Wealthy hiding $21 trillion in tax havens, report says - World The "super-rich elite" are hiding more than $21 trillion US in tax havens around the world, an amount roughly equal to the combined GDP of the United States and Japan, according to a new report. Commissioned by the Tax Justice Network, an independent British organization, the report is said to be the most comprehensive ever done concerning what it calls the "offshore economy." Researched and written by James Henry, an expert on tax havens, the report states the hidden money could be as large as $32 trillion, and represents a massive black hole in the world's economy. The amount of tax income lost "is large enough to make a significant difference to the finances of many countries," Henry noted. Hidden money from elites living in developing countries is "enough to make a significant difference to the finances of many countries... that are now struggling to replace lost aid dollars and pay for climate change. The report says:
Tackle Tax Havens 101 Top Tax Policy Blogs : What’s better for the economy? What’s better for the general welfare? What’s more important, financial security for all or individual freedom? International Tax Policy Blogs Blogs Related Generally To International Tax Policy 1. Canadian Tax Blogs These well-written blogs examine tax issues related to Canada. 9. European Tax Blogs Since the inception of the European Union, European tax laws have become even more difficult to decipher. Asian, Australian, and Pacific Island Tax Policy Blogs These blogs discuss the state of taxation in Asia, Australia, and the Pacific Islands. 22. 100 Ways to Save Tax in Malaysia 100 Ways To save Tax in Malaysia is an incisive look at Malaysian tax policy for property investors. 23. Indian Tax Blogs India’s tax system, which is extremely complex, deserves its own category here. 30. Tax Policy Blogs By American Professors Tax policy blogs written by professors will give you some of the most comprehensive tax information available online.
Tax haven responses underline need for government action Blog Last week, ActionAid identified 8492 tax haven-registered companies owned by the 100 biggest businesses on the London Stock Exchange, a number far in excess of that previously disclosed. So how have companies responded? We found advertising giant WPP had the most operations in tax havens and its spokesperson admitted candidly: “I am not saying there are not any companies there for tax planning reasons…. That's one of the reasons we moved [WPP's head office] to Dublin." Barclays, which has 174 companies in the Cayman Islands alone, said: "All foreign subsidiaries are included in returns to HMRC either because they are UK tax resident and file UK tax returns or because they are listed on returns giving information on income earned that may be subject to UK tax under what is referred to as the controlled foreign company legislation." You can be forgiven if your eyes glazed over at that point, but the reference to "controlled foreign company legislation" is important.
Les Paradis fiscaux en 7 vers illustres | Oh, to blog in London ! Les bibliophiles avertis et les dissidents de l’ordre néo-libéral disposent désormais d’un nouvel ouvrage de référence à placer sur leurs rayons entre les écrits de Naomi Klein et de Paul Jorion. Il s’agit du dernier livre de Nicholas Shaxson, Treasure Islands (« Les îles au trésor »), paru en début d’année en Angleterre et qui, comme l’indique aimablement son sous-titre, permet de tout comprendre ou presque sur « les paradis fiscaux et les hommes qui volent le monde ». [NdA: ouvrage publié en français en avril 2012 sous le titre "Les Paradis fiscaux. On ne s’étonnera pas que son auteur soit britannique. L’intérêt de l’ouvrage est multiple : il retrace l’histoire des paradis fiscaux, en dresse une typologie, décrit leur fonctionnement et en explicite la dimension politique et idéologique. Il est bien sûr difficile de résumer en quelques lignes un ouvrage aussi riche en analyses, en enquêtes, en témoignages, en données, etc. 1. « Fuir ! 1. 2. 3.
Offshore Leaks «Une masse aussi importante de documents, c’est une extraordinaire opportunité» - PARADIS FISCAUX / ENTRETIEN Il y avait eu WikiLeaks, les révélations sur les télégrammes diplomatiques américains ; VatiLeaks, ces fuites sur les secrets ponticaux du Vatican, et bien voici maintenant, Offshore Leaks ! Offshore Leaks c'est une somme incroyable de listes, de documents, de fichiers qui attestent d'un système mondial au service de la fraude fiscale. Offshore Leaks, c'est une sorte de bottin international du paradis fiscal, des fraudeurs dont les noms sont rendus publics grâce aux recherches d'un groupe indépendant de journalistes d'investigation. Cette opération de révélation des noms des pirates fiscaux a rassemblé plusieurs grands journaux en Europe et aux Etats-Unis, dont le quotidien français Le Monde. 120 000 sociétés écrans, des banques, et une liste de 130 Français détenteurs de comptes... Offshore Leaks dévoile donc tout un système que l'organisation CCFD-Terre Solidaire dénonce depuis des années. RFI : Est-ce que vous aviez connaissance de ces documents ?
Leaks reveal secrets of the rich who hide cash offshore | UK news Millions of internal records have leaked from Britain's offshore financial industry, exposing for the first time the identities of thousands of holders of anonymous wealth from around the world, from presidents to plutocrats, the daughter of a notorious dictator and a British millionaire accused of concealing assets from his ex-wife. The leak of 2m emails and other documents, mainly from the offshore haven of the British Virgin Islands (BVI), has the potential to cause a seismic shock worldwide to the booming offshore trade, with a former chief economist at McKinsey estimating that wealthy individuals may have as much as $32tn (£21tn) stashed in overseas havens. In France, Jean-Jacques Augier, President François Hollande's campaign co-treasurer and close friend, has been forced to publicly identify his Chinese business partner. It emerges as Hollande is mired in financial scandal because his former budget minister concealed a Swiss bank account for 20 years and repeatedly lied about it.
Secret Files Expose Offshore’s Global Impact Dozens of journalists sifted through millions of leaked records and thousands of names to produce ICIJ’s investigation into offshore secrecy A cache of 2.5 million files has cracked open the secrets of more than 120,000 offshore companies and trusts, exposing hidden dealings of politicians, con men and the mega-rich the world over. The secret records obtained by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists lay bare the names behind covert companies and private trusts in the British Virgin Islands, the Cook Islands and other offshore hideaways. They include American doctors and dentists and middle-class Greek villagers as well as families and associates of long-time despots, Wall Street swindlers, Eastern European and Indonesian billionaires, Russian corporate executives, international arms dealers and a sham-director-fronted company that the European Union has labeled as a cog in Iran’s nuclear-development program. “I’ve never seen anything like this. Mobsters and Oligarchs
Lifts Veil on Offshore World WASHINGTON, DC – The International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), a project of the Center for Public Integrity, released today its first of many reports from a 15-month investigation that cracks open the historically impenetrable world of offshore tax havens. Drawing from a leaked trove of 2.5 million digital files, ICIJ led what may be the largest cross border journalism collaboration in history. Listen to the press conference given by ICIJ director Gerard Ryle, deputy director Marina Walker Guevara, and senior editor Michael Hudson, about the investigation. ICIJ’s investigation opens the secrets of more than 120,000 offshore companies and trusts and nearly 130,000 individuals and agents, exposing hidden dealings of politicians, con artists, and the mega-rich in more than 170 countries. Secrecy for Sale: Inside the Global Offshore Money Maze, ICIJ’s largest investigative reporting project in its 15- year history, is available at www.icij.org/offshore.