http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/latest-news.htm The Sovereign Group - Latest News - RSS Feed en-gb Mon, 25 February 2008 8:48:07 AM GMT 5-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/570/0/South+African+Budget+phases+out+STC.html Confirmation that the Secondary Tax on Companies (STC) is to be replaced with a withholding tax on dividends was the key feature of the 2008 budget announced by South African Finance Minister Trevor Manuel on 20 February. It also included a cut in the headline corporate tax to 28% from 29%.

In the first phase of the reform process, STC was reduced from 12.5% to 10% with effect from 1 October 2007. This was coupled with a broadening of the tax base through the closure of a number of loopholes. Mon, 5 May 2008 8:57:27 AM GMT 5-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/569/0/DIFC+releases+Exempt+Company+Regulations.html The DIFC Authority issued for public consultation the Exempt Companies Regulations, designed to assist financial institutions to carry out, among other things, securitisation transactions using the existing Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) legal and regulatory framework.

Nasser Al Shaali, chief executive of the DIFC Authority said: "As the DIFC continues its emergence as a leading international financial centre we are committed to providing the most mature, sophisticated ... Mon, 5 May 2008 8:56:24 AM GMT 2-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/568/0/UK+Revenue+targets+5%2C000+accounts+for+offshore+investigation.html The UK Revenue (HMRC) is set to contact around 5,000 holders of offshore bank accounts to request a formal declaration of their account details.

HM Revenue & Customs obtained the details of 400,000 offshore bank accounts from High Street banks and then offered an offshore disclosure facility to any taxpayers who had not disclosed earnings in offshore bank accounts earlier.

HMRC is now using the letters to follow up on those who did not come forward during the offshore ... Fri, 2 May 2008 9:06:43 AM GMT 2-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/567/0/Australian+council+calls+for+client+legal+privilege+extension.html The Australian Law Reform Council issued a report, on 13 February 2008, recommending that client legal privilege be extended to tax advice provided by professional accounting advisors in some specified circumstances.

Under the ALRC's recommendations, legal privilege would specifically be extended to a tax advice document, a "confidential document created by an independent professional accounting advisor for the dominant purpose of providing that person with advice about the operation ... Fri, 2 May 2008 9:04:58 AM GMT 2-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/566/0/India+seeks+to+close+tax+treaty+loopholes.html India is looking to include limitation on benefits clauses and switch to taxation based on where the profits arise rather than on the residency of the taxpayer in its renegotiations of income tax treaties with Cyprus, the United Arab Emirates and Mauritius.

Previously capital gains taxes were levied based on the residency of the taxpayer rather than on the jurisdiction in which the gains arose. The Indian Department of Revenue has estimated that treaty shopping has cost the government INR 50 ... Fri, 2 May 2008 9:03:42 AM GMT 1-May-2008 http://www.sovereigngroup.com/offshore-news/sovereign-news/565/0/Australia+and+Japan+sign+new+tax+treaty.html Japan and Australia signed a new income tax treaty on 31 January 2008, which revises the existing 1969 treaty. It will be effective generally as of 1 January 2009 subject to ratification.

The new treaty will revise the existing tax treaty, which dates from 1969. Japan has been Australia's largest export market for 40 years. Thu, 1 May 2008 8:51:14 AM GMT