Requests from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) for beneficial ownership information on offshore companies and trusts may conflict with legal professional privilege (LPP), says the Law Society of England and Wales.
A call from an influential government select committee for the UK’s overseas territories and crown dependencies to create central public registers of beneficial ownership has been rejected by the UK government.
The Cayman Islands will gazette two pieces of legislation before Christmas that will pave the way for the jurisdiction to create a platform where overseas authorities can access information on the beneficial owners of companies and other financial entities.
The Isle of Man’s government has launched a consultation on a draft version of its proposed beneficial ownership bill in line with an agreement it made with the UK in April.
The British Virgin Islands has ruled out adopting a public register of beneficial ownership for the time being, saying it would not support the move unless it was adopted worldwide.
UK prime minister David Cameron set out a raft of new initiatives at today’s anti-corruption summit to tackle corruption which he described as the “cancer at the heart of so many of the world’s problems”.
The Cayman Islands will repeal its Confidential Relationships (Preservation) Law, commonly known as the ‘secrecy law’, by September 2016 as it looks to step up its fight against corruption and tax evasion.
The Isle of Man and Gibraltar are among a group of 22 jurisdictions that have signed up to an information-sharing initiative to combat tax evasion, while Australia is looking at creating a public register revealing the identities of the beneficial owners of shell companies.
The Isle of Man is to set up a central database of beneficial ownership information that it will share with law enforcement agencies in the UK.
The UK Government appears to have relaxed its demands on the Cayman Islands to create a public register that reveals the owners of companies, despite Prime Minister David Cameron calling on overseas jurisdictions to increase transparency.
David Camerons recent letter to overseas territories about the importance of beneficial ownership has received a divided response from senior figures in Jersey and Guernsey.
