New EU blacklist successful tool to combat money laundering

Anti-Money Laundering

The European Commission has unveiled its 'blacklist' of 23 jurisdictions where there is a significant risk of money laundering. The list contains 'third country' jurisdictions and includes places such as the Bahamas, the US Virgin Islands, Panama and Saudi Arabia. The list will require all traders in the EU doing business in goods or services worth more than €10,000 in jurisdictions on the blacklist to undertake enhanced due diligence on transactions. The blacklist comes as a result of the EU's Anti-Money Laundering Directive, which is currently being ratified by Member States, and will see the Commission undertake enhanced assessments of the jurisdictions on the list.

Transparency International Corruption Index

Quote from Benedek Jávor MEP

Transparency International released their annual Corruption Perceptions Index, which showed that among others Hungary has slid in score considerably over the five years. Malta, Romania and Bulgaria have all slipped significantly in TI's rankings in the last year.

Vast differences in corporate tax rates across EU shows urgent need for transparency – new report

Tax

Today, a new report by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament shows the privileges given to multinationals through low corporate tax rates across Europe. The report 'Effective Tax Rates of Multinational Enterprises in the EU' quantifies the difference between nominal and effective tax rates for multinationals in the EU. Effective tax rates in the European Union (15% on average) are well below nominal tax rates (23%). Multinationals may have an effective tax rate as low as 2% and as high as 30% across the EU.

Brexit and the future of tax havens

22.01.2019

The conference will address the UK’s role in financial secrecy services and the tools that the EU should mobilise to prevent the UK from evolving towards a tax haven on the EU’s doorstep. It will also assess the tax reforms that have been adopted in recent years at EU level and make recommendations to address the remaining loopholes in order to combat tax havens.

European Parliament supports greater cross-border cooperation between tax authorities

Fiscalis programme

The European Parliament has voted with a broad pro-European majority in favour of the Fiscalis programme for improving cross-border cooperation between tax authorities, which is part of the Multi-Financial-Framework (MFF) programmes currently being negotiated between the Parliament, Council and Commission.

Reforms too little to avert the next crisis

Eurozone

Eurozone finance ministers have emerged from an overnight meeting with proposals for reforms of the single currency. The proposals agreed to include a Eurozone budget. However, these reforms do not go far enough to prevent the next crisis, according to the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament.

European Parliament condemns 'Cum Ex' tax fraud and demands EU-wide investigation

Tax fraud

“The perpetrators behind these schemes must be brought to justice and complicit banks must be held to account for facilitating these crimes. The silence and inaction of the Member States and their Finance Ministers is shocking", commented Sven Giegold, Greens/EFA spokesperson on economics and finance.

MEPs reject tougher fiscal rules that would ensure more austerity

Fiscal Compact

The Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs in the European Parliament has rejected a report from the European Commission that would help enshrine austerity policies into law.

New Greens/EFA report shows urgent need for EU to close loopholes for tax evasion

Tax

A new report by the Greens/EFA group in the European Parliament shows that, despite progress in recent years on closing down opportunities for tax evasion, there are significant loopholes for citizens and multinationals to evade paying taxes where they are based.

New powers urgently needed to tackle money laundering in EU

Money laundering

The European Parliament will debate, on an initiative of the Greens/EFA group, the risks of money laundering in the EU banking sector following on from major multi-billion euro scandals in large European banks. The ongoing case of Danske Bank in Denmark and Estonia, as well recent cases with ING in the Netherlands, Pilatus Bank in Malta and ABVL Bank in Latvia, show that the current enforcement of EU anti-money laundering rules are insufficient.

Austria

Open for shady money

Tax loopholes, the sale of passports to dubious figures and inaction against money laundering makes Austria a safe haven for tax evaders, kleptocrats and corrupt cash according to a new report from the Greens/EFA group. The study "Austria - (still) open for shady money" released at the beginning of the Austrian Presidency of the EU shows that while Austria has made some progress on issues of financial secrecy in recent years, the country remains an attractive destination for dirty money.

Quote from Molly Scott Cato

Luxembourg/Engie ruling

Greens/EFA tax and competition spokesperson Molly Scott Cato comments on the European Commission's decision that Luxembourg gave illegal tax benefits to Engie.