The Power of States and Business: Explaining
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Narrative Report on Ireland
Financial Secrecy Index Ireland Narrative Report on Ireland Ireland is ranked at 47th position on the 2013 Financial Secrecy Index. This ranking is based on a combination of its Chart 1 - How Secretive? Moderately secrecy score and a scale weighting based on its share of the secretive 31-40 global market for offshore financial services. 41-50 Ireland has been assessed with 37 secrecy points out of a 51-60 potential 100, which places it into the moderately secretive 61-70 category at the bottom of the secrecy scale (see chart 1). 71-80 Ireland accounts for over 2 per cent of the global market for 81-90 offshore financial services, making it a small player compared with other secrecy jurisdictions (see chart 2). Exceptionally secretive 91-100 Part 1: Telling the story1 Chart 2 - How Big? Ireland as a financial centre: history and background Overview huge Ireland’s role as a secrecy jurisdiction or tax haven is based on two broad developments. The first, dating from 1956, is a regime of low tax rates and tax loopholes that have large encouraged transnational businesses to relocate – often small only on paper – to Ireland. The second is the role of the tiny Dublin-based International Financial Services Centre (IFSC), a Wild-West, deregulated financial zone set up in 1987 under the corrupt Irish politician Charles Haughey, which has striven particularly to host international ‘shadow banking’ activity2. Ireland’s secrecy score of 37 makes it one of the least secretive jurisdictions on our index: secrecy was never a central part of its ‘offshore’ offering. -
Making the Best of EU's Single Market
Vincent Aussillouxa, Agnès Bénassy-Quéréb, c d French Council of Economic Analysis Clemens Fuest and Guntram Wolff Making the Best of EU’s Single Market Les notes du conseil d’analyse économique, no 38, February 2017 he slow-down in productivity and income over the long-term investment in the energy transition without past decade has weakened the European Union’s overly hurting EU firms’ competitiveness. output legitimacy, which is grounded in delivering T To further stimulate investment, especially in innovative prosperity to its citizens. At the same time, decreasing growth reduces the capacity of governments to maintain sectors, we suggest moving ahead decisively with the capi- existing levels of welfare protection and translates into a tal markets union agenda. In parallel, the use of EU funds perception of rising unfairness and inequality across and should be reviewed taking into account the objectives within EU countries. of economic convergence, spillovers between member It is estimated that remaining non-tariff obstacles, in states and solidarity. particular in services sectors, limit intra-EU trade to a EU national governments are responsible for welfare- level about four times smaller than the intensity of trade related redistribution. However EU policies can help by between US states. By completing the single market, the empowering member countries to address the possible EU could generate significant income gains. However the more straightforward steps have already been taken, effects of EU integration, or by developing EU-wide ins- so the single market agenda now touches upon specific truments to limit its impact on possible losers. We argue domestic regulations in EU countries. -
Irish Diplomacy in Time of Crisis and the Evolution of a 'European
EUSA Fourteenth Biennial Conference March 5-7, 2015 Boston Massachusetts Ben Tonra UCD School of Politics and International Relations [email protected] Irish Diplomacy in Time of Crisis and the Evolution of a ‘European’ diplomatic service1 Abstract The foreign policies of several European states have been centrally engaged in national crisis management subsequent to the crisis in the euro-zone. In several instances this has included determined efforts to rebuild national credibility, intensively to engage with bilateral partners and multilateral agencies both in Europe and internationally and actively to contribute to trade promotion and the attraction of foreign direct investment as part of a programme of national economic recovery. In such a context, where a national diplomatic service is tasked with roles that can be seen to be addressing a near existential crisis for the state, what if any role does foreign policy coordination at EU level play? If such coordination played a marginal role or was non-existent, what does this say about the utility and purpose of EU foreign policy? To what extent does this necessarily delimit or define the potential added-value of the EEAS to national diplomatic services? The proposed paper will conduct a detailed analysis of Irish diplomacy in a time of crisis (2008-2014), 1 This a draft paper submitted for comment and discussion and as such is a work in progress. Please do not cite in other published works withjout contacting the author. 1 assess its response to that crisis, evaluate the role of EU-level foreign policy coordination and finally offer conclusions as to what this may suggest for the future of EU foreign policy. -
Tax Heavens: Methods and Tactics for Corporate Profit Shifting
