The CayCompass in the Cayman Islands has already shown remarkable interest in FATCA with their recent article referencing Canada’s grassroots challenge to FATCA. Their interest and understanding continues with a new article detailing the results of their recent online poll regarding FATCA compliance.
I applaud the CayCompass for conducting this very revealing poll and would urge other media outlets to do the same thing in their own countries, repeatedly, so we may better gauge and track the public’s understanding of this vital issue.
The problem for FATCA polls in most countries would be total lack of awareness. In America, the “Don’t know” would be 98% I bet it would be very similar for NZ, although it might be better at 96%. In Australia, there would be a BIG category of, “No problems Mate, she’ll be right”
@ Just Me
Which leads me to wonder why there is such an unusual understanding about FATCA in the Cayman’s. Other Caribbean nations, such as Jamaica, currently seem to have a much lower awareness of the FATCA threat. In any case, FATCA will soon enough be on the lips of every sentient creature around the globe.
We are all U.S. Persons now.
@Just Me
With the “Dont know” at 98%, is it really any wonder that the government can do whatever it wants?
With 98% not knowing much about anything that matters (but they all know about Batman etc), how is a real democracy supposed to work? When nobody knows anything, it is easy for somebody else to take charge.
Sorry, I had to remove the article which I think is only fair if we get the permission first before reproducing its entire contents here. That would also apply to the comment stream. Cheers.
Cayman and Costa Rica just agreed to IGAs. Let’s see if any major countries roll over before the end of the year as I am sure that is a Treasury priority to keep the FATCA express rolling. The assimilation continues.
So, do you think the China Defense Department is encouraging their Treasury to Comply with FATCA?
US carriers urged to comply with China air zone rules
Looks like another country can be a bully and force U.S. Companies to comply!
What we know about FATCA, this statement is laughable…
Maybe the State Department should issue a similar statement on FATCA!!
Russia Today article on US-Cayman FATCA agreement:
http://rt.com/business/cayman-tax-report-agreement-505/
Very sad news today:
Read more: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/US-signs-tax-agreements-with-Cayman-Islands#ixzz2mDpetsvS
US signs tax agreements with Cayman Islands
Saturday, November 30, 2013 | 8:08 PM
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WASHINGTON (CMC) — The United States has signed a number of intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) with the Cayman Islands in implementing the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA).
The US Department of the Treasury said that the FATCA was “rapidly becoming the global model for combating offshore tax evasion and promoting transparency”.
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US Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Tax Affairs Robert B Stack said the announcement marks a milestone in the effort to promote global tax transparency.
“These agreements underscore growing international cooperation in the effort to end tax evasion everywhere.”
FATCA, enacted in 2010, seeks to obtain information on accounts held by US taxpayers in other countries, the Treasury Department said.
It requires US financial institutions to withhold a portion of payments made to foreign financial institutions (FFIs) that do not agree to identify and report information on US account holders.
FFIs have the option of entering into agreements directly with the IRS, or through one of two alternative Model IGAs signed by their home country.
Signed on Friday, the US Department of Treasury said the Cayman Islands IGA is a Model 1B agreement, meaning that FFIs in the Cayman Islands will be required to report tax information about US account holders directly to the Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority, which is the sole channel in the Cayman Islands for the provision of tax-related information to other governments.
The Cayman Islands Tax Information Authority will in turn relay that information to the IRS, the Treasury Department said.
Additionally, the United States and the Cayman Islands also signed a new Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA), to take the place of the original TIEA signed in 2001.
“By working together to detect, deter, and discourage offshore tax abuses through increased transparency and enhanced reporting, we can help build a stronger, more stable, and accountable global financial system,” said Julie Nutter, Minister-Counsellor for Economic Affairs at the US Embassy in London, who signed on behalf of the United States.
“We look forward to collaborating with the Government of the Cayman Islands to further these objectives,” she added.
On Friday, 29 November the German parliament passed a bundle of legislative corrective measures – mostly unrelated to each other – that included enabling legislation to allow implementation of Germany’s FATCA IGA with the USA effective 1 January 2014.
The title of the legislation is:
Gesetz zur Anpassung des Investmentsteuergesetzes und anderer Gesetze an das AIFM-Umsetzungsgesetz (AIFM-Steuer-Anpassungsgesetz – AIFM-StAnpG
The full text of the legislation as passsed (Art. 13 deals with FATCA) and the official commentary/rationale (p. 77-78) may be found here:
http://dipbt.bundestag.de/dip21/btd/18/000/1800068.pdf
According to a brief mention of the action in the Saturday edition of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the legislation passed both houses of the legislature without debate or deliberation. The opposition B90/Green Party had called for a debate on the measure (although it is not clear what elements it was concerned about) but a few members of the far-left “Linke” party joined with the newly-formed coalition government in obtaining the procedural supermajority needed to bypass such debate.
By way of an interesting footnote: in June of this year the same B90/Green party proposed legislation that would have Germany follow the example of the USA and impose worldwide taxation on the basis of German citizenship.
For the text of that legislation and the rationale for its proposal:
http://dipbt.bundestag.de/dip21/btd/17/141/1714133.pdf
That legislative initiative went nowhere. But I suspect that this will not be the last of such proposals in Germany or elsewhere as FATCA implementation spreads.
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When I read this from above; …”“By working together to detect, deter, and discourage offshore tax abuses through increased transparency and enhanced reporting, we can help build a stronger, more stable, and accountable global financial system,” said Julie Nutter, Minister-Counsellor for Economic Affairs at the US Embassy in London, who signed on behalf of the United States.’…
To me, the US signatory’s phrase; …”offshore tax abuses” actually describes the aggression of FATCA and US extraterritorial taxation and financial reporting abuses the US is employing against all those deemed to be ‘US taxable persons’ abroad. FATCA and the US CBT tax system is an ABUSE of all those persons living legal ordinary lives abroad and ‘offshore’ in the rest of the world.
FATCA and FBARs AND CBT are an ‘offshore’ US tax-system ABUSE of the rest of the world.
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