TJN's Dictionary of Offshore Obfuscation

Last August we produced a light-hearted Dictionary of Offshore Obfuscation in an edition of our newsletter Tax Justice Focus. Our recent blog "taxwash" (which we may refine if someone comes up with a better one) is another term we should add.

So what we'll do, then, is to make this page into our evolving dictionary, and we'll store it on our permanent archive.

TJN'S DICTIONARY OF OFFSHORE OBFUSCATION

We are not a tax haven = We are a tax haven, but don't tell anyone. (Click here)

We offer agile and flexible / light-touch regulation = We offer lax / complacent regulation

We respect privacy = We will turn a blind eye to your dirty money

Tax-friendly = Friendly for us, but probably not for you

This should be regulated elsewhere = This will be regulated nowhere

We maximise our tax efficiency = We avoid tax (the "Bono defence")

No tax was due, so no tax was avoided = We dodged the tax, so that no tax was due (the "Philip Green defence)

We manicured our taxes = We evaded our taxes (The "Yukos defence")

Taxwash = When companies use questionable third party endorsements to counter allegations of tax avoidance. Click here.

We use innovative tax planning = You paid your taxes? Sucker!