Tax Heavens: Methods and Tactics for Corporate Profit Shifting By Mark Holtzblatt, Eva K. Jermakowicz and Barry J. Epstein MARK HOLTZBLATT, Ph.D., CPA, is an Associate Professor of Accounting at Cleveland State University in the Monte Ahuja College of Business, teaching In- ternational Accounting and Taxation at the graduate and undergraduate levels. axes paid to governments are among the most significant costs incurred by businesses and individuals. Tax planning evaluates various tax strategies in Torder to determine how to conduct business (and personal transactions) in ways that will reduce or eliminate taxes paid to various governments, with the objective, in the case of multinational corporations, of minimizing the aggregate of taxes paid worldwide. Well-managed entities appropriately attempt to minimize the taxes they pay while making sure they are in full compliance with applicable tax laws. This process—the legitimate lessening of income tax expense—is often EVA K. JERMAKOWICZ, Ph.D., CPA, is a referred to as tax avoidance, thus distinguishing it from tax evasion, which is illegal. Professor of Accounting and Chair of the Although to some listeners’ ears the term tax avoidance may sound pejorative, Accounting Department at Tennessee the practice is fully consistent with the valid, even paramount, goal of financial State University. management, which is to maximize returns to businesses’ ownership interests. Indeed, to do otherwise would represent nonfeasance in office by corporate managers and board members. Multinational corporations make several important decisions in which taxation is a very important factor, such as where to locate a foreign operation, what legal form the operations should assume and how the operations are to be financed. -
The Financial Secrecy Index: Shedding New Light on the Geography of Secrecy
The Financial Secrecy Index: Shedding New Light on the Geography of Secrecy Alex Cobham, Petr Janský, and Markus Meinzer Abstract Both academic research and public policy debate around tax havens and offshore finance typically suffer from a lack of definitional consistency. Unsurprisingly then, there is little agreement about which jurisdictions ought to be considered as tax havens—or which policy measures would result in their not being so considered. In this article we explore and make operational an alternative concept, that of a secrecy jurisdiction and present the findings of the resulting Financial Secrecy Index (FSI). The FSI ranks countries and jurisdictions according to their contribution to opacity in global financial flows, revealing a quite different geography of financial secrecy from the image of small island tax havens that may still dominate popular perceptions and some of the literature on offshore finance. Some major (secrecy-supplying) economies now come into focus. Instead of a binary division between tax havens and others, the results show a secrecy spectrum, on which all jurisdictions can be situated, and that adjustment lfor the scale of business is necessary in order to compare impact propensity. This approach has the potential to support more precise and granular research findings and policy recommendations. JEL Codes: F36, F65 Working Paper 404 www.cgdev.org May 2015 The Financial Secrecy Index: Shedding New Light on the Geography of Secrecy Alex Cobham Tax Justice Network Petr Janský Institute of Economic Studies, Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University in Prague Markus Meinzer Tax Justice Network A version of this paper is published in Economic Geography (July 2015). -
The Relationship Between MNE Tax Haven Use and FDI Into Developing Economies Characterized by Capital Flight
1 The relationship between MNE tax haven use and FDI into developing economies characterized by capital flight By Ali Ahmed, Chris Jones and Yama Temouri* The use of tax havens by multinationals is a pervasive activity in international business. However, we know little about the complementary relationship between tax haven use and foreign direct investment (FDI) in the developing world. Drawing on internalization theory, we develop a conceptual framework that explores this relationship and allows us to contribute to the literature on the determinants of tax haven use by developed-country multinationals. Using a large, firm-level data set, we test the model and find a strong positive association between tax haven use and FDI into countries characterized by low economic development and extreme levels of capital flight. This paper contributes to the literature by adding an important dimension to our understanding of the motives for which MNEs invest in tax havens and has important policy implications at both the domestic and the international level. Keywords: capital flight, economic development, institutions, tax havens, wealth extraction 1. Introduction Multinational enterprises (MNEs) from the developed world own different types of subsidiaries in increasingly complex networks across the globe. Some of the foreign host locations are characterized by light-touch regulation and secrecy, as well as low tax rates on financial capital. These so-called tax havens have received widespread media attention in recent years. In this paper, we explore the relationship between tax haven use and foreign direct investment (FDI) in developing countries, which are often characterized by weak institutions, market imperfections and a propensity for significant capital flight. -
8 May 2018 Tax Justice Network Response to the Questionnaire of The
