Few Places to Hide as Taxes Trend Higher Worldwide
By CONRAD DE AENLLE
Published: December 2, 2012
Death and taxes are the only certainties in life, if you believe Benjamin Franklin. Had he been around today, he might have observed that taxes also have become a great uncertainty in life.
Taxes on earnings, investment income, sales and a few other things have gone up already in many countries, and further increases are possible, including a huge one in the United States.
Another source of unease and doubt for taxpayers is a trend toward increases of other sorts: in scrutiny by revenue authorities, reporting requirements for individuals and businesses, and legislation to close tax code loopholes.
International taxpayers — expatriates and others whose personal or professional lives extend across borders — may find conditions particularly challenging. Dealing with a changing tax regime is tough; dealing with more than one even more so. Not only that, but some authorities are focusing more keenly on foreigners or on their own citizens living elsewhere. On the bright side, certain countries still treat foreigners better than their own citizens.
