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France’s tax on digital services, criticized by Silicon Valley and U.S. President Donald Trump, won the backing of the nation’s constitutional judges.The Conseil constitutionnel dismissed claims that the 3% French levy, expected to bring in €774 million ($909 million) in revenues in 2025, violates the principle of equality before the law. During a hearing in August it had been contested by lawyers for Airbnb Inc. and Digital Classifieds France.Trump has long argued that digital services taxes are discriminatory against the likes of Amazon.com Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. He’s warned he would impose “substantial” tariffs on countries that imposed such…

License to steal; roll the Tape; Kings and Queens and cons; and other highlights of recent tax cases.Kansas City, Missouri: Tax preparer Bianca Cobbins, 42, has pleaded guilty to taking part in two tax frauds. She pleaded guilty to two counts of making a false statement to a financial institution and five counts of aiding in the preparation of a false return.Cobbins admitted that, in December 2019, she obtained personal information belonging to a victim, including the victim’s legal name, date of birth, Social Security number, address and credit score. Using this information, Cobbins obtained a fraudulent driver’s license containing the…

Financial advisors and tax professionals may soon be getting questions from wealthy clients about whether they should ramp up charitable donations before the end of the year.That’s because the One Big Beautiful Bill Act will trim a small portion of the tax deductions for philanthropy next year among wealthy itemizers. But experts say that other provisions of the massive legislation exempting most estates from taxes or opening other charitable donation avenues could also affect clients’ decisions and long-term plans.Certainty above the line?Predicting how new laws will affect charitable giving is inevitably tricky. “In our experience, why people give isn’t driven by…

Bloomberg Tax & Accounting released its annual report Thursday projecting U.S. tax rate brackets, standard deduction amounts, and alternative minimum tax exemption amounts for the year ahead.The Projected U.S. Tax Rates Report aims to provide early, accurate notice of the potential tax savings that could be realized due to increases in deduction limitations, upward adjustments to tax brackets, and increases to numerous other key thresholds. It arrives a day after the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the consumer price index rose 2.9% over the past 12 months.The report also accounts for several new adjustments made under the One…

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board released a new staff publication aimed at auditors of broker-dealers who are performing review engagements involving exemption reports.The publication, “Broker-Dealer Audit Focus: Review Engagements Regarding Exemption Reports,” comes as the PCAOB staff continues to see deficiencies related to the review procedures required by Attestation Standard No. 2, Review Engagements Regarding Exemption Reports of Brokers and Dealers. The standard, which dates back to 2013, sets requirements for when an auditor is engaged to perform a review of the statements made by a broker-dealer in an exemption report prepared according to SEC rules. AT No. 2 requires the…

The White House Office of Management and Budget’s Cost Accounting Standards Board is proposing to eliminate dozens of accounting requirements for federal contractors that it considers “unnecessary and redundant.”The OMB’s CAS Board, which is chaired by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy, published two proposed rules to eliminate more than 60 requirements that it hopes to finalize by early next year as part of its overhaul of the federal acquisition regulatory process.The OMB said the current rules force contractors to unnecessarily keep two sets of overlapping books and the rules have remained largely unchanged for over 50 years.The proposed changes…

Securities and Exchange Commission chairman Paul Atkins issued a warning that the SEC might eliminate a rule that allows multinational companies to present their financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards without first reconciling them with U.S. GAAP. He urged the IFRS Foundation to provide a stable source of funding for the International Accounting Standards Board and warned against the IFRS Foundation’s involvement in setting sustainability standards through the International Sustainability Standards Board, which it oversees alongside the IASB. “With respect to accounting standards, U.S. companies must prepare their financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP,” Atkins said during a…

Deloitte LLP has told its staff in India to show up in office at least two days a week or risk negative performance reviews, as the Big-Four accounting giant starts tightening its pandemic-era flexible work policy.The new rule becomes effective starting Oct. 1 for employees at the firm’s seven offices that help clients or provide back-office support across the South Asian country, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg News. The missive also said that staff may have to attend office on schedule because of space considerations, and failure to comply with the mandate will be tracked and taken into…

A group of mostly Democratic lawmakers sent a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent criticizing recent moves to ease the corporate alternative minimum tax for large corporations in two recent notices.The letter was from Sens. Elizabeth Warren, D-Massachusetts, Angus King, I-Maine, John Hickenlooper, D-Colorado, Sheldon Whitehouse, D-Rhode Island, Ed Markey, D-Massachusetts, and Rep. Don Beyer, D-Virginia, writing to Bessent protesting recent guidance on the CAMT, a 15% tax on corporations with over $1 billion in adjusted financial statement income that was included as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.They noted that prior to enactment of the CAMT, companies…

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Paul Atkins tapped a key player for his leadership team Wednesday, appointing a corporate attorney to head the unit tasked with reviewing initial public offerings and scrutinizing company disclosures.James Moloney, a partner at the law firm Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, will head the SEC’s division of corporation finance starting next month, the SEC said. He had worked at the SEC from 1994 to 2000 on mergers and acquisitions and in the division of corporation finance.The division combs through corporate financial reports to ensure businesses report risks to investors. The staff also issues guidance on how…