Syndicated Archives - Page 37 of 195 - Devine Accountants

TAX officials have sent letters to 500,000 taxpayers warning them that they are running out of time to tell Revenue if they have foreign earnings that they have failed to declare.

The warning also relates to a bank account abroad or a pension from outside the state that they are not paying tax on.

It comes after Revenue got access to records held on Irish-based taxpayers by tax authorities in other countries.

Thousands of people living here get pensions from Britain from their time working there, with some of these not declared for tax purposes.

The move comes after Finance Minister Michael Noonan announced in October’s Budget a move to target offshore income and assets which have not been declared to Revenue.

Mainly targeted at large-scale tax evaders, the clampdown is also likely to impact anyone with a bank account in another country or a property that is being rented out, even for part of the year.

“Offshore does not just mean assets or funds held in exotic locations and includes any income or assets held outside Ireland, for example a UK pension or rental income from a holiday home overseas,” said the president of the Irish Tax Institute, Mark Barrett.

Anyone affected has been advised to seek financial advice.

Revenue said taxpayers are being advised that from May 1 changes are coming into effect for anyone filing a “qualifying disclosure” that relates to offshore matters.

This relates to a tax liability or omission in a previous filing. It can concern property, funds or accounts held abroad.

“A qualifying disclosure allows errant taxpayers to avail of lower penalties on back tax owed as well as avoiding publication of their details in the quarterly tax defaulters’ list and possible criminal prosecution,” Revenue said.

Changes in the 2016 Finance Act mean the qualifying disclosure option will not be available for people who have failed to declare offshore assets by April 30.

Mr Barrett said severe penalties will apply to taxpayers who have not declared or have under-declared their offshore income and assets to Revenue by the end of April.

There is no minimum threshold on the level of income or assets held overseas that must be declared.

Revenue is writing to thousands of self-assessed tax payers this week to invite them to review their tax affairs and consider whether they need to make a disclosure to Revenue and pay any underpaid tax, interest and penalties, Mr Barrett added.

The disclosure regime applies to all taxpayers including individuals, corporates and trusts.

This year, Revenue will start to receive bank and other financial account information from over 100 countries globally.
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All our economies will suffer if we fail to counter the protectionist argument espoused by radical nationalists, one of Europe’s top officials has warned.

European Commission first vice-president Frans Timmermans said that if the argument could be made that free trade was a driving force for an economy, there “will be a change of heart in the United States in that area”.

US President Donald Trump has pledged to put “America first” and bring US jobs back home.

“If we do not counter the argument that most radical nationalists use, which is to protect is to be protectionist, if we don’t counter that argument all of our economies will suffer,” Mr Timmermans told TDs, Senators and MEPs on a visit to Dublin. “Protectionism has never been an answer, will never be an answer. We need trade, we need trade agreements worldwide.”

Mr Timmermans also said that Ireland was a very special case in the Brexit debate.

“I’m here to stress very clearly that the European Commission will be at Ireland’s side when we need to take into account the very special circumstances that Ireland has to deal with in the Brexit debate,” he told the joint Oireachtas committees on foreign affairs and trade, defence and European Union affairs.

“Through its political ties, its historic ties, its geographic position, its economic structure, Ireland is a very special case in the Brexit debate.

“I want to pledge here today that the European Commission will take these interests to heart and will make sure that these interests are heard by everyone during the period of negotiations.”

But he said the Commission needed Ireland’s “active engagement”.

“All the creativity that Irish people can muster to make sure that we find the best possible solution, all the political energy we can muster together to ensure that we do the least harm possible to all parties involved in the Brexit discussions.”
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Three former staff members of RSA Insurance Ireland (RSAII) have been sanctioned and fined by a UK watchdog.

The former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and two former actuaries admitted misconduct following an Financial Reporting Council’s (FRC) investigation into financial irregularities at the firm.

Rory O’Connor, former CFO, was dismissed by RSA in early 2014 for accounting irregularities that led to the group overstating its profits in Ireland.

Mr O’Connor admitted that his conduct fell significantly short of the standards reasonably to be expected of a Member of CIMA.

