At a recent conference Pakistan's potential Reformed Goods and Service Tax was discussed in detail, with experts agreeing that the tax needs to be implemented as soon as possible to ensure the country's economic health. On December 30th the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics concluded a three-day conference, concerning the current financial situation and future economic outlook of the country, held in Islamabad. Among the numerous discussions held at the conference was a series of presentations about the potential implementation of a ... Read More

The UK Government’s upcoming increase to the national Value Added Tax rate will push the country's Tax Freedom Day back by three more days. On December 29th the UK Adam Smith Institute (ASI), an independent financial think tank, revealed that the average UK taxpayer will spend approximately 149 days worth of income in 2011 just to pay their personal tax bill. The Institute completes the calculation every year, based on the latest average earnings levels of UK taxpayers and the country’s applicable ... Read More

The Finance Minister of China has revealed the country's fiscal policy intentions for the upcoming year, saying that the Government will focus its tax system development efforts on improving national income distributions and aiding low-income areas across the country. On December 27th the Finance Minister of China Xie Xuren spoke at the National Financial Work Conference which took place in Beijing, explaining the Government's fiscal policy outlook for the 2011 year. He stated that a set of proactive policies will be implemented in ... Read More

Belgian tax authorities have clarified their standing on a one-year old tax law on fund transfers to tax havens, after tax professionals claimed that the new rules were unclear and in need of more specifics. Recently the tax authorities of Belgium released a long-awaited circular intended to clarify a tax law that was introduced into the Belgian tax code on December 23rd 2009. The law concerned the reporting requirements for Belgian resident and non-resident business entities operating in the country which transfer ... Read More

A new report is praising the British tax authorities for its recent performance in conducting investigations on taxpayers alleged of carrying out tax evasion and fraud. Last week the UK National Audit Office (NAO), an independent body responsible for auditing the accounts of all UK government departments, released the results of a new study into the HM Revenue & Customs’ (HMRC) procedures and effectiveness of conducting tax fraud investigations. It was shown in the report that since the 2007-2008 financial year, the HMRC ... Read More

A new report on the economic condition of Spain has been released, recommending several changes to the tax system aimed at ensuring a strong and sustainable economic recovery. On December 20th the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) released its annual Economic Survey of Spain, which outlines the country’s economic standing and suggests several steps that could potentially improve future growth prospects. The report stated that throughout the financial crisis, Spain underwent similar economic declines as other developed nations. At the same ... Read More

The International Monetary Fund will soon launch a new project designed to greatly improve and overhaul the tax systems of selected low-wealth nations and decrease developing countries' dependency on international financial aid. Over the weekend the International Monetary Fund (IMF) held a pledging ceremony for an upcoming program aimed at providing fiscal and technical assistance for low income countries looking to improve national tax systems and administration. Explaining the need for such an initiative IMF Deputy Managing Director Murilo Portugal stated, "...robust ... Read More