Spain "Victim of Tax Fraud"

 

InvestmentEurope.com has reported how the organisation representing Spain's Tax Inspectors has called for the EU to implement tougher measures against countries who do not supply sufficient tax information.

The IHE maintained that tax fraud is being committed against Spain where the perpetrators are going unpunished, and unlikley to change with agreements between the 27 EU governments regarding directives on savings, VAT fraud or tax planning by multinationals.

A meeting of senior EU Finance Chiefs last week - which saw lengthy debate on teh subject of banking secrecy - brought no further agreements.

In response the IHE has issued a list of measures, which it says woul help eliminate Tax Fraud across the EU :

• Eliminate once and for all banking secrecy amongst EU member states.

• Establish a list of fiscal paradises which would include a list of countries who do not share information.

• Do not give legal recognition to entities that establish their domicile in a fiscal paradise.

• Establish a tax on all transfers to and from these fiscal paradises.

• Force all financial companies with branches in fiscal paradises to supply information on account holders, or if they refuse, prohibit that they have branches open in the fiscal paradise.

• Agree that multinationals give annual reports for each of the countries they operate in, that way it would reduce false transfers of money to countries with cheaper taxes rates.

• Establish antifraud clauses in law - that way all member countries can distinguish between real economic transactions and artificial ones created to elude paying taxes.

Recommended Reading :

• Investment Europe : Spain's Tax Inspectors call for harsher measures.