Multi-Country Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement Targeting Enablers (11/15/18)

This article has more information on an a multi-country initiative with other countries to target enablers of tax evasion.  Tom Wilson, U.S. and four allies target tax-dodge specialists (Reuters 11/15/18), here.  The initiative is called the Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (J5).  See IRS web site here:

According to the IRS web site:

The Joint Chiefs of Global Tax Enforcement (known as the J5) are committed to combatting transnational tax crime through increased enforcement collaboration. We will work together to gather information, share intelligence, conduct operations and build the capacity of tax crime enforcement officials. 

The J5 comprises the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission (ACIC) and Australian Taxation Office (ATO), the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA), the Fiscale Inlichtingen-en Opsporingsdienst (FIOD), HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), and Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI). 

We are convinced that offshore structures and financial instruments, where used to commit tax crime and money laundering, are detrimental to the economic, fiscal, and social interests of our countries. We will work together to investigate those who enable transnational  tax crime and money laundering and those who benefit from it. We will also collaborate internationally to reduce the growing threat to tax administrations posed by cryptocurrencies and cybercrime and to make the most of data and technology.

Now back to the Reuters article, quoting Dan Fort:

“You investigate and you see where the money goes - inevitably it leads you to many levels, many different individuals and many different facilitators,” he said, with the IRS looking at the role of at community banks and smaller financial firms some money launderers may use. 

The J5 has said previously said that Britain’s tax enforcement agency, Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs, has launched criminal investigations on more than 200 individuals and firms that make money by facilitating tax evasion. 

Cryptocurrencies are a key part of the J5’s work, Fort said, citing the risk that such coins are used in the United States to avoid capital gains taxes. Digital money can be used to transfer funds to people without the need for foreign bank accounts, he added.
The IRS is looking at the involvement of cryptocurrency exchanges and financial firms in withdrawals of digital money, and their conversion to government backed “fiat” currencies.\ 

“One of the ways to track cryptocurrencies, focused on when the actual cryptocurrency enters the system - folks want their money, and when it comes out is what we are focused on,” Fort said.

Picky nuance:  The IRS page linked above says that the Joint Chiefs are "combatting" transnational tax crimes.  That made me wonder if the word should be "combatting" or "combating."  My Google search quickly produced this discussion on word reference titled "combatting or combating," here, which linked to this offering in Dictionary.com, here:

combat
verb (used with object), com·bat·ed, com·bat·ing or (especially British) com·bat·ted, com·bat·ting.

Sure enough, my word processor spell-check flagged the double t version.

So there you have it.