Author Archives: tony

Germany taxes Swiss bank accounts

Posted on by
Reply
Banknotes of the Swiss franc

Germany and Switzerland signed an amendment to their deal on taxing secret offshore accounts on Thursday, toughening terms for tax dodgers after the main German opposition party blocked the original accord, saying it was too lenient.

The amendment makes it more likely the deal will get the backing from opposition-ruled states and be approved by the German parliament, ending years of tortuous negotiations and netting the country billions of euros.

The German finance ministry said Germany and Switzerland had agreed to raise the retroactive levy on German funds stashed away in Swiss bank accounts to a rate between 21 and 41 percent, from a previously agreed range of 19 to 34 percent.

They also agreed a one-off tax of 50 percent for those who inherit Swiss bank accounts and do not want to declare them, the finance ministry said.

Under the revised deal, German officials will be allowed to put in up to 1300 requests with their Swiss counterparts to investigate cases of fiscal evasion, versus a previously agreed 999.

Germans will have to alert the Swiss authorities when they move their money out of Swiss bank accounts from Jan. 1 2013, versus a previously agreed May 31, in order to prevent an exodus into other offshore accounts.

via Germany, Switzerland revise deal terms – International | IOL Business | IOL.co.za.

Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

Botswana

Posted on by
Reply
Close-up aerial photo of Zambezi River at the ...

Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana (Tswana: Lefatshe la Botswana), is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as “Batswana” (singular: Motswana). Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966. It has held free and fair democratic elections since independence.

Botswana is flat, and up to 70% is covered by the Kalahari Desert. It is bordered by South Africa to the south and southeast, Namibia to the west and north, and Zimbabwe to the northeast. Its border with Zambia to the north is poorly defined but at most is a few hundred meters long.[5]

A mid-sized country of just over two million people, Botswana is one of the most sparsely populated countries in the world. Botswana was one of the poorest countries in Africa when it gained independence from Britain in 1966, with a GDP per capita of about US$70. Botswana has since transformed itself, becoming one of the fastest-growing economies in the world to a GDP (purchasing power parity) per capita of about $14,000.[6] The country also has a strong tradition as a representative democracy.

via Botswana – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Since independence, Botswana has had the highest average economic growth rate in the world, averaging about 9% per year from 1966 to 1999. Growth in private sector employment has averaged about 10% per annum over the first 30 years of independence. The relatively high quality of the country’s statistics means that these figures are likely to be quite accurate. The government has consistently maintained budget surpluses and has extensive foreign exchange reserves.

Botswana’s impressive economic record has been built on a foundation of diamond mining, prudent fiscal policies, international financial and technical assistance, and a cautious foreign policy. It is rated the least corrupt country in Africa, according to an international corruption watchdog, Transparency International. By one estimate, it has the fourth highest gross national income atpurchasing power parity in Africa, giving it a standard of living around that ofMexico and Turkey.[4]

Trade unions represent a minority of workers in the Botswana economy. In general they are loosely organized “in-house” unions, although the Botswana Federation of Trade Unions (BFTU) is consolidating its role as the sole national trade union centre in the country.[5][6]

via http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Botswana

Related articles

Austria

Posted on by
Reply
YOTOT(MC): Austria Center Vienna (panorama)

