Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Several places have what's called a "General anti-avoidance rule". The way this works is, if you think you've got a brilliant wheeze that avoids taxes, you're required to tell the tax officials about it. If you choose not to tell them then they can prosecute for evasion, and if you tell the court actually it was a clever avoidance tactic not evasion the court says hang on, why didn't you obey the General anti-avoidance rule? So you're screwed either way.

On the other hand if you tell them, they get to look at your clever idea and decide to either allow it, change the rule for next year, or go to court saying you're wrong this avoidance method doesn't work so you owe taxes.



Tax minimization is still possible in such a system if it’s consistently adjudicated. If not, it is subject to regulatory capture and possibly bribes. And the nation executing this scheme still has a target effective tax rate, so the base rates will be adjusted up or down depending on the extent of minimization. I am not sure if you’re presenting this as an solution or a warning. :)


This translates to arbitrary legislation.




Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: