August 17th, 2009
Last week was not kind to tax evaders. Liechtenstein agreed an information-sharing treaty with the UK that, should it serve as a model for the principality’s deals with other countries, would put it out of the tax-haven business. The OECD recognised the Cayman and British Virgin Islands as having implemented the organisation’s tax standards. The US forced more names of suspected tax evaders out of Swiss bank UBS. The war on tax piracy is making progress.
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August 14th, 2009
Liechtenstein, once one of the world's most secretive tax havens, is going further than almost any other centre in cleaning up its act. The deal is a dramatic example of a jurisdiction giving up banking secrecy in return for recognition as a legitimate financial centre. It is helping flush out tax evaders by making its banks close non- compliant accounts by 2015.
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August 12th, 2009
Associated press were one of the many agencies I spoke to yesterday (some of whom have given no credit for the data supplied – such is life). They have a story that in
one incarnation is here:
Liechtenstein’s agreement to help Britain recover taxes on wealth hidden away in the tiny Alpine principality by U.K. taxpayers is only the latest sign that traditional tax havens are yielding to governments hungry for extra revenue during the economic crisis.
"The agreement signed today is a very significant development," said Jeffrey Owens,...
August 12th, 2009
Outlook: And so Liechtenstein has surrendered. Following on from the tax information exchange deal with the US comes a similar one with the UK. There will be an amnesty for around 5,000 account holders who could have stashed up to £3bn in the tiny principality, together with a tacit assurance that they won't be prosecuted if they agree to assume the position and pay up. They'd be well advised to do so because it is more than people in other tax havens may be offered.
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