
Canada is the world’s newest tax haven (2017) - ericdanielski
https://projects.thestar.com/panama-papers/canada-is-the-worlds-newest-tax-haven/
======
99_00
All the cash flooding in has impacted a lot of people by driving up the cost
of living, especially in Vancouver.

Report finds $5B laundered through B.C. real estate in 2018
[https://globalnews.ca/news/5259196/home-prices-in-metro-
vanc...](https://globalnews.ca/news/5259196/home-prices-in-metro-vancouver-
increased-by-5-due-to-money-laundering-report/)

Secret police study finds crime networks could have laundered over $1B through
Vancouver homes in 2016 [https://globalnews.ca/news/4658157/fentanyl-
vancouver-real-e...](https://globalnews.ca/news/4658157/fentanyl-vancouver-
real-estate-billion-money-laundering-police-study/)

CRA (Canada's IRS) to cut managers, fold tax-evasion units, memo shows
[https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/cra-to-cut-
man...](https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/cra-to-cut-managers-
fold-tax-evasion-units-memo-shows/article20704948/)

Entire cities appear poor on paper because of wide spread tax evasion.

Why does upscale neighbourhood appear 'poor' to tax officials?
[https://vancouversun.com/life/richmond-3-why-does-upscale-
ne...](https://vancouversun.com/life/richmond-3-why-does-upscale-
neighbourhood-appear-poor-to-tax-officials)

Richmond is majority Chinese. >nine of 10 recent Chinese immigrants arrive in
Metro Vancouver with enough money to immediately buy homes. But only half hold
down jobs during their first five years in Canada, while four of 10 report
they’re surviving on low incomes.
[https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/douglas-todd-
how...](https://vancouversun.com/opinion/columnists/douglas-todd-how-chinese-
filipino-and-other-immigrants-differ)

~~~
mgh2
Could this explain the "cliquey and flaky" nature of the city? There is no
community, locals just don't care other than superficial niceties. Combine the
two most exclusive cultures: rich and Asian, this is what you get with 27.7%
of Chinese in Vancouver (2011). [http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-
cities/vancouver-popu...](http://worldpopulationreview.com/world-
cities/vancouver-population/) Challenge my theory please...I would like to
understand why this city is so isolating.

~~~
katbyte
Where you born in van or moved here? I find locals already have social circles
and new people have a hard time breaking into them. Can’t say why but seems to
hold water with my social circles

~~~
mgh2
I moved from the US and every city I went to was really inclusive, but I can
be biased because I socialized with churchgoers (where inclusion of outsiders
is their responsibility). This is based on a fairly large sample size:
Houston, Austin, Menlo Park, New York, and LA for ~10 year period. This subset
is completely different in Vancouver though: the cliqueness, especially in
Chinese speaking communities, is prevalent- I just gave up after 2 years and
~5-10 churches. Btw, I am Asian and know fluent Chinese...

~~~
pshc
Holy. I’m sorry to hear it.

I say as a born and raised Vancouverite, since moved to the US... it’s kinda
fucked out there.

------
ckastner
I would challenge the title's assertion somewhat; at least, when Canadian
banks are involved (as one would assume even with shell companies).

Canada participates in the Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) [1]. That
means that even though some of these companies might not be required to file
tax reports, the _banks_ where they hold their accounts most certainly have to
report the account holder and, where applicable, all beneficial owners [2].

Simply put, if I, personally, held money at a Canadian bank either directly,
or indirectly via a shell company, I might not have many reporting
requirements with the Canadian government directly, but the _bank_ would have
reporting requirements, which would ultimately lead to the bank's reports
landing on the desk of my home country's tax authority [3].

The only way around this is the bank not keeping their AML/KYC records as
straight as they should, but supervisory authorities usually come down hard on
those cases.

[1]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Reporting_Standard](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Reporting_Standard)

[2]
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beneficial_owner](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beneficial_owner)

[3] Provided both countries actually exchange information, which is the case
for dozens of countries as of now. That includes Canada, Switzerland, and many
other countries one might consider a "tax haven". It doesn't include the USA,
however. Many would say that the USA are the last real tax haven.

~~~
RandyRanderson
You're assuming that anyone with the authority to stop this , wants to. IF
someone wanted to stop this, I'm sure they'd be able to get the info.

------
kyteland
I read an article this morning that South Dakota has become a tax haven as
well due to their trust laws. An interesting read.

[https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/14/the-great-
amer...](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/14/the-great-american-tax-
haven-why-the-super-rich-love-south-dakota-trust-laws)

~~~
jdhn
I honestly don't know if I can take this article seriously when it implies
that South Dakota repealing usury laws is singlehandedly responsible for all
of the credit card debt in the US.

~~~
corford
I wouldn't blame you if that's what the article actually said... (it didn't)

~~~
jdhn
Please read my comment again. I said it implies it, not outright says it.

