Tax offenses

The Common Reporting Standard is a 2014 deal that removes the?Banking secrecy? and promotes the exchange of financial information among the governments of 52 countries (which will become 92 in 2018).

The spontaneous collaboration of these countries has encouraged tax evaders to join the?voluntary disclosure?; that by exploiting this rule they can "reveal" undeclared capital to the Italian tax authorities without incurring heavy penalties.

But for those who are unwilling to join in 'voluntary disclosure', what are the reliable tax havens in 2018? Let's find out together ...

The Common Reporting Standard claimed very illustrious victims between 2016 and 2017. In addition to the aforementioned Switzerland and Cayman, Ecuador, Bermuda, the Isles of Man and Jersey, Gibraltar, Mauritius, the Philippines and Barbados, Chile, Dominica also joined., India, Niue, Seychelles, Uruguay, Trinidad and Tobago.

Instead, to remain in the European orbit, Liechtenstein, the Vatican City, San Marino and Monte Carlo have "redeemed" themselves, losing a good part of the Italian "tourism" dedicated to "savings."

But it doesn't stop there! There are many states that have already expressed interest in joining in 2018, including: Andorra, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Bahamas, Belize, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, China, Costa Rica, Dar es Salaam, Grenada, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong . , Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Marshall Islands, Macao, Malaysia, Monaco, New Zealand, Qatar, Russia, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Singapore, Sint Maarten, Turkey.

Based on a classification of the OECD , there is a list of tax havens that still exist in 2018, many of which are defined by the European Commission as 'non-cooperative entities in terms of tax policies'.
This is a classification of the countries included in the black list, depending on the type of taxation or regime adopted:

1. Pure Tax Haven - no taxes and guarantees absolute bank secrecy even with other states;
2. Foreign income is not taxed: external income is excluded from all taxes and only domestic income is taxed;
3. Low taxation: modest taxes on any income;
4. Special Taxation: countries with tax regimes similar to those considered normal but that allow the establishment of flexible companies.

There are many ways to combat tax evasion. To get rid of the cunning (or true thieves), the State implements increasingly differentiated strategies. At the investigation and deterrence level, we range from telematics receipts and financial blitz to the lens of the new revenue meter and other inductive revenue assessment tools. It also focuses on tax compliance, thinking about discounts for those who return capital with voluntary disclosure and bonuses for honest taxpayers.

But the repression is also aggravated by the repression of tax crimes regulated in a decree implementing the Tax Reform Law, cd. Fiscal Delegation, approved by the Government on June 26, 2015. Let us see the current regime in force and the new features introduced by the fiscal delegation regarding tax offenses.

Of course, not all tax offenses are equally serious. Of the various behaviors aimed at not paying the taxes owed - a government task force has identified 19 profiles of tax evaders - only a few are considered crimes. The law establishes when a crime is punishable by administrative sanction (fine) or penal sanction (fine or imprisonment). And often the threshold is quantitative: that is, it depends on how much you evade. A separate discussion then corresponds to "tax avoidance", the "gray area" in which existing rules are used for the sole purpose of reducing the tax burden.

Staying in the field of evasion, we see the main behaviors that constitute a crime and the related sanctions (the reference standard is Legislative Decree 74 of 2000, modified by Legislative Decree 138 of 2011 and later retouched by Legislative Decree no. 158/2015).

We also remind you that according to legislative decree n. 8/2016, in force since February 6, 2016, has the crime of non-payment of social contributions for payments of less than 10,000 been decriminalized? yearly.

Conduct : falsification of tax or VAT returns through the insertion of fictitious passive elements (false invoicing) or the alteration of accounting records (for obliged subjects). The offense exists if:

• the evaded tax is greater than 30 thousand euros with reference to each of the individual taxes (previously it was 77,468.53);
• undeclared income exceeds 5% of the total or in any case 1.5 million euros (previously it was 1 million)

Sanction : prison from 1 year and 6 months to 6 years.

Conduct : statements false outside of the previous cases (without a fraudulent system, but in any case consciously and voluntarily). The offense exists if:

• the evaded tax exceeds 150 thousand euros (previously it was 50,000 euros);
• The undeclared income exceeds 10% of the total or, in any case, 3 million euros (previously it was 2 million).

Sanction : imprisonment from 1 to 3 years.

Conduct - Failure to file tax returns, VAT, and even 770 tax returns within 90 days of the deadline. The offense exists if the evaded tax is greater than 50 thousand euros (previously it was 30 thousand).

Sanction : imprisonment from 1 to 3 years.

Conduct : the penalty threshold is set at 250 thousand euros (they were 50 thousand).

Conduct : issuance of invoices or receipts for non-existent transactions in order to allow third parties to avoid personal income tax or VAT, regardless of whether or not the recipient uses the false documents and the amount (before the penalty threshold was 196 thousand euros) .

Sanctions : from 1 year and 6 months to 6 years.

Conduct : destruction or concealment of accounting records or other documents that must be preserved to prevent the reconstruction of income or invoicing.

Sanctions : prison from 6 months to 5 years.

You go to jail more easily

For all these crimes, the conditional suspension of the sentence does not apply if the evaded tax exceeds:

• 30% of billing;
• the 3 million euros.

• Simple Dodgers
• Partial concealment of income
• Fictional headlines
• False tax documentation
• 'Sophisticated' tax evasion and avoidance
• Skipped contributions
• Not issuing a receipt
• Shell companies
• VAT and duty fraud
• Assets abroad
• Rentals in black
• Deductions not owed
• Fake onlus
• Excise fraud
• Aggressive tax planning
• Total evader
• Withholding fraud
• Transfer prices
• Abusive online games
• Paper company
• Capital flight
• Ghost houses
• Betting on black
• Illegal games

Assistance to the detainee at the police station

Before an arrest, the highest priority is to receive specialized legal assistance as soon as possible and to maintain contact with the outside.

 If you or a loved one has been arrested, we can help you.