Los impuestos en el mundo. Actualización al 17-Ene-2011

Canada Room For Improvement At Canada Revenue Agency As part of its annual Red Tape Awareness Week, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business has released a report card on the Canada Revenue Agency customer service experience. With an overall grade of 'C-minus' and 'Ds' in three of the five categories assessed, the results show that CRA has plenty of room for improvement. EU Brussels Launches Consultation On EU Bank Failure Framework The European Commission is currently seeking views on a possible European Union framework to deal with future bank failures. EU Signs Serbian WTO Accession Agreement The European Union has announced the signing of a bilateral agreement on Serbia’s accession to the World Trade Organization. Semeta Favours EU Financial Activities Tax European Tax Commissioner Algirdas Semeta has said that an EU-level financial activities tax is a 'promising option' in terms of revenue generation and ensuring that the financial sector is taxed 'fairly.' Japan Japanese Businesses Call For Sales Tax Hike Following Prime Minister Naoto Kan’s call for a nationwide debate over an increase to Japan’s consumption tax, the Japan Association of Corporate Executives (Keizai Doyukai), has said that the tax should be increased from its present rate of 5% to 17% within the next six years. UK UK 20% VAT Is Permanent The UK Prime Minister, David Cameron has confirmed the earlier comments of the Chancellor, George Osborne, that his government regards the 20% value-added tax rate implemented on January 4, 2011, as permanent. Anguillan Budget Vetoed The UK Governor in Anguilla, Alistair Harrison, has announced that he will not ‘sign off [Anguilla’s] 2011 budget as it stands,’ and intends to seek and agreement that puts Anguilla’s public finances 'onto a more sustainable footing.' UK Hauliers Welcome Tax 'Burden Sharing' Idea The UK Road Haulage Association has welcomed news that the Prime Minister intends to revisit the Conservative proposal to ‘share the risk’ of higher fuel prices between the government and road users. US Authorities Can Now Inspect UK Auditing Firms British and United States regulators have done a deal which will allow the US authorities to investigate how auditing firms in the UK work on the books of companies listed on the US stock market. UK Chancellor Sets Out Bank Policy Summoned to the despatch box on January 11 to make a statement in answer to an urgent question tabled by shadow chancellor Alan Johnson, George Osborne told MPs that the government was 'in discussions with the banks to see if we can reach a new settlement' with regard to regulation, taxation and the thorny issue of bankers' bonuses. 450,000 Britons Face Tax Demand The UK tax authority, HM Revenue and Customs is expected to send out letters to 450,000 taxpayers in the coming weeks requesting payment of an average of GBP400 in income tax underpayments. Record Fraud Hits UK's Public Purse In 2010, the UK fell victim to more fraud cases than ever before, with the government bearing the brunt of the attack, the KPMG Fraud Barometer, published on January 10, reveals. US Camp Means Business As US Economy Falters The chief of the tax-writing House Ways and Means Committee has placed renewed emphasis on the need for taxes to be simplified and cut following the release of disappointing unemployment data, which suggests that the US economy continues to stall. US Seeks To End Mexican Trucking Dispute The Obama administration has signalled that it wants to see a resolution to a long-running trade dispute with Mexico, which prevents Mexican haulage firms from operating their trucks across the US border on safety grounds. Clinton Criticizes Pakistan Backdown On Fuel Tax US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has criticized the Pakistan Government's decision last week to reverse its controversial fuel price hikes. IMF Sounds US Deficit Warning The International Monetary Fund has warned that the temporary tax cuts approved by Congress late last year, while likely to have a positive impact on the economy, will add substantially to the federal deficit. Firms Shun US For Low Foreign Taxes US corporations are investing less in US operations because high US corporate tax rates create an incentive for companies to leave cash abroad, effectively 'trapping' cash overseas, often permanently, according to the results of a recent survey. Dreier Introduces US Fair Tax Bill Congressman David Dreier has re-introduced the Fair and Simple Tax Act in the House of Representatives, a piece of legislation which he says would simplify the US tax code and reduce the burden on taxpayers. Geithner Looks At US Corporate Tax Reform Following a speech in Washington, in which he talked mainly about the United States-China economic relationship, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner remarked that the government is looking at ways of reforming the country’s corporate taxes. Illinois Tax Hikes Anger Business Businesses in the state of Illinois face some of the highest state taxes in the US after the state assembly narrowly approved a tax and spending plan designed to narrow the state government's USD13bn budget deficit. USTR Looks To Uphold Trade Rules In a speech made recently at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, the United States Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, said that he is aware that his job is to ensure that the United States’ trade policies are flexible enough to accommodate innovation, safeguard intellectual property and lead to the creation of more US technology-sector jobs. Qatar Financial Centre Attracts Big Names The Qatar Financial Centre Regulatory Authority authorized on January 5 US investment bank J P Morgan Chase and Co to undertake regulated activities in the Gulf Arab State, as the country looks to attract some of the world’s biggest financial names.