. The information you receive in connection with your use of LBS may include advertisements related to your request and your location;

Online Activity Tracking and Advertising
• We collect information about your activity on this Blog for a number of purposes using technologies such as cookies, Web beacons, widgets and server log files.
• We and our advertising partners use that information, as well as other information they have or we may have, to help tailor the ads you see on our sites and to help make decisions about ads you see on other sites.

The Information We Collect, How We Collect It, And How We Use It

We collect different types of personal and other information based on your use of our products and services and our business relationship with you. Some examples include:
• Contact Information that allows us to communicate with you -- including your name, address, telephone number, and e-mail address;
• Equipment, Performance, Site Usage, Viewing and other Technical Information about your use of our network, services, products or Web sites.

We collect information in 2 primary ways:
• You give it to us when you register to provide comments;
• We collect it automatically when you visit our Blog.

We use the information we collect in a variety of ways, including to:
• Provide you with the best visitor experience possible;
• Deliver customized content that may be of interest to you;
• Address network integrity and security issues;
• Investigate, prevent or take action regarding illegal activities, violations of our Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policies; and
• For local directory and directory assistance purposes.

Aggregate or Anonymous Information:

We may share aggregate or anonymous information in various formats with trusted entities’ only for purposes such as:
• Our knowledge, and offer of information that may be of interest to you;
• Universities, laboratories and other entities that conduct scientific research; and
• Media research companies for general information only.