Japan: tax reform outline announced
The Japanese government has officially decided to increase the rate of consumption tax from the current 5% to 8% with effect from 1 April 2014. It has also delivered a five-trillion yen (US$50B) economic stimulus policy that aims to alleviate
See MoreAzerbaijan has declared the tax Policy Priorities
Azerbaijan has declared its tax policy priorities for the next 3 years which are presently being considered by the Azerbaijani parliament. The country intends to improve the tax system by introducing 7 new types of taxes, along with a real estate
See MorePortugal: Temporary tax regularization regime unveiled
For the regularization of tax debt, Portugal’s Council of Ministers has approved an “exceptional and temporary regime”. For those taxpayers who choose to regularize their tax debts by 20 December 2013, the regime accords exemption from the
See MoreUkraine withdraws VAT cut plans
Ukraine had previously planned to decrease its VAT rate along with lowering its corporation tax rate. However since Ukraine is struggling with a weak economy, the government is now considering shelving plans to cut corporate tax and VAT next year to
See MoreSpain: New Law to Support Entrepreneurs
The government of Spain recently enacted a law which is commonly known as the “Entrepreneurs Law.” The main objective of the law is to promote self-employed business owners and small to medium enterprises (SMEs) to expand their business
See MorePortugal: Approves Corporate Tax Reform
The Portuguese Council of Ministers sent to parliament proposed reforms of the corporate tax system on 13 October 2013, which will aim to improve Portugal’s tax competitiveness and encourage investment. The proposed reforms would reduce the
See MoreNorway: New government publishes its tax plans
The leaders of Norway's new minority government announced a common general tax platform for the next 4 years, on 7 October 2013. The main plans are summarized below. Individual taxation The new government plans to reduce the tax burden on
See MoreLuxembourg: Legislative changes to implement mandatory automatic exchange of information
The Luxembourg Council of Ministers approved the legislative changes required to implement the mandatory automatic exchange of information system on 4 October 2013 required by article 8 of the Mutual Assistance Directive on administrative
See MoreNetherlands: Bill on Various Tax Amendments approved by Lower House
On 19 September 2013, the Netherlands Lower House of parliament approved a Bill on Various Tax Amendments 2013. The Bill provides that a person who has reached the age of 60 but is not yet 64 at the commencement of the calendar year and earns income
See MoreThailand Scraps Luxury-Goods Tax
The government of Thailand had announced to eliminate import duties on luxury watches, clothes and cosmetics. Accordingly by the end of the year the duty on some luxury goods will be cut from 30% to
See MoreItaly: Update on new VAT declaration
Italy has provided detailed requirements for the new Italian VAT declaration (Spesometro) providing detailed analysis of VAT transactions above €3,600. The Spesometro VAT return which was first proposed in 2010 is the latest effort by the Italian
See MoreNetherlands: Voluntary disclosure relief system relaxed
The Dutch Finance Ministry has announced plans that for those taxpayers who have undeclared assets disclosure system between September 2, 2013, and July 1, 2014 is going to be relaxed. If two-year period is expired, generally a voluntary disclosure
See MoreCanada: Insurance premium rate for employment
Canada’s Finance Minister has announced the employment insurance premium rate for employees that will be fixed for 3 years. According to the announcement, the employment insurance premium rate for employees will remain at its current level of
See MoreArgentina:Approval of the tax reform bill by the House of Representatives
A tax reform bill proposing significant changes to the income tax law regarding the taxation of dividends and capital gains was submitted to the Argentine Congress on 27 August 2013. The Argentine House of Representatives approved the tax reform
See MoreNetherlands: Simplification of individual tax assessment process proposed
A new tax assessment process is proposed by the Netherlands Ministry of Finance on 6 September. This will simplify and speed up the process to determine tax liabilities. A number of new rules for assessment, a rule for revising final assessments,
See MoreNetherlands to change statute of limitations period
A Bill to change the statute of limitations period and to simplify the electronic exchange of data was presented on 2 September 2013 to the parliament. The Bill is the result of earlier announcements by the government on 12 March 2013. Under the
See MoreIndia: New Company Law enacted from 2014
The government of India enacted a new company law on 29 August 2013 which aims to make stronger the rights of shareholders and to increase corporate social responsibility. Companies will also be essential to improve the quality of their financial
See MoreFrance: List of non-cooperative states or territories updated for 2013
The French government published a Ministerial Decree on 28 August 2013 updating the list of non-cooperative states or territories (NCSTs). The list will become effective from 1 January 2013. A major consequence for a country that is on the list of
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