/y2011n27

ISSN 1684-9833 • Year 1 / No.27 /April 15, 2011

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The Executive Secretariat Informs 45th CIAT General Assembly comes to a successful conclusion With the co-sponsorship of the Internal Revenue Service-SRI of Ecuador, the 45th CIAT General Assembly was held on April 4-7, 2001 in Quito Ecuador.

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The Executive Secretariat Informs 45th CIAT General Assembly comes to a successful conclusion New CIAT Executive Council 2011-2012, is elected CIAT General Assembly, Resolution of the 45th General Assembly CIAT-WCO Meeting held within the framework of the 45th CIAT General Assembly 4th Meeting of the CIAT Permanent Committee on Ethics CIAT and ICEFI consolidated strategic alliance The Tax Administrations Inform Canada - The Canada Revenue Agency can make filing your taxes easier Canadians: Top 10 ways to reduce your tax bill

In this event, the participating delegations discussed and exchanged opinions and experiences on “Tax morale as determining factor in improving the effectiveness of the tax administration”, main theme chosen for the Assembly.

This assembly was a great achievement for CIAT, not only because of the high technical level of the topics discussed, but also the significant number of participants and acceptance of this event by the international tax community.

At the closing of the technical sessions of the Assembly, Dr. Everardo Maciel, former Secretary of Federal Revenues of Brazil, as well as former member of the CIAT Executive Council and CIAT president in 2006-2007, presented the general report on the event.

We hereby wish to express our deep appreciation to the delegations of the member countries, guest countries, international organizations, speakers, moderators, commentators, in sum, to all the participants and especially, to the Internal Revenue Service of Ecuador for the excellent organization and warm welcome afforded to all of the 58 participating delegations.

The reports are available at CIAT`s web site

Chile - Renta 2011 Breaks all Records and Sets Historical Highs Costa Rica - The Ministry of Finance has modern videoconference system Honduras DEI needs to raise over 7.200 billion lempiras during april Paraguay - Minister of Finance of Paraguay provided senators details of new IIT United States - Turning Its tax evasion focus, U.S. seeks client names from HSBC unit Training Events New in the Web!...

Other documents!...

In the picture the participants of the 45th General Assembly of the CIAT, held from 4 to 7 April 2011 in Quito, Ecuador.

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New CIAT Executive Council is elected

CIAT is a public international organization which groups the tax administrations of 38 countries, (29 Amarican countries, 6 European countries, 2 African countries and one Asian country), for the purpose of providing an integral service for the modernization of those administrations, by promoting their evolution, social acceptance and consolidation through the exchange of knowledge, experiences and the rendering of specialized technical assistance.

The General Assembly elected the 2011-2012 Executive Council which is formed as follows: President:

Carlos M. Carrasco

Ecuador

Executive Council Executive Secretariat The e-CIAT Newsletter is published and distributed electronically biweekly.

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Contact us: CIAT Executive Secretariat / e-CIAT Newsletter P.O. Box 0834-02129 Panama, Republic of Panama.

Phone (507) 265-2766 / 265-5994 Fax: (507) 264-4926 E mail:ciat@ciat.org Web Site: http://www.ciat.org

Councilors:

Roberto Ugarte

Bolivia

Julio Pereira Gandarillas

Chile

Robert Joseph

Haiti

Luis Cucalón

Panama

Gerónimo Bellassai

Paraguay

José Antonio de Azevedo Pereira

Portugal

Steven T. Miller

United States

Pablo Ferreri

Uruguay

CIAT General Assembly Resolution of the 45th General Assembly Quito, Ecuador on April 4 - 7, 2011 Herein you may find the text of the Quito Declaration approved by the CIAT General Assembly at its meeting held in Quito, Ecuador on April 4- 7.

Said Resolution makes recommendations to the CIAT member and associate member countries regarding the role they should play to contribute to a sound tax morale. As may be recalled the main theme of the General Assembly was “Tax Morale as Determining Factor in Improving the Effectiveness of the Tax Administration”.

