International
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October 30, 2024
Pillar 2 Likely To Cast Shadow Over US Tax Bill Talks
The international minimum tax agreement known as Pillar Two won't officially factor into upcoming tax bill negotiations in the U.S. Congress, but the global regime's potential grab at U.S. tax revenue could informally influence policy choices.
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October 30, 2024
Tax Court Stands By Couple's Tax Liability After Remand
An investor couple whose case was remanded by the Sixth Circuit is still liable for over $603,000 in deficient taxes tied to $3 million in claimed losses from a complex foreign-exchange derivative arrangement since their actions were not made with legitimate intentions of turning a profit, the U.S. Tax Court said Wednesday.
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October 30, 2024
GOP Lawmakers Criticize Treasury's Start Of Taiwan Tax Talks
The top tax-writing Republicans in Congress said Wednesday that the U.S. Treasury Department's announcement that it would begin negotiations with Taiwan on a double-tax relief agreement risks undermining legislation to address the issue that is stalled in the Senate.
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October 30, 2024
Canadian Can't Claim $15.8M In Losses From Forex Trades
A Canadian businessman can't claim CA$22 million ($15.8 million) in losses as deductions because the foreign exchange trades generating them were not pursued for profit, the Tax Court of Canada ruled.
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October 30, 2024
South African Parliament To Consider Global Minimum Tax
Qualifying businesses in South Africa would be subject to two parts of the OECD's 15% global minimum tax on large multinational entities making more than €750 million ($815 million) annually under legislation sent to the country's Parliament on Wednesday.
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October 30, 2024
UK's VAT Gap Rises £1.4B In 2023-24, Initial Estimate Says
The gap between the amount of value-added tax the U.K. expected to collect in the 2023-24 tax year and the amount actually collected was an estimated £9.5 billion ($12.3 billion), a £1.4 billion increase over the final estimate for the year prior, HM Revenue & Customs said Wednesday.
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October 30, 2024
UK Capital Gains Hike Casts Shadow Over Gov't LSE Aims
The decision by Chancellor Rachel Reeves to raise the tax paid on gains made when shares are sold could hinder the government's work on making the London Stock Exchange more attractive for stock listings and investors, regulatory experts warn.
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October 30, 2024
Last UK Gov't 'Did Not Share' Spending Info With Watchdog
The independent fiscal watchdog said Wednesday that the last Conservative administration had failed to disclose public spending information, adding that it would have resulted in a "materially different" forecast for government spending if it had been given the data.
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October 30, 2024
Pension Pros Say Shutting Inheritance Tax Loophole Overdue
Retirement industry professionals said Wednesday that the budget announcement by the U.K. government that it would remove a loophole that allowed the transfer of more than £1 million ($1.3 million) of inherited pension wealth without paying inheritance tax was overdue.
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October 30, 2024
Labour Gov't Unveils £40B Tax Boost In First Budget
A £40 billion ($52 billion) tax package unveiled on Wednesday by Britain's new Labour government targets business and investors and aims to plug fiscal gaps with plans including higher levies on payrolls and capital gains.
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October 29, 2024
Rimon Adds International Tax Expert In Philadelphia
Rimon PC has added an expert in international tax and trusts and estates who joined the firm's Philadelphia office after working for his own practice.
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October 29, 2024
Croatia, Australia Reach Double Tax Treaty Agreement
Croatia and Australia have agreed on a treaty to avoid double taxation that will take effect when passed by the respective legislatures, the Croatian Ministry of Finance said.
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October 29, 2024
States Should Cede Profit-Shifting Fight To OECD, Atty Says
States should shy away from using mandatory worldwide combined reporting to address profit shifting and instead allow the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to police tax avoidance from multinational corporations, a business trade group attorney said Tuesday.
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October 29, 2024
Switzerland Amends Double Tax Treaty With Kuwait
Switzerland said Tuesday it has ratified changes to its double taxation treaty with Kuwait that are due to take effect early next year.
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October 29, 2024
US, Taiwan To Begin Talks On Double-Tax Agreement
The U.S. and Taiwan announced Tuesday that they will begin a first round of negotiations to craft a double-tax avoidance agreement that would provide certain treaty-like benefits.
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October 28, 2024
Russia Says High Court Case May Help Nix $5B Award Suit
Russia has told a D.C. federal court that a case recently accepted for review by the U.S. Supreme Court may provide it a path to argue that the court lacks jurisdiction to decide a case brought against the country by a Yukos Oil Co. unit.
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October 28, 2024
Latin America, Caribbean Must Up Tobacco Taxes, OECD Says
Latin American and Caribbean countries must increase their tobacco excise tax levels, among other changes, to reduce the overall affordability of tobacco products to drive people to quit using them, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Monday.
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October 28, 2024
UK Construction Co. Due £3.2M In R&D Credits, Refunds
A construction contractor is entitled to tax credits and refunds totaling over £3.2 million ($4.2 million) after the U.K.'s First-tier Tribunal ruled that its expenditures for research and development were not subsidized or contracted out by another party.
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October 28, 2024
European Commission Backs Simplified Minimum Tax Filing
Multinational corporations could file returns for the 15% global minimum tax with a single country in the European Union that they would share with the others only where necessary under a proposal approved Monday by the bloc's executive branch, according to officials.
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October 28, 2024
Labour Budget Expected To Target Taxes At Biz, Investors
The U.K. government is set to unveil its budget statement Wednesday after months of hinting at higher taxes, and experts say businesses and investors are bracing to bear the brunt of the possible tax changes, such as through increases to capital gains and payroll taxes.
