Micro News

The number of non-domiciled taxpayers in the UK fell by 13% to 78,300 in the 2017-2018 tax year, according to recent figures from HMRC. Half of the decline in the non-domiciled numbers resulted from a number of residents leaving the UK, and the other half can be attributed to individuals changing to…

Malta has incorporated certain provisions of the EU Fifth Anti-Money Laundering Directive into its beneficial ownership registration regulations.  The move is a controversial one since any member of the public without having to show a legitimate interest can inspect: Full name. Year and month of…

Ireland's central register of beneficial ownership of companies was officially launched on July 29th, which  also includes industrial and provident societies in the act; following an adjournment to allow certain clarifications on beneficial owners' personal public services (PPS) numbers.  Irish companies…

Caribbean nation Dominica's Prime Minister, Mr Roosevelt Skerrit has revealed that the jurisdiction's citizenship-by-investment (CBI) scheme will accrue over half of its gross recurring revenue, and a quarter of its estimated GDP for the 2019-2020 financial year. In the Prime Ministers annual budget…

After a parliamentary committee approved the third countries' data protection standards, Switzerland has agreed to automatic exchange of financial account information with a further 33 countries, which will commence in September 2019.

The Hong Kong Association of Banks has published a detailed guide regarding some pressing and complex anti-money laundering (AML) issues such as trusts and PEPs; including some answers to the most frequently answered questions that have been identified and written by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority. The…

The UK government rejected call to amend the Registration of Overseas Entities Bill to include trusts in its explicit scope, or to lower the 25 per cent threshold for beneficial ownership. The Bill creates an open register of beneficial ownership of overseas entities that own property in the UK.

Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal has defined  that a business's revenues arising from disposition of redeveloped plots of  land should be classed as capital and are thus not chargeable to profits tax (Perfekta v Inland Revenue, 2019 HKCFA 25). The taxpayer in the case had owned a factory in Kowloon,…

As expected, the US Immigration Service has increased the minimum investment level for immigrant investors wishing to become U.S. permanent residents through the EB-5 Immigrant Investor Programme. From 21 November this year, the standard minimum investment level rises from USD1 million to USD1.8 million,…

Last week, the Financial Times cited a document whereby the European Commission signed plans to withdraw some market access rights to the following countries: Argentina. Australia. Brazil. Canada. Singapore. They have been removed on grounds that they are failing to regulate credit ratings…