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CIAT-WCO Meeting held within the framework of the 45th CIAT General Assembly In response to an invitation from the CIAT Executive Secretariat, Mr. Kunio Mikuriya, Secretary General of the World Customs Organization (WCO) attended the 45th CIAT General Assembly held on April 4-7, in Quito, Ecuador.

Mr. Mikuriya opened the session on April 7, by referring in his speech to the customs experience in the field of tax ethics, noting that although internal taxes and customs duties involve different cultures, they do have common interests and should promote mutual cooperation.

The picture from left to right: CIAT Executive Secretary, Mr. MĂĄrcio Ferreira Verdi and the Secretary General of the World Customs Organization(WCO), Mr. Kunio Mikuriya.

Both WCO and CIAT took advantage of this opportunity to exchange experiences, promote rapprochement and cooperation between both organizations.

4th Meeting of the CIAT Permanent Committee on Ethics The 4th Meeting of the CIAT Permanent Committee on Ethics was successfully held on March 31-April 1st in the city of Quito, Ecuador. Present in this meeting were representatives of the following countries: Canada, Colombia, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, France, Guatemala, Kenya, Netherlands, New Zealand, Panama, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, and the CIAT Executive Secretariat.

The CIAT Permanent Committee on Ethics was established in 2008, with the sponsorship and under the chairmanship of the Canada Revenue Agency. Since then, it has been working among other issues, in the development and improvement of self-assessment tools for the promotion of ethics designed by CIAT, as well as in the exchange of experiences and best practices for promoting integrity in the tax administrations.

The purpose of this meeting was to develop and agree on an Action Plan for the coming three years, which involves the Committee’s main actions and strategic guidelines for promoting ethics and integrity in the tax administrations of the CIAT member countries.

All the participants considered of great usefulness the meeting, discussion, analysis and debate of the great challenges faced by the tax administrations in the area of integrity.

In the image the Standing Committee on Ethics of CIAT

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CIAT and ICEFI consolidated strategic alliance On April 12, Messrs. Mynor Cabrera and Jonathan Menkos, Senior Economists from the Central American Institute of Fiscal Studies (ICEFI Spanish acronym) met at the CIAT Executive Secretariat headquarters with the CIAT Executive Secretary and the Coordinators of the Tax Studies and International Cooperation areas to develop the annual cooperation program between both organizations, following the Agreement signed by both parties last April 7, in Quito, Ecuador on the occasion of the 45th CIAT General Assembly. The cooperation program is focused on coordinating agendas in areas of common interest; combining resources and skills whenever appropriate, achieving synergies as a result of joint activities; reciprocally using their global networks for obtaining advantages and mutual benefits; improving coordination of related activities and sharing knowledge and ideas.

Shown in the picture: Mynor Cabrera and Jonathan Menkos, Senior Economists from the Central American Institute of Fiscal Studies- ICEFI .

In the picture: Members of ICEFI and met members of CIAT.

 The Tax Administrations Inform Canada - The Canada Revenue Agency can make filing your taxes easier The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) is there to help during tax filing season.

The CRA’s Web site is loaded with information to help you file and pay on time. Go to ww.cra.gc.ca/ getready for information about filing and paying your 2010 taxes.

Maria Pica Correspondent

Canadians: Top 10 ways to reduce your tax bill There are a number of ways to reduce the amount of tax you owe, and keep more money in your pocket at tax time. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) can help you learn more about the various credits and deductions you may be entitled to and that can save you money when you file your 2010 Income Tax and Benefit Return.

Maria Pica Correspondent

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Chile - Renta 2011 Breaks all Records and Sets Historical Highs The Operación Renta 2011 (Income Operation) scored historical marks at the close of the first day, reaching a total of 177,662 income tax statements received, representing 98.5% more than a year ago for the same term.