Austria i/ˈɒstriə/ or /ˈɔːstriə/; German: Österreich [ˈøːstɐˌʁaɪç], officially the Republic of Austria German: Republik Österreich, is a landlocked country of roughly 8.47 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the west. The territory of Austria covers 83,855 square kilometres 32,377 sq mi and has a temperate and alpine climate. Austrias terrain is highly mountainous due to the presence of the Alps; only 32% of the country is below 500 metres 1,640 ft, and its highest point is 3,798 metres 12,461 ft. The majority of the population speak local Austro-Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, and German in its standard form is the countrys official language. Other local official languages are Burgenland Croatian, Hungarian and Slovene. The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty when the vast majority of the country was a part of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Austria became one of the great powers of Europe and, in response to the coronation of Napoleon I as the Emperor of the French, the Austrian Empire was officially proclaimed in 1804. In 1867, the Austrian Empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary.After the collapse of the Habsburg Austro-Hungarian Empire in 1918 at the end of World War I, Austria adopted and used the name the Republic of German Austria “Deutschösterreich”, later “Österreich” in an attempt for union with Germany, but was forbidden due to the Treaty of Saint Germain. The First Austrian Republic was established in 1919. In the 1938 Anschluss, Austria was occupied and annexed by Nazi Germany. This lasted until the end of World War II in 1945, after which Nazi Germany was occupied by the Allies and Austrias former democratic constitution was restored. In 1955, the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state, ending the occupation. In the same year, the Austrian Parliament created the Declaration of Neutrality which declared that the Second Austrian Republic would become permanently neutral.Today, Austria is a parliamentary representative democracy comprising nine federal states. The capital and largest city, with a population exceeding 1.7 million, is Vienna. Austria is one of the richest countries in the world, with a nominal per capita GDP of $48,350 2011 est.. The country has developed a high standard of living and in 2011 was ranked 19th in the world for its Human Development Index. Austria has been a member of the United Nations since 1955, joined the European Union in 1995, and is a founder of the OECD. Austria also signed the Schengen Agreement in 1995, and adopted the European currency, the Euro, in 1999.

via Austria – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Related articles

Austrians may use South African companies to trade in Africa and worldwide – to read more, follow the links above.

Offshore companies for property-holding

Posted on by
Reply
Mick Jagger - The Rolling Stones live at San S...

The practice is denying the country more than pounds 1billion a year in lost tax, including millions in stamp duty.

The Land Registry has calculated that in the past 12 years a total of 94,760 properties have effectively been placed offshore and beyond the reach of the taxman. They include castles, Highland estates, townhouses and even parking spaces.

The properties are worth some 200 billion pounds $A300 billion.George Osborne, the chancellor, is expected to crack down on stamp duty avoidance in this weeks budget. However, hundreds of millions of pounds in tax will have been lost through the use of this method.

Buck Island, British Virgin Islands - view fro...

Jagger, who has been non-resident for tax for 40 years, signed a 99-year lease on a property in Chelsea, west London, in 2008 through a company based in the British Virgin Islands BVI.

via UK chancellery to clamp down on properties held in offshore companies | The Australian.

Enhanced by Zemanta

Searching for new business? Start with your current customer base

Posted on by
Reply
Marketing planning cards

I find myself telling people all the time, “I don’t care whether you took a high school economics class or graduated from Harvard… the most basic foundational lesson you learned is that your No. 1 source of new business is the person you are currently doing business with.”This philosophy lies at the core of any effective marketing plan.These customers already exist, have already had the experience, and are aware of the good and bad associated with buying from you.Existing customers are without question the most overlooked source of new business for any retailer.The challenge for most businesses is the absence of an exact marketing plan on how often previous owners should be contacted, or what message will make them respond the most.The way to combat this is to build a marketing plan that allocates enough resources on a monthly basis to send out communications to your previous customers to generate a response that results in new business.I have broken a pre-planning strategy down into five points. Regardless of what industry you are in, these must all be addressed before a plan can be created.1 What’s the size? The size of your owner base will be the greatest factor in determining the amount of effort and dollars required for effective marketing. Once total audience is determined, you can apply the frequency of how many people are contacted every week, month, quarter and year to effectively market to this audience. Once the frequency is applied, you can set a calendar or schedule of events to take place in your plan.2 What’s the message? The greatest point of all in terms of a message is that no message is a bad message. Every piece of direct mail or email that gets sent ultimately makes an impression. The bottom line is that a message should always be sent and it should be created by knowing what a customer base is most likely to respond to based on what are the best products or services you sell.

via Searching for new business? Start with your current customer base – Birmingham Business Journal.

Related articles