Mr O’Connor has been excluded from CIMA for three years, fined £50,000 (reduced to £35,000 after mitigation and a settlement discount) and must pay 18,000 as a contribution to the FRC Executive Counsel’s costs.

Former Chief Actuary, Martin Ryan, admitted that his conduct fell significantly short of the standards reasonably to be expected of a Member of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries (IFoA).

He accepted “breaching the core principles of competence and care, and compliance when he signed inaccurate Statements of Actuarial Opinion” and submitted them to the Central Bank of Ireland between 2009 and 2012.

Mr Ryan will be ineligible for three years for a practicing certificate issued by the IFoA. He has also been fined £145,000 (reduced to £101,500 after mitigation and a settlement discount) and expected to pay £11,000 as a contribution to the Executive Counsel’s costs.

Former Actuary Gerard Bradley admitted that, during 2009 and 2010, he “breached the core principle of compliance by his failure to whistle-blow and/or provide sufficient challenge regarding the operation of an inappropriate claims reserving practice within RSAII”.

He has been fined £70,000 (reduced to £45,500 after mitigation and a settlement discount), a reprimand and is expected to pay £3,500 to as a contribution to the Executive Counsel’s costs.“These significant sanctions, including a period of exclusion and substantial fines, reflect the seriousness of the failings by these individuals and will send a strong signal to the accounting and actuarial professions of the importance of upholding high standards of professional conduct,” Gareth Rees QC, Executive Counsel to the FRC, said.

“These sanctions will also serve to protect the public and contribute to the maintenance of public confidence in the accountancy and actuarial professions.

“It is also notable that these are the first sanctions imposed on actuaries pursuant to the FRC Actuarial Scheme, and they demonstrate the importance of compliance with the core principles of the Actuaries Code, including the obligation to speak up about, and challenge, improper conduct.”

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The rate of rise in motor insurance costs and rents eased off last month.

New figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show that motor premiums did not rise in the month of January.

But the cost of cover was up 6.4pc when compared with the same month last year.

However, this is way down on the rate of rise that was recorded in recent months. Premiums were shooting up at an annual rate of 40pc during the summer.

Many motorists are still being hit with huge rises in the cost of cover as insurers blame a complex range of reasons for pushing up premiums.

However, the hope is that the worst of the rises may now be coming to an end. A number of insurers are predicted to return to profitability next year.

Fears

The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission is probing the motor insurance industry over fears insurers may be operating in an anti-competitive manner.

And the Government has produced a report with 71 action points for easing pressure on premiums, in a move spearheaded by junior minister Eoghan Murphy.

The Oireachtas Finance Committee has also come up with a range of proposals to help reverse the rises.

Private rent costs were also flat in January, as rental cap legislation kicked in. However, they were up 8.3pc in the year.The Government extended rent caps last month in a bid to restrict rises in areas designated as rent pressure zones. Landlords can only increase rents by 4pc per year for three years in designated areas.

In other areas, landlords can only up the rent once every two years since new laws came into effect at Christmas.

Previous plans introduced by Labour’s Alan Kelly when he was minister during the last Dáil provided for rent reviews every two years. They will be allowed to lapse in 2019.

But landlords are free to hike rents for new tenancies.

Overall, prices were down 0.5pc in January. Over the past year, prices rose by 0.3pc.

The consumer price index shows rises in the past year in the cost of transport, restaurants and hotels, and education.
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More than half of Irish businesses believe that Brexit will have no effect on their business, according to a new report.

Fifty-one per cent of respondents to a survey conducted by accountancy firm HLB Sheehan Quinn believe that Britain’s decision to leave the EU will not adversely affect their business.

Under a third (27pc) predicted Brexit would have a negative impact. A surprising 22pc said they expected Brexit to have a positive impact on the year ahead.

However, somewhat conversely, the biggest threat to Irish businesses in 2017 was the possibility of currency fluctuations.

A number of Irish companies encountered serious difficulties last year in the aftermath of the Brexit referendum, when the pound tumbled to its lowest level since 1975.

Further turbulence on currency exchanges remains a distinct possibility in the year ahead, with concerns over a “hard Brexit” and Donald Trump’s protectionist policies in the US just two events that could disrupt global markets.