The previous record was 146,219 statements for the first day, corresponding to the Operación Renta 2009.

Bernardita Moraga Correspondent

Costa Rica - The Ministry of Finance has modern videoconference system A new videoconference system for the Ministry of Finance was inaugurated by the Minister of Finance, Fernando Herrero, in the new training classrooms of the Finance Development and Information Center (CIFH Spanish acronym).

Also present in the ceremony were Ignacio Aguirre de Carcer, Chargé d’Affaires of the Spanish Embassy; Gabriela Espinoza Meza, General Director of Information Technology (DGI Spanish acronym) and Xinia Madrigal Chaves, Director of the CIFH. Maribel Zúñiga Correspondent

Honduras DEI needs to raise over 7.200 billion lempiras during april The Executive Directorate of Revenue (DEI, in Spanish) begins its 2010 Income Tax Return and Payment campaign, the term expires on May 02.

The campaign aims to communicate the assistance provided by the institution throughout the country in order to promote taxpayers’ voluntary compliance.

Grace de la Paz Saravia Correspondent

Paraguay -Minister of Finance of Paraguay provided senators details of new IIT The Minister of Finance, Dionisio Borda, met with the Senate’s Finance and Budget Committee at the headquarters of Congress to explain the scope and innovations of the new proposed Individual Income Tax (IIT).

The Secretary of State noted that the new version includes the suggestions and concerns of the Parliamentary as well as entrepreneurial sectors.

Elizabeth Fernández de Corrales Correspondent

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United States - Turning Its tax evasion focus , U.S. seeks client names from HSBC unit The world of offshore tax havens gained a surprising new contender on Thursday when the Justice Department asked a federal court for permission to force HSBC, the London-based bank, to turn over the names of wealthy Indian-American clients suspected of evading taxes through offshore accounts at the bank’s affiliate in India.

The request, from the civil tax division of the Justice Department, is part of a widening investigation into private offshore services sold by Swiss and Swiss-style banks that helped wealthy Americans avoid income taxes by hiding money offshore.

Raul Pertierra Correspondent

Training Register now for the Tax Ethics Course, 1st ed.

Officials from the tax administration and the public in general are invited to participate in the Tax Ethics Course, 1st Edition.

The Tax Ethics Course begins on June 13, 2011 and registrations are now open. The objective of the course is to develop the capabilities, for elaborating proposals, tools and standards that may facilitate the promotion of public ethics, which initially requires understanding the basic criteria and principles that regulate it.

Events Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes International Finance Corporation (IFC) World Bank Group –Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) The World Bank Montego Bay, Jamaica May 10 – 12, 2011

The objective of the training is to strengthen general technical competence in legal drafting with some emphasis on meeting Global Forum standards. The more specific topics to be covered in this training were selected as a direct response to participant feedback. Matters relating to Central America will be exposed in Spanish to participants.

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New in the Web!...

Tax Thematic Series No. 9. March

In its No.9 edition of February , The Thematic Series deal with “Tax Expenditure” The material gathered includes studies and papers prepared by technical officials for presentation either at the General Assemblies or Technical Conferences, essays, research scholarships and articles published in the tax administration review, among others.

Other documents!...

Public Finance Report Governo do Estado de Mato Grosso Secretaria de Estado de Fazenda Secretaria Adjunta da Receita Pública This study evaluates the behavior of government revenues of the State of Mato Grosso in 2010, thereby complying with the provision of article 12 of the Fiscal Reponsibility Law (LRF). Part of this document constitutes a comparison of revenues actually collected for the State’s treasury with the amount of revenues anticipated by the State’s Secretariat of Finance.

Shifting Gears: Tackling Challenges on the Road to Fiscal Adjustmen Fiscal Monitor April 2011 Fiscal sustainability risks remain elevated, as progress in some regions has been offset by delays in fiscal consolidation in others. Most advanced economies arereducing fiscal deficits this year.