Italy Confirms Tax Cuts

20 April, 2014

The Italian Government has issued a three-year Economic and Financial Document (DEF), which includes both individual and corporate income tax reductions. The individual income tax reductions will benefit lower income taxpayers. With effect from 1

See More

France Confirms EUR10bn Tax Cuts For Corporates

20 April, 2014

The French Prime Minister has set out plans for reducing wage costs for businesses in addition to the CICE tax credit that has already been introduced. The CICE tax credit has provided relief through a credit of 6 percent of gross payroll for

See More

Egypt issues VAT reform plans 2014

20 April, 2014

Egypt has issued plans to replace the existing general sales tax (GST) with a full Value Added Tax. This move has been expected for some time. Egypt’s current GST law is estimated to be hitting the country’s economy by around 1% of GDP as there

See More

Peru: Published regulation for advance pricing agreement

16 April, 2014

The tax authority's Resolution 377-2013/SUNAT, published in the Official Gazette on 29 December 2013.Accordance with the Resolution 377/2013, intention to negotiate an APA should be expressed in writing to SUNAT which must reply within 15 days.

See More

US – IRS Advises Taxpayers with Foreign Income

15 April, 2014

The IRS has issued instructions for /US citizens or residents who are living or working abroad, and for people in the US receiving foreign income in 2013. All income of US citizens or residents must be declared to the IRS and the rules in respect of

See More

Japan: 2014 tax changes

07 April, 2014

Some changes to Japan’s tax law announced on 1 October 2013 were passed on 20 March 2014. The “attributed income principle” in respect of the profits of permanent establishment, as set out in the authorized OECD approach, will be adopted. The

See More

Italy: Italian 2012 Tax Returns Suggest Compliance Gap

07 April, 2014

Italian statistics in respect of tax returns suggest that Italians on average declared income of around EUR19,750 (USD27,200) in the 2012 fiscal year. Although the government has been encouraging more tax compliance, the number of taxpayers sending

See More

Ireland: IBEC calls for Tax Cuts to Support recovery

07 April, 2014

Ireland’s business and employers’ confederation IBEC has requested a reduction in the marginal individual income tax rate to bring it below 50 percent and has suggested that the income level at which the top rate of tax begins should also be

See More

Hong Kong considers how to maintain Low-Tax Regime

07 April, 2014

According to a recently published report by the Working Group on Long-Term Fiscal Planning the government will need to find additional tax revenue at some point in the future to close a gap in the finances. The government has emphasized that fiscal

See More

France – President offers Token Tax Cut for Households

06 April, 2014

The French is to announce some tax cuts for families in France, according to reports, but the amount of the tax cuts has not been decided and may depend on further reductions in government expenditure.  The President also plans to lower labor costs

See More

Finland decides against VAT increase as taxes rise

06 April, 2014

On 25 March 2014 Finland is to put through some tax rises and benefits cuts in an attempt to lower the budget deficit. Other Scandinavian countries have VAT rates as high as 25%, and Finland has for some time been considering an increase in VAT.

See More

Germany: Finance Minister Indicates Tax Cuts Will Come

06 April, 2014

The German Finance Minister has suggested that tax cuts could be made in the next few years. Various commentators have pointed out that the personal income tax thresholds have not increased in line with inflation, leading to the phenomenon of

See More

EU Approves UK Video Game Tax Break

06 April, 2014

The European Commission has approved the new UK tax relief for video game as being in line with EU state aid rules. The videos games tax relief is designed to give an incentive to developers of video game developers to design products that meet

See More

Australian Taxation Office Launches Offshore Tax Amnesty

31 March, 2014

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is conducting another initiative to urge taxpayers to declare understated offshore income and to revise claims for tax deductions where these are overstated. Disclosures of income are to be regarded as

See More

US – IRS Issues Revised Guidance on Business Expenses

31 March, 2014

The IRS has published a revised version of Publication 535 that gives guidance to taxpayers on claiming a tax deduction for business expenses. The publication contains instructions in respect of the years 2013 and 2014. This may be important for

See More

Ukraine Seeks Tax from Bank Depositors

31 March, 2014

The Ukrainian Ministry of Finance has announced that it is to introduce a tax on interest received from bank deposits above UAH 100,000. This tax is expected to apply to only 1.5 percent of bank deposits in Ukraine but these deposits account for

See More

Switzerland Plans Stricter Rules for Biofuel Tax Breaks

31 March, 2014

The Swiss Council of States has given its approval to a bill strengthening the provisions on the eligibility of enterprises for biofuel tax breaks. Biofuels may be partly or wholly exempt from mineral oil tax provided that they conform to certain

See More

Singapore- issues e-Tax Guide on GST Advance Ruling System

31 March, 2014

An updated e-Tax Guide has been published by the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS) to give guidance on aspects of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) advance ruling system and on the relevant application procedures in connection with the

See More