Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Ireland is Targeting Crackdown of Offshore Banking Centers

It's pretty much everywhere isn't it?

I was just reading here:

The latest country to beef up its crackdown efforts on offshore tax avoidance is Ireland.

Iris Revenue Commissioners want the courts to compel Irish banks to identify customers with offshore accounts.

Revenue was already granted orders which made financial institutions give away the identity of their customers when money was moved to or from their own offshore subsidiaries.

They have to apply for new rulings in order to require banks to reveal identities of their clients with offshore account or those who wire funds to and from a number of offshore banking centers
This would reveal transfers with financial institutions that are not Irish owned.

The two primary jurisidictions being focused on by Revenue is Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

The rumour is that Revenue is pursuing a very broad order, targeting electronic, as well as paper transfers, which will include checks and drafts.

Earlier this month, Liechtenstein signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Britain. Ireland also approached Liechtenstein regarding a TIEA and wants to have an agreement finished soon.

Ireland recently signed similar accords with the Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar, Cayman Islands, Bermuda, Turks & Caicos Islands and Anguilla.

In addition, agreements are underway with St Kitts and Nevis, the British Virgin Islands, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, the Bahamas, Antigua & Barbuda, and Montserrat, the Cook Islands and Samoa.

A qualified disclosure will let those with undeclared tax liabilities from trusts, foundations, establishments, trust enterprises or offshore companies declare before September 1 to benefit from more leniency.

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