International

Expert Analysis

• US Needs Better, Nonpunitive Approach To Greening Trade

  

  Instead of imposing tariffs on goods produced where foreign governments have assisted in cleaning up the environment, the U.S. should make trade policy green by helping industries reduce their environmental impact and encouraging every foreign government to do the same, say Elliot Feldman and Michael Snarr at BakerHostetler.

• What OECD Scrutiny Means For Anti-Corruption In Brazil

  

  Attorneys at Paul Hastings examine how an unprecedented standing subgroup recently created by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development to monitor Brazil's anti-corruption efforts reflects significant uncertainty regarding the country's commitment to enforcement, and what companies can do to address foreign bribery risk and strengthen compliance programs.

• The International Outlook For US Border Carbon Adjustments

  

  The Biden administration may see enacting a border carbon adjustment system as a good way to advance climate goals and protect domestic industries and jobs, but any such plan must take into account the need to respect existing international trade agreements, say attorneys at Akin Gump.

• The Domestic Landscape For US Border Carbon Adjustments

  

  With the Biden administration possibly eyeing border carbon adjustments on imported goods as a means to mitigate climate change, attorneys at Akin Gump discuss such policies' potential benefits to domestic businesses, and the political and technical challenges to their enactment in the U.S.

• Prepare For Global Collaboration In Crypto Tax Enforcement

  

  Recent Internal Revenue Service victories involving John Doe summonses served on cryptocurrency exchanges — and statements by the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement about global collaboration in cryptocurrency-related tax investigations — should prompt assessment of prior virtual currency transactions and remediation before an enforcement agency shows up at the door, say attorneys at McDermott.

• 10 Things to Know About US Competent Authority Assistance

  

  Taxpayers should consider seeking U.S. competent authority assistance to help eliminate double taxation from a transfer pricing adjustment, especially now that the competent authorities are resolving cases virtually and more quickly, say attorneys at Thompson & Knight.

• US Advance Pricing Agreements, Amid COVID And Before

  

  Steptoe & Johnson's Matthew Frank, former director of the U.S. Advance Pricing Agreement Program, shares insights from an Internal Revenue Service report revealing an uptick in APA completions amid the pandemic, discusses trends over the program's 30-year history, and suggests ways taxpayers and the IRS could bolster program participation.

• Choosing A Branch Or Subsidiary For Overseas Expansion

  

  Samuel Pollack and Naoko Watanabe at Baker McKenzie examine the corporate and U.S. tax law considerations involved in deciding whether a branch or subsidiary is the most efficient way to expand operations overseas, now that recent Treasury regulations clarified the complicated international tax regime created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

• Key Tax Concerns For Foreign Investors In US Private Equity

  

  Paul D'Alessandro at Bilzin Sumberg examines important tax questions foreigners interested in U.S. private equity investments should ask in advance, including whether the investment will produce active or passive income, be subject to gains tax, and have U.S. estate tax consequences.

• Surveying Global Tax Updates For Sovereign Wealth Investors

  

  As the market transitions to a post-pandemic phase, sovereign wealth fund and other foreign institutional investors must evaluate how recent U.S., EU and U.K. tax changes may affect their private fund investments, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.

• Coke, 3M Tax Cases May Not Settle Blocked Income Debate

  

  Even if the challenged U.S. Department of the Treasury regulation on blocked income is struck down by the U.S. Tax Court in the pending Coca-Cola and 3M cases, the obligations of a taxpayer that had, but failed to avail itself of, alternative means to secure payment will remain an open question, say Matthew Frank and Amanda Varma at Steptoe & Johnson.

• IRS Should Level The Field For R&D Tax Credits

  

  A recent increase in denials of research and development tax credits to small businesses in the architectural, engineering and construction community shows the Internal Revenue Service should issue new guidance to ensure a fair playing field and an opportunity to continue innovating in the U.S., says Julio Gonzalez at Engineered Tax Services.

• Applying OECD Guidance On COVID-19 Transfer Pricing

  

  In light of the recently released Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's guidance on the transfer pricing implications of the pandemic, taxpayers should be prepared to explain and defend their transfer pricing decisions for fiscal year 2020 for contemporaneous documentation and in future tax audits, say Susan Fickling and TJ Michaelson at Duff & Phelps.