Mark Butler, managing partner of HLB Sheehan Quinn, said the company was seeing opportunities opening up for Irish firms in the wake of Brexit.

“We are starting to see real enquiries from UK-based owner managed business, seeking advice on choosing Ireland as their base for European business post Brexit,” Mr Butler said.

“We are also starting to see opportunity with other international businesses who no longer consider the UK as an option for a European base. FDI businesses require stability, which Ireland continues to offer,” Mr Butler added.

Overall, Irish businesses remain upbeat in their assessment of the year ahead despite external uncertainties.

The report found that 53pc of respondents said their business was performing better than last year, 37pc said things were the same, while only 10pc stated they were doing worse this year. Overall, almost 60pc said they believed their business would perform better over the course of 2017.

“It is refreshing to see most Irish businesses have a positive outlook and are in growth mode,” Mr Butler said.

Access to finance is expected to be a problem for 25pc of those surveyed, while 22pc feared reduced demand would be their primary concern. Just 14pc said that being able to secure adequate resources was their main concern. The majority of those surveyed (58pc) said they viewed the Irish market as their main source of business.

European markets will be the main customers for 21pc of Irish companies, while a further 21pc will rely on markets further afield for their main source of income.

Hiring in the economy will continue this year, albeit perhaps at a slower rate than has been seen in the past few years.

A total of 36pc of companies said they would hire additional staff this year. However, the same amount replied that they would did not intend to do so.

A further 28pc said that they were unsure of investment plans for this year.

Nearly two-thirds (62pc) said that increased compliance demands were adding strain to their business, with 35pc saying the level of compliance required remained the same. Just 3pc reported a decrease.

Significantly, around 82pc of owners of family businesses said they said they had no concrete succession plans in place.
Article Source: http://tinyurl.com/kbwqb42

The value of the State’s holding in AIB was €11.3bn at the end of December – down €900m since the previous year.

The Government owns more than 99pc of AIB after pumping around €21bn into the bank to save it from collapse after the financial crisis.

The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF) also valued the State’s 14pc stake in Bank of Ireland at €1.1bn. AIB was valued at €11.3bn. This compares with €12.2bn at the same time last year. A spokesman for Finance Minister Michael Noonan said the drop in value does not change the Government’s plans for selling 25pc of the State-owned lender. Mr Noonan has said a sale could take place as early as May or June.

The spokesman said there was no surprise in the valuation, which is based on publicly-available information only.

“AIB results in two weeks will render it obsolete,” the spokesman added. “There are no resultant change for any IPO plans.”

Mr Noonan had held off on firing the starting gun on an AIB listing for more than a year, citing market conditions.

In January, Mr Noonan said the Government would likely trigger an initial public offering (IPO) for AIB in May or June.

There is no realistic prospect of recouping all of those bailout costs in the short term.

The Government plans to sell a 25pc stake in the bank to institutional investors, and to use the proceeds to reduce the national debt.

Nearest peer Bank of Ireland and other European banks, notably including Deutsche Bank, have seen their shares come under pressure over fears lenders are struggling to make profits as long as official interest rates remain at historic lows.

Mr Noonan has insisted the full bailout cost will be recovered over time.Last month Goodbody stockbrokers said the State-owned bank would likely pay a €285m dividend in the coming months. The bank has returned €1.8bn to the State, of debt issued as part of the bailout, and a dividend. The minister has long committed to selling all State holdings in rescued banks over time. As well as almost all of AIB, taxpayers remain the biggest shareholders in Bank of Ireland and Permanent TSB, all as a result of crash-era rescues.
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European stocks edged higher yesterday, with gains in miners and telecommunications firms tempered by a slide in Unilever.

By the close in Dublin, the ISEQ Overall Index was up 0.14pc or 8.86 points, to end the trading session at 6,549.09.

The leaders on the Dublin market included packaging giant Smurfit Kappa, which increased 0.8pc to €26.39, as well as building materials group CRH, which rose 1pc to €32.51.

