International

Expert Analysis

• What The New OECD Double-Tax Procedure Statistics Tell Us

  

  Monique van Herksen and Clive Jie-A-Joen at Simmons & Simmons consider the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development’s recent report on double taxation cases resolved in 2020 under the mutual agreement procedure process, and examine whether the process has improved dispute resolution mechanisms since its implementation five years ago.

• Navigating FCPA Risks Of Minority-Owned Joint Ventures

  

  The U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission will likely continue to focus on third-party risks under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, so companies with minority-owned joint ventures should take several steps to mitigate related compliance challenges, say Ben Kimberley at The Clorox Company and Addison Thompson at Covington.

• Questions To Ask If Doing Business In A Corruption Hot Spot

  

  Businesses facing new scrutiny after the U.S. Department of Justice's recently announced task force for combating human trafficking in Central America, the release of the Pandora Papers and continuing fallout from 2019's Panama Papers, should address compliance risks by having employees ask three questions about every transaction, say attorneys at White & Case.

• How The Global Tax Agreement Could Backfire For Biden

  

  If the $3.5 trillion spending package fails, the federal tax code will not conform to the recent 15% global minimum tax agreement spearheaded by the U.S., which would embarrass the Biden administration and could lead to retaliatory tax measures by other nations, says Alex Parker at Capitol Counsel.

• Pandora Papers Reveal Need For Greater Tax Enforcement

  

  The recent Pandora Papers leak is a reminder of the importance of transparency laws and proper funding for enforcement efforts against tax evasion as bad actors increasingly operate in the shadows, says Daren Firestone and Kevin Crenny at Levy Firestone.

• Parsing New Int'l Tax Reporting Rules For Pass-Throughs

  

  Attorneys at Grant Thornton unpack the Internal Revenue Service’s new pass-through entity reporting requirements for international tax matters and the accompanying guidance for penalty relief, and suggest how companies should prepare for what may be the most significant change to the partnership compliance function in decades.

• A Look At Global Tax Enforcement Developments: Part 2

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Sean Craig at LexisNexis examines recent investigations by the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement and their impact on U.S. taxpayers, as well as the growing significance of transfer pricing disputes and policies for future enforcement.

• A Look At Global Tax Enforcement Developments: Part 1

  Excerpt from Practical Guidance

  

  Sean Craig at LexisNexis looks at how international initiatives, such as the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement, are addressing cryptocurrency-related tax evasion, and how the COVID-19 pandemic and increasing demands for governmental welfare programs are driving global tax policy.

• EU Climate Plan Should Involve Taxing Pollution, Not Borders

  

  In order to crack down on greenhouse gas emissions, the European Union proposes to levy carbon emissions at its borders and to overhaul its long-standing energy tax framework, but the latter would hold polluters directly accountable, giving it the better chance for success, says Rebecca Christie at Bruegel.

• Prepare For Global Tax Regime's New Biz Dispute Risks

  

  Companies should take steps to mitigate the business dispute risks of the new international tax framework, which over a hundred countries agreed to in July, as implementing the new regime will be expensive and require substantial organizational restructuring efforts, says Tim McCarthy at Dykema.

• Prepare For More Audits Of Tax Info And Withholding Filings

  

  Financial institutions and other corporate taxpayers should focus compliance efforts on tax information reporting and withholding, given recent indications from the Biden administration that the IRS will increase enforcement, and the administration's need to fund its infrastructure plan and other costly initiatives, say attorneys at Mayer Brown.

• Anti-Boycott Compliance Still Key In UAE Business Dealings

  

  Notwithstanding recent amendments to U.S. anti-boycott laws that reflect the United Arab Emirates' withdrawal from the Arab boycott of Israel, companies doing business in the UAE and elsewhere still need to maintain effective anti-boycott compliance programs to avoid reporting violations or penalties, says Howard Weissman at Miller Canfield.

• 9th Circ. Adds Pressure To Reject Substance Over Form

  

  The Ninth Circuit’s recent decision rejecting taxes on a family's Roth IRA payments that were made through a foreign sales corporation represents a refreshing trend among federal appeals courts to reject substance-over-form principles and instead look to congressional intent, say Lawrence Hill and Caitlin Tharp at Steptoe & Johnson.