8 May 2018 Tax Justice Network response to the questionnaire of the European Parliament Special Committee on Tax Crimes, Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance ("TAX3"), in advance of the hearing on "The fight against harmful tax practices within the European Union and abroad", scheduled for 15 May 2018: Why the TJN FSI lists 41 jurisdictions and the EU lists 9 jurisdictions at the moment? What differences in methodology do you notice? Could you explain the criteria used for the construction of the Financial Secrecy Index (FSI)? How could FSI be used for the implementation of anti-tax avoidance and even anti-money laundering rules in the EU and in the rest of the world? * The Tax Justice Network welcomes the opportunity to provide evidence to the European Parliament Special Committee on Tax Crimes, Tax Evasion and Tax Avoidance ("TAX3"), and the energy which is now dedicated to addressing the major issues of international tax abuse which have been revealed by the Panama Papers, Paradise Papers, LuxLeaks and in a range of other investigative work and by our own research. For example, using a methodology developed by researchers at the International Monetary Fund, we estimate that global revenue losses to the profit shifting of multinational companies is in the order of $500 billion a year – and disproportionately felt by lower-income countries where those revenues are most badly needed. At the same time, EU member states are included among the biggest losers – and also among the most aggressive in seeking to disadvantage their neighbours. A similar pattern holds in respect of offshore tax evasion. -
Narrative Report on Panama
NARRATIVE REPORT ON PANAMA PART 1: NARRATIVE REPORT Rank: 15 of 133 Panama ranks 15th in the 2020 Financial Secrecy Index, with a high secrecy score of 72 but a small global scale weighting (0.22 per cent). How Secretive? 72 Coming within the top twenty ranking, Panama remains a jurisdiction of particular concern. Overview and background Moderately secretive 0 to 25 Long the recipient of drugs money from Latin America and with ample other sources of dirty money from the US and elsewhere, Panama is one of the oldest and best-known tax havens in the Americas. In recent years it has adopted a hard-line position as a jurisdiction that refuses to 25 to 50 cooperate with international transparency initiatives. In April 2016, in the biggest leak ever, 11.5 million documents from the Panama law firm Mossack Fonseca revealed the extent of Panama’s involvement in the secrecy business. The Panama Papers showed the 50 to 75 world what a few observers had long been saying: that the secrecy available in Panama makes it one of the world’s top money-laundering locations.1 Exceptionally 75 to 100 In The Sink, a book about tax havens, a US customs official is quoted as secretive saying: “The country is filled with dishonest lawyers, dishonest bankers, dishonest company formation agents and dishonest How big? 0.22% companies registered there by those dishonest lawyers so that they can deposit dirty money into their dishonest banks. The Free Trade Zone is the black hole through which Panama has become one of the filthiest money laundering sinks in the huge world.”2 Panama has over 350,000 secretive International Business Companies (IBCs) registered: the third largest number in the world after Hong Kong3 and the British Virgin Islands (BVI).4 Alongside incorporation of large IBCs, Panama is active in forming tax-evading foundations and trusts, insurance, and boat and shipping registration. -
Taking Stock
Netzwerk Women in Development Europe Taking Stock The financial crisis and development from a feminist perspective WIDE’s Position paper on the global social, economic and environmental crisis Rue Hobbema 59 1000 Brussels Belgium Tel: +32 2 545 90 70 Fax: +32 2 512 73 42 [email protected] www.wide-network.org Authors Ursula Dullnig, Brita Neuhold, Traude Novy, Kathrin Pelzer, Edith Schnitzer, Barbara Schöllenberger, Claudia Thallmayer Editing Gerhild Perlaki-Straub, Hannah Golda This paper has been produced with the financial assistance of AECID, the European Union and HIVOS. The contents of the paper are the sole responsibility of WIDE and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the Funders. Publisher WIDE – Netzwerk Women in Development Europe Währingerstr. 2-4/22 1090 Vienna, Austria Tel: (+43-1) 317 40 31, E-Mail: [email protected] http://www.wide-netzwerk.at Central Register number: 626905553 Copyright © January 2010 WIDE Any parts of this publication may be reproduced without the permission for educational and non- profit purposes if the source is acknowledged. WIDE would appreciate a copy of the text in which document is used or cited. 2 CONTENTS 1. WHY THIS FEMALE-ORIENTED PUBLICATION IS NECESSARY..................................................... 4 2. HIGHLIGHTS ON THE BACKDROP TO THE FINANCIAL CRISIS ..................................................... 7 3. THE PROTECTIVE SHIELD FOR THE FINANCIAL SECTOR AND ITS EFFECTS ON WOMEN ......... 11 4. FACTS AND FIGURES ABOUT THE FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC CRISIS SINCE 2008 ................ 13 5. REVIEW: THE MEXICAN AND ASIAN FINANCIAL CRISES .......................................................... 18 6. WHO IS PAYING FOR THE CRISIS? ............................................................................................ 21 7. MEASURES AT THE INTERNATIONAL LEVEL ........................................................................... -