From the 14th paragraph: "Thanks to Janklow, South Dakota has a financial
services industry, and the US has a trillion-dollar credit card debt."

This is definitely the author trying to peg America's credit card debt onto
Janklow, and therefore South Dakota.

~~~
BubRoss
That doesn't seem like what it implies at all. It is saying the US uses credit
cards and South Dakota can now participate (if it is saying anything at all).

------
bawolff
>“I believe the Canada companies … are managed in a way that the
administrators simply declare annually NO-ACTIVITY. In other words, they cheat
a bit,”

So the trick to using canada as a tax haven, is to lie on your taxes? I feel
like that approach also works in other countries

------
ttul
I have incorporated many companies in Canada and have always marveled at the
lack of vetting. You’d think they would want to see some identification on the
incorporation docs. But no. You just fill in a web form and pay $20 or
whatever.

~~~
ticmasta
You have most certainly never incorporated a Canadian corporation online for
$20. That's the fee for filing an annual return for a federally incorporated
company; the vast majority of companies are registered provincially.

~~~
ttul
Apologies. I missed a zero.

[https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cd-
dgc.nsf/eng/cs06939.html](https://www.ic.gc.ca/eic/site/cd-
dgc.nsf/eng/cs06939.html)

You can incorporate federally and leave it at that. Extra-provincial
registration is required if you carry on business within a specific province.

~~~
abledon
could you do a youtube tutorial series? I'd love to see the easy process
documented.

------
mikece
"Another key reason is that Canada’s corporate registration systems —
federally and provincially — are shrouded in the same kind of secrecy that
exists in tax havens such as the British Virgin Islands, Panama and the
Bahamas. Company owners who don’t wish to be identified in Canadian corporate
registries can pay a lawyer or a stand-in to appear on all public filings."

Would I be correct in presuming that in the two years since this story came
out the Canadian Parliament closed at least _this_ loophole -- and perhaps
several others?

~~~
momirlan
Uhhh....no

~~~
dang
Would you please not post unsubstantive comments here? Especially not snarky
ones ("Uhhh....").

------
miohtama
Meanwhile Amazon pays $0 tax on $11B profit

[https://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazon-taxes-
zero-180337770.h...](https://finance.yahoo.com/news/amazon-taxes-
zero-180337770.html?soc_src=social-sh&soc_trk=tw)

~~~
briandear
Very misleading. The actual answer isn’t easily fit into a campaign sound
byte, but here is a better analysis: [https://www.wsj.com/articles/does-
amazon-really-pay-no-taxes...](https://www.wsj.com/articles/does-amazon-
really-pay-no-taxes-heres-the-complicated-answer-11560504602)

Let’s also not forget that 44% of Americans didn’t pay federal income taxes.

------
imposterr
_Looks at 43% marginal tax rate_

Well this is news to me.

Jokes aside, I've heard about Canada being used to launder money, but this is
the first I'm hearing about it being used as a tax haven.

~~~
rayiner
42.75% maximum marginal rate here in Maryland.

~~~
refurb
Now layer on a 15%+ Harmonized Sales Tax on top of that and you’ve got Canada.

~~~
cmrdporcupine
What provinces have 15% HST? It's 13% in Ontario...

~~~
refurb
New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, Quebec (well, 14.975%).

------
msie
No wait, now it's the US: [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/14/the-
great-amer...](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/nov/14/the-great-
american-tax-haven-why-the-super-rich-love-south-dakota-trust-laws)

------
AzzieElbab
This is so ironic considering how much taxes Canadians pay themselves

------
m463
I thought it was puerto rico

[https://www.gq.com/story/how-puerto-rico-became-tax-haven-
fo...](https://www.gq.com/story/how-puerto-rico-became-tax-haven-for-super-
rich)

------
Havoc
>declare annually NO-ACTIVITY. In other words, they cheat a bit,

That's just straight up tax fraud. You don't need Canada for that. If you're
willing to make fraudulent declarations to tax authorities you don't really
need all these complicated things.

~~~
purple_ducks
from the article:

> “Things you’d do 20 years for in the U.S., you might get a fine in Canada
> and that’s not lost on criminals,” Mathers told the Star.

~~~
DKnoll
The United Nations University World Institute for Development Economics
Research has a report on estimated losses due to tax evasion by country in
2013 (published in 2017).

[https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/wp2017-55.pdf](https://www.wider.unu.edu/sites/default/files/wp2017-55.pdf)

Anyone uninterested in reading the whole report can CTRL+F country names
(there is a breakdown in the appendix).

