Int'l Tax News

A law aimed at shell companies is stalled due to disagreements between EU member states. Some want it to require sanctions against tax-avoiding shell structures while others want it to be downgraded to an "exchange of information" system.

Vietnam is considering compensating foreign investors for higher levies set to take effect next year under the global tax deal.

The EU is planning a directive for Pillar One similar to what was adopted for Pillar Two, and the framework is expected to be in place by July. An EU official said the move will catalyze a “political mass” for adoption of Pillar One at the international level.

Zimbabwe is introducing a 1% tax on all foreign payments made in the country to help the government stabilize the economy and raise revenue to pay for foreign-currency denominated debt.

Switzerland is seeking input on a proposal to minimize the administrative burden for multinational enterprises with business units across multiple Swiss cantons under a new supplementary tax regime aligned with OECD global minimum tax rules.

The European Commission said in its country-by-country economic recommendations that aggressive tax planning in Luxembourg and Malta is still of concern, particularly regarding withholding taxes on outbound dividend, interest, and royalty payments.

The IASB has published final amendments to a key standard providing temporary relief from deferred tax accounting in response to worldwide adoption of OECD-brokered global minimum tax rules.

The leaders of the G-7 countries are still aiming to quickly conclude talks on a multilateral convention that would implement pillar 1 of a two-pillar global corporate tax reform plan, according to their latest communique.

The Australian Taxation Office is soliciting comments on draft guidelines for its compliance and risk assessment framework on intangible arrangements between international related parties, revising a version from 2021.

Republicans lawmakers in the U.S. are criticizing the OECD's global minimum tax proposal and may try to impose a reciprocal tax on countries implementing an undertaxed profits rule or similar taxes.

Guernsey, the Isle of Man, and Jersey have confirmed that they will implement OECD-backed income inclusion rules and domestic minimum taxes, beginning in 2025, to ensure that large multinationals pay a 15 percent effective tax rate.

The Bahamas is seeking stakeholder input on possible options for a new corporate income tax regime to support its implementation of global minimum tax rules under the OECD’s two-pillar international tax reform plan.

Mindy Herzfeld examines whether a multilateral economic arrangement that fails to fully consider how and whether the world's second largest economy will participate can truly bring stability to the international tax architecture, and how China's role in the deal might affect other countries' tax revenue and their economic competitiveness.

An official from the African Tax Administration Forum said African countries must adopt minimum tax legislation to avoid losing corporate revenues under the global tax deal. They can use a domestic minimum top-up tax to get first rights to tax companies in their jurisdictions at the 15% minimum rate.

The Kiwi government has presented draft legislation to implement global anti-base-erosion (GLOBE) rules under pillar 2 of the OECD’s two-pillar tax reform plan beginning next year, but the new rules will not raise much revenue.

A U.S.-Chile tax treaty is moving closer to a Senate vote after lawmakers worked out concerns over language on foreign tax credits. The pact was signed in 2010 but has not yet been approved by the Senate.

The IRS has confirmed its willingness to work on intricate transfer pricing disputes between multinational corporations and tax authorities, despite speculation that it would not.

France’s government has proposed tax credits and other initiatives to take advantage of relaxed EU state aid rules intended to allow the bloc to compete with the United States and transition to a greener economy.

Itai Grinberg, a former Treasury deputy assistant secretary for multilateral tax, warned that the United States will be under pressure to conform with OECD global minimum tax rules in 2025, but domestic political headwinds against those rules will make that task a challenge.

The UK’s Chancellor of the Exchequer says tax cuts are not a priority at the moment, as the government's focus is on reducing inflation and maintaining the UK’s credibility with financial markets.

Swedish shipowners have warned the Swedish government that the EU global minimum tax directive’s international shipping income exemption is inconsistent with EU tonnage tax regimes, echoing concerns underpinning a recent legal challenge against the directive.

Countries are making good progress in adopting OECD-brokered global minimum tax rules but need more advice from the OECD to ensure conformity in their efforts, according to G-7 finance ministers and central bank governors.

EU finance ministers have provisionally agreed on a rule that would require crypto-asset service providers to report transactions of their EU clients to tax authorities starting in 2026. The rule is part of the EU's efforts to track crypto transactions and ensure related taxes are paid.

According to the OECD’s new tax head Manal Corwin, the text of a multilateral convention that would implement pillar 1 of a two-pillar global corporate tax reform plan will be ready by the summer as planned.

On May 12, the Biden administration released rules that will determine which companies and manufacturers can benefit from new solar industry tax credits. These rules are being criticized by U.S.-based makers of solar products, who say the guidelines do not go far enough to try to lure manufacturing back from China.

The OECD is developing an approach to allow confidential discussions between tax administrations and taxpayers in support of a two-pillar global tax reform plan and expects it to be operational next year.

Republican senators derailed a May 11 hearing meant to address American pharmaceutical companies’ low effective tax rates with complaints about U.S. participation in OECD pillar 2 international tax talks.

The Brazilian Senate has approved a proposed overhaul of the country’s transfer pricing system to coordinate its tax regime with international principles, and the law is expected to be enacted in the next few weeks.

