Two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes between 1998 and 2005, according to a new report from Congress.
The study by the Government Accountability Office, expected to be released Tuesday, said about 68 percent of foreign companies doing business in the U.S. avoided corporate taxes over the same period.
A man wanted by Liechtenstein for leaking secret banking information that identified millionaire tax cheats across Europe and the United States has described to congressional investigators how money was concealed.
Lawmakers played a videotape of the testimony by Heinrich Kieber at a congressional hearing Thursday that revealed rare details of offshore practices at two European banks. At the hearing, Swiss banking giant, UBS AG, announced that because of recent revelations, it will stop offering U.S. clients offshore services through branches based abroad.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Liechtenstein should increase transparency in banks and other financial institutions, as police widened a probe into German residents accused of illegally funneling money to the alpine tax haven.
