Enforced fiscal monitoring for fake residences abroad

The IV Anti-Money Laundering Provisions have been transposed in Italy with Dlgs 90/2017, which has been in force since 4 July.Although the various implementing measures are still missing, significant changes have been reported for fiscal monitoring purposes (DL 167/1990).

In particular, the amendments concerned the following legal articles:

•          ARTICLE 1: the number of intermediaries required to report financial transfers to and from abroad has been considerably expanded, involving not only banks and insurance but also Sicaf, financial advisers, money transfer and foreign intermediaries (with a branch in Italy or free provision of services);
•          ARTICLE 2: the powers of the Revenue Agency and the special departments of the Guardia di Finanza have been strengthened. They may require evidence of foreign operations also for masses of taxpayers;
•          ARTICLE 4: more detailed arrangements have been introduced to define the "actual holder" of corporate structures and trusts, so as not to leave gaps in determining it.

There is still a reporting obligation for transactions in and out of the country for amounts over 15,000 Euro, also carried out by non-residents.

With the implementation of these changes, the Revenue Agency and the Ucifi will receive much more sensitive information from multiple intermediary entities (subject to verification, storage and reporting obligations), even if it has been made to a foreign screen structure or to a non-risky recipient.

The new "enhanced" tax monitoring legislation increases opportunities for the Italian Taxation Office to intercept illegal capital transfers abroad and, above all, "fictitious residences", ie taxpayers who, while taxpaying abroad, actually continue to move their financial assets through intermediaries resident or otherwise obliged to communicate the data.

Subjects who have moved abroad for just for hiding the financial assets at the Italian Fisco, still have the opportunity to regularize their positions with their work, but they will have to do so in a short time, considering the global implementation of the exchange of information.

for any further information: info@stelva.ch