Vietnam: Legislative Potpourri

Vietnam Net has produced a very good survey of legislation introduced in Vietnam over the past year.   As they note: “Some of this legislation proved beneficial to investors and some of it, well, less so. Regardless of the…

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EU: Better Late Than Never

It may have been a long time coming, and certainly well after the liberalization envisaged in the originating Treaties of Rome (i.e. the treaties establishing the EEC, the precursor to the EU, which came into effect in 1958),…

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Chile: Chile Moves Closer to OECD Membership

On December 15, 2009 the OECD invited Chile to become its second member in Latin America after Mexico. Chile will formally accept this invitation when an Accession Agreement is signed in the presence of Secretary-General Angel Gurría and…

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Jordan: Prime Minister Encourages Foreign Investment

Samir Rifai, Jordan’s Prime Minister, in speaking with the Jordan Security Commission, said the new income tax law will encourage local and foreign investments and will not be a law focused on “collection”, adding that there will be…

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Australia: ASX Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations – proposed changes

The Australian Stock Exchange has published a communique in which it sets out a proposal to amend the Corporate Governance Principles and Recommendations to require listed companies, on a comply or explain basis, to adopt and disclose a…

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UK: Bankers with Few Options

With the rise in UK taxation, and an ever more onerous regulatory environment, UK bankers are looking for options.  The conventional thinking was that other options existed, and that Westminster had better move carefully on suppressing City activity. …

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Chile: OECD Compliant Tax Transparency

Chile has enacted legislation enhancing access to bank information for the purposes of improved compliance with OECD standards on tax information exchange and increased transparency in financial transactions. Previously, legal restrictions prevented Chilean tax authorities from obtaining and…

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Canada: Sending the Right Message – Competition is Good

The Canadian Government took a decisive step in supporting a competitive environment in wireless telecommunications, with a decisions to overrule the Canadian Radio and Television Commission’s earlier decision not to approve Globalive’s entry into the Canadian market at…

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Ireland: Remains “Pro-Business” in Recent Announcements

The Irish government reaffirmed its commitment to both the 12.5% corporations tax, and the tax holiday for business start-ups.  The minister also announced accelerated capital cost allowance, and reaffirmed his support of R&D tax credits regime. Independent (Ireland)…

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UAE: Forth Best Tax Regime

In stark contrast to the prior post on the state of Russian tax administration, the same Big 4 accounting firm study has determined that the UAE has the forth best tax regime in the world.  While debt obligations…

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