August 13th, 2009
I have been chased by journalists (all from outside the UK) today asking what the UK decision to force offshore banks to disclose details of account holders to HM Revenue & Customs might mean. The Swiss are particularly keen.
The honest answer is, of course, that we do not yet know.
The most likely answer is that it depends on two things – first whether the banks appeal and succeed in doing so and second how far the UK is willing to go to enforce this.
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August 13th, 2009
LONDON -- In the latest development in the global crackdown on tax havens, two of the world's biggest offshore financial jurisdictions were scheduled on Thursday, to sign their 12th Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA), officially taking them off the "grey list" of offshore tax havens put together by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
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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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