Welcome to Lowtax

going slightly giddy

There'll be a digital tax by Christmas, proclaimed European Commissioner for Taxation Pierre Moscovici last week. Perhaps he needs to brush up on his history. We've heard such bold claims in previous eras... Continue Reading »

Akin to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang

Banks and financial institutions the world over were worried about the legal and reputational costs of falling foul of FATCA (the United States Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) from the outset... Continue Reading »

nothing can be ruled out

When looking at recent tax developments for this week's entry, I began to wonder whether a country's tax regime reflects its topography. Take the United States for example... Continue Reading »

Gibraltar Focus

As one of the first British dependent territories to develop tax-exempt corporate forms, Gibraltar has a long history as an offshore financial center, with the focus initially on the traditional forms of offshore business like company incorporation, Continue Reading »

If at first you don't succeed

If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. At least that's what they might tell you in school. But does this mantra translate successfully to real life? Switzerland is about to find out... Continue Reading »

Seychelles Company Formation

A byword for tropical beauty, the Seychelles is an archipelago located in the Indian Ocean to the north east of Madagascar. However, as well as being a popular tourist destination, the Seychelles has established itself on the map... Continue Reading »

fail to prepare and prepare to fail

Although I tend to steer clear of hackneyed phrases (I prefer to do blue sky thinking, preferably outside of the box), there's one saying that generally is a very good rule for life: fail to prepare and prepare to fail... Continue Reading »

paying through the nose

Taxes aren't just there to raise revenue for the government; they're also there to save us from ourselves. Environmental taxes are intended to stop us from destroying the planet, and sin taxes to stop us from... Continue Reading »

Who needs enemies when you've got friends

If Machiavelli were alive today, I think he would have swapped Tuscany for the Australian Capital Territory long ago (although with a name more suited to 21st century Australia perhaps - MacVelly maybe?... Continue Reading »

hungry for a piece of the pie

Taxpayers in Brazil might have been a little alarmed when they read the headline "UK Chancellor mulling Amazon tax." Brazil has a complicated enough tax regime already, as the International Monetary Fund observed again... Continue Reading »