Irish Finance Minister Michael McGrath has floated depositing up to €90 billion in excess corporate tax receipts into a new sovereign wealth fund over the next seven to 12 years. According to a May 10 scoping paper, Ireland is considering three scenarios in which it deposits anywhere between €34 billion and €90 billion in windfall corporate tax receipts into a new sovereign wealth fund established to enable it to deal with the economic risks of its aging population.

Australia has confirmed its intention to implement domestic minimum tax and global anti-base-erosion (GLOBE) rules that will start taking effect in 2024, in line with pillar 2 of the OECD’s two-pillar international tax reform plan.

A company has filed an application with the General Court of the European Union contesting the validity of the EU global minimum tax directive’s international shipping income exemption. A summary of the application that was published on May 8 argued that the court should annul the exclusion under Council Directive (EU) 2022/2523 and order the Council of the European Union to cover the costs of the procedure.

President Biden’s climate law appears to be encouraging more investment in American manufacturing than initially expected. This boom in new economic activity is driving up costs for taxpayers, who are subsidizing the investments.

The OECD is considering clarifying a rule intended to prevent multinational groups from trying to use intracompany loans to game the new global minimum tax, an IRS official said on May 5.

The IRS released rules affecting intangible property repatriations or transactions in which companies bring intellectual property like patents and trademarks back to the United States. The proposed rules would turn off the application of 367(d) in certain instances to help avoid “excessive” U.S. taxation on income related to the repatriated intangible property.

The Kenyan government has presented draft legislation to Parliament calling for a three percent tax on digital asset transfers and a fifteen percent withholding tax on digital content creation to help finance its 2023-2024 budget.

A “double tax” conundrum involving Taiwanese businesses operating on American soil is straining business ties between the U.S. and Taiwan, a technology manufacturing powerhouse and a central player in Washington’s plan to counter the rise of China and strengthen U.S. supply chains.

Negotiators have been “seeing progress” over the last few months on Pillar One of the OECD-led global tax deal, a Treasury official said on April 28.

Companies are looking to the IRS to clarify how and to what extent the global minimum tax they pay in other countries will be eligible for a foreign tax credit back home.

Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter urged voters to back a plan to raise corporate taxes, warning that the government would lose revenue to other countries if it does not pass a ballot due in less than two months.

American car brands will benefit most from rules that determine which electric vehicles qualify for tax credits starting on April 18. Foreign carmakers will be at a significant disadvantage because of restrictions aimed at cutting China out of the supply chain.

The Irish government predicted surging corporate-tax income will help widen its budget surplus to €10 billion ($11 billion) this year and to €16.2 billion in 2024 and reiterated a plan to channel some of the windfall into a reserve fund.

Under the U.S. government’s interim guidance released in late December, the buyback tax could apply if a U.S. subsidiary of a foreign company makes ordinary business payments to its parent, such as for paying royalties or purchasing inventory, and then the foreign parent buys back shares within a two-year period of that payment. Tax advisors warn that the tax could hurt the competitiveness of the United States as it might diminish foreign direct investment and may provoke major trading partners to reciprocate.

Green tax credits from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 are likely to be far more popular than anticipated, potentially reducing carbon emissions but also increasing costs to U.S. taxpayers.

G-20 countries are calling for “swift implementation” of the two-part international tax agreement, India’s Minister of Finance Nirmala Sitharaman said on April 13. Sitharaman was speaking at a briefing during the International Monetary Fund and World Bank meetings in Washington.

The U.K. Treasury is amending parts of its minimum tax proposal in the Spring Finance Bill to avoid redundancies and ensure multinationals comply with minimum anti-avoidance standards. The changes published on April 14 are being made ahead of an April 18 review of the bill by the Committee of the House of Commons.

Nigeria agreed to continue talks at the OECD on the global tax deal and revise its local tax framework to avoid losses under global minimum tax deals.

A Latin America-wide global tax summit will help nations join forces in the global negotiations over a tax deal, Colombian Minister of Finance and Public Credit Jose Antonio Ocampo said on April 14.

Australia’s recent proposal to curb tax avoidance by multinationals is poised to overlap with the OECD-led global minimum tax, sparking concerns of double taxation. The measure would deny deductions on payments related to intangibles, like patents, made to entities in jurisdictions with a corporate rate that is lower than 15%.

The Group of 24 developing countries are calling for international tax negotiations to address “remaining issues” beyond the scope of the OECD-led global agreement.

The U.S. District Court granted FedEx a crucial victory in an $89 million foreign tax credit dispute, invalidating a Treasury regulation limiting credits on offset earnings from loss-making subsidiaries by ruling in favor of FedEx under Chevron step 1 analysis. The court ruled against the government's interpretation of section 965(b)(4)(A), stating that the approach contradicts the ordinary and common meaning of "for purposes of" as limiting language and creates unintended consequences in the application of sections 959 and 960. The court's decision in FedEx Corp. v. United States may have broader ramifications, potentially affecting taxpayers with similar disputed amounts and the government's use of interlocking rules in other contexts.