Vocabulary

Tax haven налоговое убежище

Strictly speaking строго говоря

For the sake of convenience из соображений удобства

Tax relief налоговая льгота

To enjoy (зд.) пользоваться

To stem from происходить, проистекать

Estate tax налог на недвижимость

Gift tax налог на дарение

To be tempted испытывать соблазн

Trust траст

Holding company холдинговая компания

Subsidiary дочерняя компания

To attribute приписывать (кому-л.), относить (за счет/на счет чего-л.)

To accomplish осуществлять

To accumulate аккумулировать, накапливать

To withdraw (зд.) забирать, отбирать

Artificially искусственно

To shift перемещать

To be associated (with) быть связанным (с)

What springs to mind первое, что приходит в голову

Inheritance tax налог на наследство

To exempt освобождать от уплаты налогов

Bilateral двусторонний

Well-enforced (зд.) действенный

Abundance изобилие, избыток

Exercise 2. Answer the following questions.

1. What do the Bahamas, Bermuda, Hong Kong, Liberia, the Netherlands, the New Hebrides, Panama, and Switzerland have in common?

2. What is a tax haven?

3. Does the list of havens include any developed countries?

4. What do tax haven operations consist in?

5. What is the principal attraction offered by tax havens?

6. What are these low rates usually associated with?

7. Do bilateral tax treaties between a tax haven country and some of the major developed countries attract investors?

8. What does the existence of a tax treaty allow third-country investors?

9. What additional attractions offered by tax haven countries do you know?

10. Does a good communications service, a well-developed legal system with an abundance of legal and accounting expertise, and, above all, a high degree of political and financial stability help to make a country successful as a tax haven?

Exercise 3. Fill in the gaps with the words and expressions from the text:

1. Essentially, a _______________ is a place where foreigners may receive _____________ or own assets without paying high rates of tax upon them.

2. In some havens the ___________________ that foreigners enjoy stems from the absence of the chief forms of direct taxation – income, estate, and gift taxes; but in most countries the relief stems from _____________________________ that result in a very low effective tax rate on certain forms of ____________________.

3. Even though the list of tax havens includes several developed countries, most are __________________________.

4. Tax haven operation consist fundamentally in establishing within a tax haven country one or more _______________________, such as trusts, personal holding companies, or corporate subsidiaries, and attributing to them___________________ in order that it should be taxed at the country’s low rates or perhaps not taxed at all.

5. Low tax rate are perhaps ___________________________________offered by tax havens.

6. Though it is true that many of the advantages offered by tax haven countries are income tax advantages, these are by no means the only _________________ that these countries offer to __________________________.

7. Within the tax field, the absence of other taxes such as estate, inheritance, and gift taxes may be as __________________________to certain investors as the absence of an income tax.

8. Bilateral tax treaties between ____________________________________ are another feature that may attract investors.

9. The existence of a tax treaty allows _________________________________ to base their holding companies in tax havens and obtain a reduction in _____________________________ applied to the dividends and interest they receive from developed countries with which the tax haven country has _________________.

10. Strict and well-enforced rules of________________________________ and, in general, the possibility of doing business without _______________________ by government agencies are additional attractions usually offered by tax haven countries.

Exercise 4. Translate the words and expressions below from Russian into English and make up your own sentences with them.

1. строго говоря

_____________________________________________________________________________

2. налоговая льгота

____________________________________________________________________________

3. происходить, проистекать из

_____________________________________________________________________________

4. налог на дарение

_____________________________________________________________________________

5. траст

_____________________________________________________________________________

6. дочерняя компания

_____________________________________________________________________________

7. осуществлять

_____________________________________________________________________________

8. забирать, отбирать

_____________________________________________________________________________

9. перемещать

_____________________________________________________________________________

10. первое, что приходит в голову

_____________________________________________________________________________

11. освобождать от уплаты налогов

_____________________________________________________________________________

12. действенный

_____________________________________________________________________________

Exercise 5. Translate the words and expressions below from English into Russian and make up your own sentences with them.

1. tax heaven

_____________________________________________________________________________

2. for the sake of convenience

_____________________________________________________________________________

3. to enjoy

_____________________________________________________________________________

4. estate tax

_____________________________________________________________________________

5. to be tempted

_____________________________________________________________________________

6. holding company

_____________________________________________________________________________

7. to attribute

_____________________________________________________________________________

8. to accumulate

_____________________________________________________________________________

9. artificially

_____________________________________________________________________________

10. to be associated (with)

_____________________________________________________________________________

11. inheritance tax

_____________________________________________________________________________

12. bilateral

_____________________________________________________________________________

13. abundance

_____________________________________________________________________________

Exercise 6. Find in the text English equivalents for the following Russian phrases from the text (ex.1) :

