Offshore News: May 2010

11.05.2010: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) signed the agreements with Morocco, Jordan, Lybia, Mauritania and Sudan. The memoranda of understanding were signed by Mohammed al-Awadi, executive director and head of Anti-Money Laundering and Suspicious Cases Unit at the UAE Central Bank
The anti-money laundering agreements were signed at the Middle East and North Africa Financial Task Force that took place in Tunisia. They reveal the commitment of the United Arab Emirates to enhance cooperation with its global and regional partners, in co-ordination of the efforts against money laundering, terrorist financing and related issues.
In 2009, 1729 suspected money laundering cases were uncovered in the UAE.

24.05.2010: New piece of anti-tax haven legislation has been introduced into the US House of Representatives, by Lloyd Doggett who was one of the sponsors of the Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act. The International Tax Competitiveness Act continues the process of addressing the goal of removing tax incentives for US companies to invest in overseas jurisdictions; and curbing the use of offshore jurisdictions by both companies and wealthy individuals. These goals were one of the main planks of President Obama's budget for 2010.
Among the main clauses of the new law there are tightening corporate residency rules and making it more difficult for corporations to receive income from IP assets in foreign (low-tax) jurisdictions. Previous attempts to pass such clauses have met with strong resistance from major business organizations and from Republicans in general.