"Leaders of the G8 major economies have agreed new measures to clamp down on money launderers, illegal tax evaders and corporate tax avoiders. They include requiring that shell companies – often used to exploit tax loopholes and invest money anonymously – identify their effective owners. Governments also agreed to give each other automatic access to information on their residents’ tax affairs." Continue reading →
"Rejecting US threats, the National Council tossed 'Lex USA'. The big question now is if the US will follow through with its threats of destroying 18 banks, and how many innocent people will be harmed in the process. My best guess is that the US needs to use Switzerland as a scapegoat to scare the world into joining FATCA, since FATCA would otherwise fail. The general view in Switzerland seems to be that if some banks did wrong, then they should be held responsible for their actions without the government being involved, while those in favor of Lex USA generally feared the American blackmail." Continue reading →
"On Thursday, a U.K. parliamentary committee said that Google Inc. has aggressively avoided paying corporate taxes in Britain, and criticized the U.K. tax authority for failing to challenge the Internet giant about its tax arrangement. Late last month, U.S. lawmakers blasted Apple for failing to pay U.S. taxes on billions of dollars in overseas income. Google said that it complies with all U.K. tax rules, and Apple’s CEO Tim Cook told senators that his company pays all the taxes it owes. The problem for companies like Apple is the U.S.’s tax system. Cook made it plain that the 35% corporate rate is too high to bring some profits back from overseas." Continue reading →
"Steve Jobs's former right hand man and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak is one step closer to becoming a permanent Australian resident and citizen. Wozniak, who quit the company in 1987 after 12 years, today told Australian tech blog Gizmodo he was finalising the paperwork for a move down under, a plan he flagged during his visit to Australia in September. 'It is a high priority this month for me to finish some medical and police reports for my residency application,' he said. The former Apple guru also confirmed he was still keen on getting Australian citizenship." Continue reading →
"It would seem that Chuck Schumer, the Democratic Senator from the State of New York, has learned a few tricks from Carl Levin about gaming the U.S. legislative process. Now, instead of trying to get his bill to pass on its own merits, he’s snuck it into an existing bill with a greater chance of passing — just as FATCA died in committee before being snuck into the HEART Act. Other countries both developing and developed — ranging from the Philippines to Denmark to South Korea — have easy-to-obtain diaspora visas for their former citizens. The United States, on the other hand, is once again proposing exile for its own former citizens." Continue reading →
"The IRS, currently in the midst of scandals involving the targeting of conservative groups and lavish taxpayer-funded conferences, is ordering surveillance equipment that includes hidden cameras in coffee trays, plants and clock radios. The IRS wants to secure the surveillance equipment quickly – it posted a solicitation on June 6 and is looking to close the deal by Monday, June 10. The agency already has a company lined up for the order but is not commenting on the details." Continue reading →
"Just weeks after US prosecutors shut down digital currency operator Liberty Reserve for allegedly running one of the biggest money laundering schemes ever uncovered, prosecutors are scrutinising the use of virtual currencies - which can be traded anonymously - to evade tax. In future, taxpayers could be forced to disclose to the IRS whether they are using PayPal accounts for the virtual transfer of money. The latest move follows a landmark decision by Switzerland last month, which accepted a settlement over alleged bank complicity in evasion by Americans. Switzerland had long considered bank secrecy laws untouchable." Continue reading →
"He described as formative an incident in which he claimed CIA operatives were attempting to recruit a Swiss banker to obtain secret banking information. Snowden said they achieved this by purposely getting the banker drunk and encouraging him to drive home in his car. When the banker was arrested for drunk driving, the undercover agent seeking to befriend him offered to help, and a bond was formed that led to successful recruitment. 'Much of what I saw in Geneva really disillusioned me about how my government functions and what its impact is in the world,' he says. 'I realised that I was part of something that was doing far more harm than good.'" Continue reading →
"It is important to note that whilst Swiss bank secrecy is already being counted out by mainstream media across the board, the fact is that in Switzerland the resistance to losses of privacy and other fundamental rights based on demands by foreign nations is growing. More and more Swiss, in government and the Swiss Parliament too, are fed up with the pressures emanating from neighboring states and the US, all based on those countries' dismal fiscal situations and overly zealous hunt for tax revenue. Against this backdrop, an initiative was just launched by some Swiss right-wing political parties that would make bank secrecy a constitutional right." Continue reading →
"With the deficit in 2012 for the US federal government at $1.1 trillion, the expected $900 million from FATCA is not even a drop in the bucket. Even in the unlikely event that the US will moderately reduce its deficit in the future, the revenue from FATCA will remain a pittance in comparison. Why would the US government go through all the enormous trouble of implementing FATCA if it's going to bring in such a meager amount of money? If it's not money, it appears the primary motivation here is control. The new 'global standard' is a path that will put governments around the world one step closer to being able to track and control every penny you earn and every penny you spend." Continue reading →