Bogus non resident account investigations

Re: tax evasion

"damned if they do damned if they don't"

Click to expand...

We are going over old ground here but you criticise the current Revenue initiatives and instead demand a full Revenue investigation of all BNR and offshore cases.

As I pointed out earlier, the Revenue do not have the resources to do such an investigation. You have not contested this.

If the Revenue did undertake such a mammoth investigation, it would take donkeys years to extract a cent from some major tax evaders. In that scenario, I am sure we all would criticise them for failure to properly plan their investigation.

offshore accounts

Tens of thousands of Irish people have worked and lived abroad at some stage of their careers, including (presumably) many AAM readers. Some of these people still have money on bank deposit in the country where they lived. In most cases the money in these accounts will be fully tax-paid and legit. As with everything else, there will obviously be others who used offshore accounts to evade tax.

Click to expand...

I fully understand why Irish people who worked in UK or elsewhere would have an account in UK or elsewhere. Fair enough.

But why would an Irish person based in Ireland have an account in the Isle of Man or on the Channel Islands? That is what I am getting at. For example, the former Dublin city senior official caught with several hundred grand in a suitcase coming back from the Isle of Man.

Answer = tax evasion.

Re: tax evasion

But why would an Irish person based in Ireland have an account in the Isle of Man or on the Channel Islands?

Click to expand...

To avail of higher rates of interest (albeit at the risk of currency fluctuations) or services that are not available here in Ireland perhaps? As long as the funds and accounts are not being hidden from the taxman then I don't think that there's necessarily anything dodgy about this. According to the Revenue:

[broken link removed]

Q: Is it illegal to have an offshore account?

A: No, it is not illegal to have an offshore account but you must pay tax on any interest, income or gains earned on the account. Also, money placed in offshore accounts must be declared for tax.

Click to expand...

Of course, I don't understand the minutiae so don't take my word for it.... :|