cover image: Snow-Washing, Inc: How Canada Is Marketed Abroad As A Secrecy Jurisdiction

20.500.12592/7qnh6r

Snow-Washing, Inc: How Canada Is Marketed Abroad As A Secrecy Jurisdiction

16 Mar 2022

Canada enjoys a positive global reputation as a stable, affluent democracy with strong rule of law. Yet it is also among the most opaque jurisdictions when it comes to the ownership of companies and partnerships. Ownership information is not public and entities can be set up and controlled from abroad. Some entities have no reporting requirements or domestic tax obligations, yet they can hold bank accounts and enter contracts. These structures are particularly attractive to bad actors in need of fronts for their misdeeds. As a result, Canada has become a sought-after place to incorporate shell companies.1 A cottage industry of consultants - many with no apparent links to Canada - has emerged promoting Canadian entities as fronts for opaque offshore company structures. Framed through the lens of ‘tax optimization,’ these structures appear intended to conceal ultimate ownership and leverage Canada’s strong reputation to access the global financial system.

Authors

Transparency International Canada

Published in
Canada