On the other side of the board, the laggards included speciality baker Aryzta, which dropped 2.6pc to €30.19, while Kingspan fell 1.9pc to €28.80. Elsewhere, the Stoxx Europe 600 Index added 0.2pc at the close, with commodity producers snapping a two-day drop as metal prices increased. The volume of shares traded in the equity gauge was a third lower than the 30-day average, with US markets closed for a holiday.

Unilever’s London-listed shares tumbled the most since 2008 after Kraft Heinz withdrew its $143bn bid for the firm. The Anglo-Dutch consumer company surged on Friday as news of the offer became public. Deutsche Telekom led telecommunications shares higher, rising 2.5pc after a report that Sprint owner Softbank was targeting its T-Mobile US Inc unit in a merger.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group rallied 6.8pc to a one-year high after scrapping plans to sell its Williams & Glyn banking unit, removing one of its biggest obstacles to paying dividends and cutting the UK government’s stake. With political risk in Europe in the spotlight, JPMorgan equity strategists recommend a paired trade of Germany’s DAX Index versus France’s CAC 40 Index as a hedge against the risk of a populist vote in France.
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Hundreds of companies in industries ranging from banking to insurance have been warned about the use of spy kits by private investigators, the Irish Independent can reveal.

In an unprecedented move, the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner has written to around 400 separate bodies in a bid to tackle the illegal use of so-called “tracking devices”.

Assistant Data Protection Commissioner Tony Delaney has warned some of the country’s most well-known firms that private investigators are attaching the devices to their customers’ cars as part of covert surveillance activity.

Mr Delaney has told the 400 bodies, some of which are also State bodies, to put the private investigators “on notice” that they face potential prosecution.

He has also warned that in some cases, insurance companies have handed over full medical or consultants’ reports to private firms that they pay to spy on customers.

The activities of private investigators, also known as ‘tracing agents’, have been the subject of a rigorous and lengthy investigation by Mr Delaney and his officials.

But the senior civil servant, who heads up the commission’s investigations unit, has become increasingly concerned about the use of spy kits by investigators, which are placed underneath people’s vehicles, often in the middle of the night.

Private investigation firms can buy vehicle tracking devices, many of which are small in size, for as little as €200.

The device is placed underneath a car, in virtually all cases unbeknown to the customer being tracked.

The signal from the device is then sent back to a mobile phone application, allowing the private investigator to trace the person’s movements 24 hours a day. The file is then sent back to the company that availed of the investigator’s services.

Device

In most cases, the company may not be aware of the precise type of surveillance being used by the investigator.

Placing a device on a vehicle without the knowledge of the owner is in breach of data protection laws.

Contacted by the Irish Independent, Mr Delaney confirmed his letter was sent to firms in the sectors of banking, insurance, financial services, as well as credit unions and bodies in the local government sector.

“The purpose of this letter was, in the first instance, to alert them to the fact that some private investigators are attaching vehicle tracking devices to the vehicles of individuals on whom they are carrying out surveillance and secondly, to recommend actions that they should take in relation to it,” Mr Delaney said.

“We strongly recommended that these entities should write to all private investigators that they currently use to put them on notice that the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner has advised that such devices may only be used with the consent of the individual vehicle owner or driver who is the subject of surveillance (and) that the use of such devices without appropriate consent should cease immediately and should not be repeated.”

Mr Delaney informed the companies that they reserve the right to report any suspected cases to his office or the Private Security Authority.

He anticipates a number of successful prosecutions in 2017.

Article Source: http://tinyurl.com/kbwqb42

Two of the largest credit unions in the Munster region are in talks that could lead to a mega merger.

Clonmel Credit Union may end up taking over Cork’s Charleville, if the discussions reach a successful conclusion.

The move could see up to €4m pumped into Charleville from the Irish League of Credit Union’s support fund in a bid to bolster its reserves.

Separately, discussions are ongoing between the Civil Service Credit Union and the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation’s (INTO) lender Comhar Linn CU on a tie-up.

This would be a merger of equals if it happens, and would create one of the largest credit unions in the State.

Both are profitable and well reserved.

In Cork, Charleville has been hit by a big fall in the value of its offices in the town, a large former bank branch building.

