Almost five thousand Slovak companies based in tax havens

While detailed data from the first half of 2018 showed that the number of Slovak companies with the owner residing in a tax haven declined year-on-year, companies reversed the loss in the third quarter, TASR learnt from the data provided by the transnational consulting company Bisnode on Tuesday. Currently 4,826 Slovak companies are based in tax havens controlling capital amounting to €10.5 billion, with the United States of America (53 enterprises) and Cyprus (16) recording the largest influx. "An increase, although less pronounced than in the United States, was also seen in Cyprus and the Netherlands, which have long been among the top three favourite tax havens for Slovaks," said Bisnode analyst Petra Štěpánová. A total of 1,023 Slovak companies are based in the USA, which is 42 enterprises more than in the 2nd quarter of this year and 34 more than at the end of last year. There are currently 1,120 Slovak companies in Cyprus, with 16 added since the beginning of the year. The Netherlands recorded a slight decline in the second quarter when 1,127 companies admitted having their seat there. But just like the USA, it reversed its losses. Over the past three months, 13 new Slovak companies have gone to the Netherlands.