The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Private Sector Consultative Forum in Vienna earlier this week explored measures to combat terrorist financing, writes STEP’s Sean Smith. The first day focused on the risk of terrorist abuse in Non-Profit Organisations – a sector deemed vulnerable because of the resources they use and their geographical spread. On the… Read More Terrorist financing discussed in Vienna
It may not come as a surprise that the new draft UK Finance Bill 2016 has introduced more severe penalties for taxpayers that are found to have fallen out of the General Anti-Abuse Rules (GAAR) remit. A significant change to the rule is the introduction of a new penalty of 60 per cent of the tax… Read More Severe 60 per cent penalty for GAAR schemes
STEP yesterday (14 April) received a letter from Mr Kosie Louw, Chair of the OECD Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes, which was sent to all members of the Global Forum. The letter contains the following statement: ‘I want to state that the public release of taxpayer information is… Read More OECD: ‘Public release of taxpayer information is not consistent with the international standards for tax transparency’
Enhance has been involved with STEP’s annual Private Client Awards for six years now, providing the judges with data analysis to give a clear picture of what firms submitting applications for ‘Investment Team of the Year’ have achieved over the last 12 months. Using proprietary fintech software, the analysis reviews investment performance and risk over… Read More PCA Investment Team of the Year Award: what to expect in the judging process
STEP’s Global Congress, coming up in Amsterdam this summer, will be looking into a number of topical issues, including how wealth is being passed on death to the next generations. Wills do not represent the only way in which wealth is being transferred on death. A person can use a variety of other mechanisms, including… Read More Where there’s no will, there’s a way…
I can’t quite believe that my three-year term as Chair of STEP’s UK Practice Committee has reached its end! I was extremely honoured to have held the position, which opened my eyes to the great lengths that STEP members will voluntarily go through to assist fellow TEPs and share their breadth of knowledge. Guidance notes,… Read More Time flies when you’re having fun!
STEP expert speakers attended the European Parliamentary Hearing titled ‘The protection of vulnerable adults: a cross border perspective’ on 14 March in Brussels. The Hearing was focused on the issue of protecting vulnerable adults across Member States (MS). Each MS has its own legal system in place in order to safeguard its senior citizens, however,… Read More STEP experts at European Parliamentary Hearing on protection of vulnerable adults
As many of you will have seen reported in the STEP UK News Digest and elsewhere, the Ministry of Justice recently issued a consultation paper with its proposals to reform application fees for grants of probate in England and Wales (see news story). While STEP supports the Ministry of Justice’s proposal to modernise the courts… Read More Probate application fees: our concerns
The UK government will be making significant changes to both dividend tax relief and entrepreneurs’ relief effective from 6 April 2016. These changes were outlined by Robert Jamieson TEP at a STEP seminar in London on 22 February. Dividend tax relief The dividend tax credit will be replaced with a new tax-free dividend allowance of… Read More Tax changes your clients may need to know by 6 April
STEP attended a meeting held by HMRC yesterday (3 March 2016) to obtain feedback from tax related governing bodies regarding its imminent – and mandatory – proposals to make tax returns completely digital. We were informed that the objective is to modernise the tax system, improve the level of service for the public and reduce… Read More HMRC’s digital tax plans under fire
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