Panama still lingers in tax haven shadows

THE EUROPEAN Commission (EC) has postponed the updating of a list of tax havens, which includes Panama, until the end of year.

Meanwhile, President Juan Carlos Varela has threatened to retaliate against those countries which determine that Panama is a tax haven.
Panama has protested its inclusion on the list, citing tax agreements it has reached with numerous European countries and saying the commission used outdated information in compiling it.
“We will update the list at end of year and we will continue to do so periodically. However, at the moment, we cannot confirm the exact date, but it will be at the end of the year. We will rely on information collected by the member states to make the necessary updates,” a source of the European body told La Prensa.
In addition, the EC has denounced Panama for failing to contribute to the fight against fraud.
Yet, the source said: “There is no analysis or study of the issue, but a compilation of data that had existed previously.”
Panama argues that the commission failed to take into account its progress in fiscal transparency and regulations to strengthen financial rules and solve the detected weaknesses.
Last week, the EC invited the 30 countries it defined as tax havens to submit information to refute the findings.
“Any developments countries make regarding fiscal transparency will be taken into account when the EC updates the list,” the organization said.