Countries Look at Offshore Tax Evasion in Wake of Economic Crisis
Governments fighting offshore tax evasion often work with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Headquartered in Paris, the OECD recovered $19 billion in taxes in the last two years

January 15, 2012 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Countries Look at Offshore Tax Evasion in Wake of Economic Crisis

November's Group of 20 meeting saw general agreement among attending nations that offshore tax evasion must be targeted. At a time when economies are struggling with national debts, offshore bank accounts -- which may hold over $20 trillion -- are in the crosshairs of governments seeking to balance their books without tax hikes or spending cuts, leading to increased efforts to crack down on U.S. taxpayers with offshore bank accounts.

International Efforts

Governments fighting offshore tax evasion often work with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Headquartered in Paris, the OECD recovered $19 billion in taxes in the last two years. Among other things, the OECD circulates a "blacklist" of countries alleged to help people evade taxes through offshore bank accounts.

Greece has adopted a similar strategy of publishing a list of companies that owe back taxes, hoping to compel them to pay up under public scrutiny. In addition, Italy recently set a threshold above which payments must leave a clear paper trail. And Britain has assigned a team of specialists to scour financial records to ascertain whether affluent citizens are disclosing their full incomes.

Switzerland has signed controversial agreements with Britain and Germany to protect the identities of people who owe back taxes while providing those governments with certain payments in advance. The U.S. has so far balked at signing such an agreement.

U.S. Efforts

Generally tougher on offshore tax evasion than its European counterparts, the U.S. recently reached a settlement with Swiss bank UBS that netted prosecutors data on thousands of accounts held by U.S. taxpayers at the bank. The U.S. Department of Justice is currently investigating eight additional offshore banks.

As governments are increasingly cracking down on people with undisclosed offshore bank accounts, obtaining legal counsel from a knowledgeable tax lawyer is advisable. If you have questions about an offshore bank account or are being investigated for potential tax evasion, contact an attorney with experience in tax evasion cases to discuss your situation.

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