1. получать доход

_____________________________________________________________________________

2. владеть активами

_____________________________________________________________________________

3. пользоваться налоговыми льготами

_____________________________________________________________________________

4. основные формы прямого налогообложения

_____________________________________________________________________________

5. испытывать соблазн, следовать чьему-л. примеру

_____________________________________________________________________________

6. учреждать легальную фирму

_____________________________________________________________________________

7. осуществлять цель

_____________________________________________________________________________

8. накапливать доход

_____________________________________________________________________________

9. искусственно перемещать доход с бизнеса

_____________________________________________________________________________

10. двусторонние налоговые соглашения

_____________________________________________________________________________

11. основывать холдинговые компании

_____________________________________________________________________________

12. строгие и действенные правила

_____________________________________________________________________________

13. высокий уровень политической и финансовой стабильности

_____________________________________________________________________________

Exercise 7. Single out the main points of the text (ex.1). Use the following opening phrases:

1. The text looks at (the problem of …) …

_____________________________________________________________________

2. The text deals with the issue of …

_____________________________________________________________________

3. It is clear from the text that …

_____________________________________________________________________

4. Among other things the text raises the issue of …

_____________________________________________________________________

5. The problem of … is of great importance.

_____________________________________________________________________

6. One of the main points to be singled out is …

_____________________________________________________________________

7. Great importance is also attached to …

_____________________________________________________________________

8. In this connection, I’d like to say …

_____________________________________________________________________

9. It further says that …

_____________________________________________________________________

10. I find the question of … very important because …

_____________________________________________________________________

11. We shouldn’t forget that …

_____________________________________________________________________

12. I think that … should be mentioned here as a very important mechanism of …

_____________________________________________________________________

Exercise 8. Match the verbs from (a) with the nouns from (b) below.

a) to have b) an entity

to attribute profits

to own benefit

to enjoy investors

to follow holding companies

to establish a reduction

to shift a treaty

to offer income

to attract assets

to base tax relief

to obtain the example

Exercise 9. Think of and write the verbs that are most commonly used with:

1. tax haven

__________________________________________________________________________

2. assets

__________________________________________________________________________

3. high rates of tax

__________________________________________________________________________

4. tax relief

__________________________________________________________________________

5. direct taxation

__________________________________________________________________________

6. foreign investment

__________________________________________________________________________

7. example

__________________________________________________________________________

8. economic problems

__________________________________________________________________________

9. legal entity

__________________________________________________________________________

10. personal holding company

__________________________________________________________________________

11. objective

__________________________________________________________________________

12. business profit

__________________________________________________________________________

13. income taxation

__________________________________________________________________________

14. advantages

__________________________________________________________________________

15. tax treaty

__________________________________________________________________________

16. a reduction

__________________________________________________________________________

17. dividends

__________________________________________________________________________

18. supervision

__________________________________________________________________________

Exercise 10. Read the texts, supplying the articles where necessary. Say what you have learned about the system of tax administration in the UK. Then study the vocabulary given after them.

a) If you thought duty-free was … only way to buy cut price goods in … Europe, you’d be wrong. Tax-free shopping offers … even greater number of discounts to visitors from outside …EU and includes more than just …perfume, … alcohol and …cigarettes.

The main difference between … duty-free and …tax-free shopping is that duty-free is available to everyone traveling within …EU. Tax-free shopping, however, is … perk only available to … non-EU members flying into European countries, which adds up to around 100 million tourists each year. The Value-Added Tax normally included in … price of goods is refunded when leaving … EU.

Most goods are sold with VAT included in … selling price. This rangers from …7 per cent for some goods in Germany to 25 per cent in Sweden and Denmark. In… UK, VAT stands at 17.5 per cent. However, visitors only get … saving of 14.8 per cent on … purchase price as there is … added fee for … handling of the refund.

Tax-free shopping has become … big business with tourists from non-EU countries spending huge sums every year. It’s a simple system which means you receive … cash-in-hand refund when you leave … country. There is often a minimum sale of between $30 and $100 to quality for … refund.

After purchasing any goods ask for … Tax-free Shopping Voucher which you need to reclaim your VAT. When you leave the EU … vouchers must be stamped at … customs and all your purchases shown to them. The vouchers can then be cashed at … Refund Points.

b) The British Government’s programme of tax reform has sought to maintain … climate in which business can thrive and individual initiative is rewarded. Its major aims are … following: to keep … tax burden as low as possible through firm control over public expenditure, to maintain … broad tax base, which helps to keep tax rates low, and to shift the balance of taxation from taxes on income to taxes on expenditure. Steps have also been taken to close tax loopholes. The government is committed to simplifying … administration of … tax system, both for individuals and for companies. The government admits that there are four general principles for … efficient administration of a tax system: …clarity, continuity, cost-effectiveness and convenience.

At present, the Inland Revenue assesses and collects … taxes on income, profits and capital, and stamp duty.

Taxes on individual incomes are generally progressive in that larger incomes bear … greater amount of tax.

In general, income tax is charged on all income which originates in … Britain on all income arising abroad of people resident in Britain. Some forms of income, however, are exempt.

Britain has entered into … agreement with many countries to provide relief from double taxation. Most wage and salary earners pay their income tax under a Pay-As-You-Earn (PAYE) system whereby tax is deducted and accounted for to the Inland Revenue by the employer.

The rates of company tax in Britain are lower than in … most other industrialized countries. A company which distributes profits to its shareholders is required to pay advance corporation tax (ACT) on these distributions to … Inland Revenue.