Tax Avoidance and Multinational Firm Behavior Scott Dyreng Duke
Tax Avoidance and Multinational Firm Behavior Scott Dyreng Duke University Michelle Hanlon MIT COMMENTS WELCOME Abstract: In this chapter we review, and at times extend, the literature on multinational corporate income tax avoidance and its consequences. It is first important to note that multinational corporations pay a substantial amount of taxes, both direct and indirect. Yet, it is also the case that there is evidence 1) of tax avoidance, including cross-jurisdictional income shifting, 2) that tax avoidance is increasing over time, and 3) that the location of ‘real’ items such as investment, debt, and employment are sensitive to taxation. In addition, in certain cases the altering of structures to avoid taxation necessitates more changes to ‘real’ activity. We observe that while there is evidence of income shifting, the literature is not settled on the extent to which this occurs. We briefly touch on the financial accounting and reputational incentives and disincentives for tax avoidance. We end with a short discussion of the early research following recent tax regime changes. This paper will be a chapter in the International Tax Policy Forum/Brookings Institution forthcoming book entitled “Multinational Corporations in a Changing Global Economy.” We thank the editors, Fritz Foley, Jim Hines, and David Wessel for comments on an earlier draft. We also thank Rebecca Lester, Kevin Markle, Terry Shevlin, and Nemit Shroff for comments. 1. Introduction In this chapter we review, and at times extend, research that examines tax avoidance by multinational corporations (MNCs) and how MNCs’ investing, financing, accounting, and other practices are influenced by taxes and by tax avoidance behavior. -
Tesi Di Laurea
Corso di Laurea Magistrale in Amministrazione, finanza e controllo ex D.M. 270/2004 Tesi di Laurea BEPS Action 2 Hybrid Mismatch Arrangements Relatore Ch. Prof. Marco Ernesto Bagarotto Laureando Davide Sartori Matricola 833416 Anno Accademico 2016 / 2017 2 Alla mia famiglia ed alla mia fidanzata, grazie al cui aiuto questo percorso è stato possibile. 3 4 Indice Introduzione .................................................................................................................................. 7 Il Progetto BEPS OCSE (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting ) ......................................................... 11 1.1. Le origini del progetto BEPS ....................................................................................... 11 1.2. Inquadramento dei fenomeni di BEPS ....................................................................... 18 1.2.1. Alcuni numeri riguardanti i BEPS ........................................................................ 26 1.2.2. Un esempio di BEPS : Il “ Double Irish with Dutch Sandwich ” ............................ 29 1.3. Le quindici Actions a contrasto dei BEPS ................................................................... 33 1.3.1. Action 1: Addressing the Tax Challenges of the Digital Economy ..................... 36 1.3.2. Action 2: Neutralising the Effect of Hybrid Mismatch Arrangements .............. 38 1.3.3. Action 3: D esigning Effective Controlled Foreign Companies Rules ................. 39 1.3.4. Action 4: Limiting Base Erosion Involving Interest Deductions and Other -
Mapping Financial Centres
Helpdesk Report Mapping Financial Centres Hannah Timmis Institute of Development Studies 15 May 2018 Question What are the key financial centres that affect developing countries? Contents 1. Overview 2. IFCs and developing countries 3. Key IFCs 4. References The K4D helpdesk service provides brief summaries of current research, evidence, and lessons learned. Helpdesk reports are not rigorous or systematic reviews; they are intended to provide an introduction to the most important evidence related to a research question. They draw on a rapid desk- based review of published literature and consultation with subject specialists. Helpdesk reports are commissioned by the UK Department for International Development and other Government departments, but the views and opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of DFID, the UK Government, K4D or any other contributing organisation. For further information, please contact [email protected]. 1. Overview International financial centres (IFCs) are characterised by favourable tax regimes for foreign corporations. They are theorised to affect developing countries in three key ways. First, they divert real and financial flows away from developing countries. Second, they erode developing countries’ tax bases and thus public resources. Third, IFCs can affect developing countries’ own tax policies by motivating governments to engage in tax competition. The form and scale of these effects across different countries depend on complex interactions between their national tax policies and those of IFCs. In order to better understand the relationship between national tax regimes and development, in 2006, the IMF, OECD, UN and World Bank recommended to the G-20 that all members undertake “spillover analyses” to assess the impact of their tax policies on developing countries.