Regulatory Analysis

Posted June 26, 2017 by Paul Ogawa
Netherlands Publishes Reminder of AEOI Reporting Due Date

The Netherlands Competent Authority, through their Community Data Partners website, published a reminder for all FIs submitting FATCA and/or CRS data in 2017. All submissions must be made by August 1, 2017: any initial file deliveries or corrections received after that date may not be considered. To review this published notice, please visit the […]

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Posted June 26, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Gibraltar Publishes CRS Guidance and Reportable Jurisdictions

The Gibraltar Competent Authority has published its list of CRS reportable jurisdictions, as well as some specific guidance related to reporting obligations, due diligence, debt interest, the transition from CDOT, and the XML schema. Gibraltar currently has agreements to exchange information with 20 countries – 13 of which are early adopters and will commence […]

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Posted June 26, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Croatia Publishes New CRS Technical Instructions and Reporting Information

The Croatian Tax Administration has published a final draft of its CRS Schema Guide and Technical Specifications. The specifications for several of the data elements and attributes in the XML have been modified since the prior publication. Additionally, the schema guide now contains a table of validation rules that the XML files must meet in […]

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Posted June 24, 2017 by Charles Riordan
Romanian Senate Rejects Zero-Rate on Social Housing

The Romanian Senate has significantly amended a bill proposed by the ruling Social Democratic Party, which was designed to reduce VAT on social housing and agriculture. The bill originally proposed a zero-rate on the construction of buildings used for social purposes, such as housing for the elderly, orphanages, and rehabilitation centers. The Senate’s Budget and […]

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Posted June 24, 2017 by Charles Riordan
Court of Justice of the European Union: Recent VAT Decisions

The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) has recently published three decisions related to VAT law: In Case C-26/16 (Santogal), a motor vehicle dealership in Portugal sold a new vehicle to an Angolan national allegedly residing in Spain, and claimed a VAT exemption on the sale under Article 138(2) of Council Directive […]

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Posted June 24, 2017 by Charles Riordan
United Kingdom: Queen’s Speech 2017

The Queen’s Speech for 2017, delivered before Parliament on June 21, outlined 27 bills that will make up the government’s agenda for the next two years, including eight bills devoted solely to Brexit. A proposed “Customs Bill,” which would seek to ensure that the UK has a standalone customs regime upon leaving the European Union, is […]

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Posted June 24, 2017 by Ramón Frias
Greece: VAT on Bad Debts is Non-Deductible

The Greek Tax Administration has issued Circular letter No. 1080/2017, confirming that VAT on bad debts is not recoverable in most situations. The tax administration explains that only in very limited cases can VAT corresponding to transactions that have been declared bad debts become deductible, such as when the debtor has been declared in bankruptcy by […]

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Posted June 24, 2017 by Ramón Frias
Portugal Simplifies Non-EU Travelers Exemptions

The Portuguese Tax Authority (Autoridade Tributaria) has issued a new procedure intended to simplify the exemption applicable to purchases made by non-EU travelers visiting Portugal. Diploma-Decree 185/2017 establishes a new electronic system called Simplex +, which is intended to simplify the application of the VAT exemptions for such travelers, reduce their administrative waiting time, and […]

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Posted June 23, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Senate Drafts ACA Replacement Bill, Does Not Repeal Employer Reporting

Senate leadership released a discussion draft of the Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017 – its version of the House’s American Health Care Act (AHCA) intended to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Although this legislation would nullify penalties for the individual and employer mandates, it would not repeal IRS reporting obligations under […]

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Posted June 23, 2017 by Sovos
Colorado Issues Emergency Draft Rules on July 1 Use Tax Notice and Reporting Requirement

On July 1, 2017, Colorado’s long anticipated notice and reporting requirements for non-collecting retailers goes into effect. This law requires retailers that do not have sales tax nexus but make $100K or more in annual sales to Colorado customers to report transactions to the state as well as notify purchasers of their use tax obligation. […]

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Posted June 23, 2017 by Sovos
Czech Republic 2017 Changes to the VAT Law

In April of 2017, the Parliament of the Czech Republic passed legislation that made important changes to the Republic’s Value Added Tax (VAT) Law. The act was then published and codified on June 16th, 2017 in the Collection of Laws, as part of publication 170/2017, seen here. Of the changes, the most notable is […]

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Posted June 23, 2017 by Andrew Decker
Switzerland Confirms Revisions to VAT Act

The Federal Tax Administration has announced the following revisions to the VAT Act, effective January 1, 2018: First, all companies resident in Switzerland and all companies providing services in Switzerland will be liable to collect and remit taxes in Switzerland if their global turnover from non–exempted services exceeds 100,000 CHF. Second, the reduced […]

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Posted June 21, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Senate Leadership Aims for AHCA Vote Next Week; Working Group Expresses Unease

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has announced that leadership plans to release a “discussion draft” of their version of the AHCA bill on Thursday June 22^nd^, with a vote to be held on a final bill one week later. The Congressional Budget Office is expected to release a report concerning the Senate bill early next […]

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Posted June 21, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Bermuda Launches Tax Information Reporting Portal with Guidance and Enrollment Deadline

Bermuda’s Ministry of Finance has launched its Tax Information Reporting Portal, through which Financial Institutions and filers may enroll in and exchange account information pursuant to the Common Reporting Standard (CRS). The Ministry has also published a User Guide for navigating the Portal. It provides an overview of commonly used functionalities within the Portal […]

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Posted June 20, 2017 by Tom Hospod
Germany Publishes FATCA Infobrief for Start of Filing Season

The German BZSt (Tax Office) has published an Infobrief to address some final matters before the start of this year’s FATCA filing season. The BZSt online portal will be available for FATCA transmittals beginning on June 19. Both mass data interface (ELMA) and manual data entry will be operational from this date forward. However, […]

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Posted June 19, 2017 by Charles Riordan
Council Fails to Reach Agreement on European Union VAT Proposals

Two proposals to transform European VAT law have failed to gain approval of the EU’s Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN). Both proposals needed unanimous approval of the delegates to become law. ECOFIN began its meeting of June 16 by debating a proposal that would allow Member States to apply reduced VAT rates to electronic […]

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Posted June 19, 2017 by Paul Ogawa
California Publishes Updated Electronic Funds Transfer Bulk Filer Setup Guide

California recently released an updated version of Publication DE-154, Electronic Funds Transfer Bulk Filer Setup Guide. The purpose of this guide is to provide instruction for payroll agents who use the ACH Debit method to electronically pay the Payroll Tax Deposit using Form DE-88. This publication also provides detailed information on formatting files to submit […]

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Posted June 18, 2017 by Sovos
Spain Takes Final Steps Towards Real Time Reporting Stating July 1

The Spanish Tax Administration (AEAT) recently released a comprehensive set of files, tools, and documents necessary for the full implementation of the Immediate Information Remittance System (SII Version 1.0). As a final test step before actual go-live, AEAT announced that from June 21 through June 29 taxpayers and solution providers may begin submitting SII reports […]

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