No annual general meeting has been held since August 2012, according to the Irish League of Credit Unions.

It has 12,100 members and assets of €43m.

Sources indicate that it will need up to €4m from the league’s Savings Protection Fund to replenish its reserves ahead of a merger. Charleville has in the past aggressively gone after people who failed to repay loans. In 2013, it secured €1m in court judgments against 16 individuals, the highest of any credit union that year.

The lender has been hit by high levels of bad debt despite operating in the wealthy Golden Vale hinterland.

Tipperary’s Clonmel lender is conducting due diligence ahead of a merger, with the Central Bank closely involved in monitoring developments.

The tie-up is expected to be completed in six to seven weeks, it is understood.

The combined credit union would have assets of €218m, and a total membership of close to 40,000.

Although they are a considerable distance apart from each other, Clonmel was chosen to take over the Charleville lender due to its financial strength.

Savings in all credit unions are protected up to €100,000 per member.

Meanwhile, merger talks are ongoing between the Civil Service and the INTO Comhar Linn credit unions.

A combination of the two public service lenders would have assets of €355m, making it one of the largest in the State.

The tie-up would produce a body with almost 40,000 members.

The teacher credit union, set up by the Irish National Teachers’ Organisation, had a surplus of €2.9m last year, according to manager Michael McHugh.

Total savings rose by €10m last year.

Rising savings and falling lending levels are a problem for credit unions, as they have to make higher reserves for the savings just as lending income is down.

Manager of Civil Service Credit Union Ursula Nolan said her lender had a surplus of €3.9m last year.

Talks are continuing on merger plans for credit unions in RTÉ and the ESB. The combination would create a “mini bank”.

St Patrick’s Credit Union is in early-stage talks to take over the RTÉ lender in a move that would create the largest credit union in the State.

If the merger goes ahead, the enlarged body would end up being like a mini bank, with assets of close to €420m.

Fast-expanding St Patrick’s started out as the ESB Credit Union.

In the last year, it has taken over five other local lenders in the inner Dublin area, including the one for staff of Independent Newspapers.
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Irish representatives are in discussions with three of the world’s leading software firms about the possibility of locating here, according to a well-placed industry source familiar with the talks.

There are ongoing talks with Intuit, Infor and CA Technologies about the possibility of setting up operations in Ireland, the Irish Independent has learned.

It is understood that while there remains some distance to go before formal agreements are signed, talks with all three companies have been progressing well and there is a level of optimism that agreements can be reached.

It is believed that one or more of the companies may seek to establish a “test base” in Ireland with around 50 employees before wider expansion plans are undertaken.

Silicon Valley software giant Intuit is a major provider of financial solutions to small businesses and the accounting industry. Latest company filings showed revenues of €4.4bn for last year.

Intuit currently has around 8,000 employees worldwide, with the company’s only other operation within the eurozone currently in Paris.

New York-based Infor provides cloud software to large businesses and multinationals across the globe. It works with around 90,000 organisations in 200 countries worldwide and had revenues of €2.5bn last year.

Infor currently runs a small operation in Sandyford in Dublin with 14 employees. It is believed the ongoing talks relate to a considerable ramping up of operations it has here.

CA Technologies is a financial solutions company whose revenues exceeded €3.75bn in 2016. It has earmarked $300-500m for strategic investments.

The prospective arrivals could provide hundreds of jobs in the tech sector at a crucial moment for foreign direct investment in Ireland.

IDA boss Martin Shanahan told the Irish Independent late last week that attracting investment was “much more challenging” in the context of widespread geopolitical uncertainty.

But he insisted that Ireland remains an attractive prospect for inward investment and emphasised that the IDA would continue its efforts to bring companies here.

He said the upcoming St Patrick’s Day celebrations would provide a key opportunity for Irish trade delegations to reinforce Ireland’s position as an attractive place for US firms to do business.

Taoiseach Enda Kenny hinted at the prospect of a major new arrival in the tech sector when addressing staff at Microsoft Ireland last week. “We have nine of the top 10 software companies here.

“We’re about to land the 10th one I think,” he said.
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