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October 28, 2024
Chile Provides Guidance For Voluntary Disclosure Program
Chile's tax agency provided guidance Monday for taxpayers interested in voluntarily disclosing their previously undeclared foreign assets in order to take advantage of a temporarily available tax rate.
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October 28, 2024
IRS Extends Relief For FATCA Filings Without ID Numbers
Foreign financial institutions that report information on U.S. account holders to the Internal Revenue Service without including the taxpayer identification numbers associated with those accounts won't be flagged for noncompliance for the next three years, the agency said Monday.
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October 28, 2024
Wise Boss Hit With FCA Fine For Not Disclosing Tax Penalty
The finance regulator said on Monday that it has fined the chief executive of a money transfer company £350,000 ($454,500) for his failure to tell the watchdog he had been penalized by HM Revenues and Customs for not paying his taxes.
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October 28, 2024
US Expatriations Tick Up In 3rd Quarter, IRS Says
The number of people who expatriated from the U.S. rose during the third quarter of the year compared with the previous quarter, the Internal Revenue Service said Monday.
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October 25, 2024
German Drug Co. Due £21.5M VAT Refund, UK Tribunal Finds
A German pharmaceutical provider is entitled to a refund of almost £21.5 million ($27.9 million) for the value-added tax it paid on the rebated portion of products supplied to the U.K.'s National Health Service, the British First-tier Tribunal ruled.
Expert Analysis
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What Large Language Models Mean For Document Review
Courts often subject parties using technology assisted review to greater scrutiny than parties conducting linear, manual document review, so parties using large language models for document review should expect even more attention, along with a corresponding need for quality control and validation, say attorneys at Sidley.
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Participating In Living History Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My role as a baron in a living history group, and my work as volunteer corporate counsel for a book series fan association, has provided me several opportunities to practice in unexpected areas of law — opening doors to experiences that have nurtured invaluable personal and professional skills, says Matthew Parker at the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.
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Private Equity Owners Can Remedy Law Firms' Agency Issues
Nonlawyer, private-equity ownership of law firms can benefit shareholders and others vulnerable to governance issues such as disparate interests, and can in turn help resolve agency problems, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.
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How Taxpayers Can Prep As Justices Weigh Repatriation Tax
The U.S. Supreme Court might strike down the 2017 federal tax overhaul's corporate repatriation tax in Moore v. U.S., so taxpayers should file protective tax refund claims before the case is decided and repatriate previously taxed earnings that could become entangled in dubious potential Section 965 refunds, say Jenny Austin and Gary Wilcox at Mayer Brown.
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OFAC Designation Prosecutions Are Constitutionally Suspect
Criminal prosecutions based on the Office of Foreign Assets Control’s sanctions-related listing decisions — made with nearly unfettered discretion through an opaque process — present several constitutional issues, so it is imperative that courts recognize additional rights of review, say Solomon Shinerock and Annika Conrad at Lewis Baach.
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How The OECD Global Tax Proposal Could Affect M&A
Following agreement on the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s Pillar Two proposal to introduce a global minimum tax, domestic implementation is expected to have a significant impact on international M&A transactions, with financial modeling, deal structuring, risk allocation and joint venture arrangements likely to be affected, say lawyers at Freshfields.
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UK Shares-Tax Proposals Offer Long-Awaited Modernization
The U.K. government's recent consultation on the introduction of a new tax on transactions in securities raises detailed legal and practical issues, but the prospect of a single digital stamp tax offering both streamlined legislation and administration will be welcomed, say Zoë Arnautov and Mark Sheiham at Simmons & Simmons.
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IRS Foreign Tax Credit Pause Is Welcome Course Correction
A recent IRS notice temporarily suspending application of 2022 foreign tax credit regulations provides wanted relief for the many U.S. multinational companies and other taxpayers that otherwise face the risk of significant double taxation in their international operations, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.
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IRS Criminal Probe Spells Uncertainty For Malta Pension Plans
The IRS’ recent scrutiny of Malta pension plan arrangements — and its unusual issuance of criminal administrative summonses — confirms that it views many of these plans as illegal tax evasion schemes, and the road ahead will not be smooth and steady for anyone involved, say attorneys at Kostelanetz.
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IRS Announcement Will Aid Cos. In Buyback Tax Planning
Recent IRS transitional guidance regarding current requirements for reporting and payment of the stock repurchase excise tax will help corporate taxpayers make decisions about records retention and establishing reserves for future tax payments, say Xenia Garofalo and Kyle Colonna at Eversheds Sutherland.
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Flawed Analysis Supports Common Law Tax Deficiency Ruling
The Colorado federal district court’s recent decision in Liberty Global, holding that the U.S. Department of Justice may assert a common law tax claim without the notice of tax deficiency required by the Internal Revenue Code, relies on a contorted reading of the statute and irrelevant case law, say Loren Opper and Christie Galinski at Miller Canfield.
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Review Of Repatriation Tax Sets Justices On Slippery Slope
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision to review the constitutionality of the repatriation tax in Moore v. U.S. has implications for many tax rules involving unrealized amounts and could leave the court on the brink of invalidating large swaths of the Internal Revenue Code, say attorneys at Eversheds Sutherland.
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What To Make Of IRS' New Advance Pricing Guidance
Recent guidance on the IRS' goals for its advance pricing agreement system provides helpful insight into review and decision-making procedures for advance pricing agreement requests, but it also raises questions about the IRS' objectives, say Richard Slowinski and Stefanie Kavanagh at Alston & Bird.