G7 calls for global tax information exchange standard                by 2017/18for global tax information exchange st

12.06.2015

At a meeting in Bavaria, Germany, last week, leaders of the G7 made firm commitments to continue on the path of

moving toward a single global standard for the automatic exchange of information between tax administrations, giving tax policy makers a deadline of 2018, at latest, for this to happen.

 

             If properly done, this would mean that in just three years’ time, countries around the world could sign up to a single standard governed by a multilateral treaty which would enable them to claim tax from multinational entities who might have shifted it out of their respective jurisdiction through aggressive tax planning, to avoid tax.

             With reference in their communique to the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, the leaders urged the establishment of a monitoring process for this, saying, ‘Going forward, it will be crucial to ensure its effective implementation, and we encourage the G20 and the OECD to establish a targeted monitoring process to that end.’

They also said they wanted rule makers to move quickly towards a single standard saying, ‘We look forward to the rapid implementation of the new single global standard for automatic exchange of information by the end of 2017 or 2018, including by all financial centres subject to completing necessary legislative procedures.