Brussels – Anguilla and Dominica were among countries removed from the European Union’s (EU) list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions.
But the EU said nine jurisdictions, including Trinidad & Tobago and the United States Virgin Islands (USVI), remained on the list.
The EU said on Tuesday its Council removed Anguilla and Dominica, which had been previously placed on the list because they did not meet the trading bloc’s tax transparency criteria of being ranked as at least “largely compliant” by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) global forum, regarding the exchange of information on request.
The trading bloc said the delisting was preceded by the forum’s decision to grant these jurisdictions a supplementary review on this matter.
The EU said pending the granted supplementary review, Anguilla and Dominica were now included in the state of play document “which covers jurisdictions that do not yet comply with all international tax standards but that have committed to implementing tax good governance principles”.
“Costa Rica, Hong Kong, Malaysia, North Macedonia, Qatar and Uruguay have also been added to this document, while Australia, Eswatini and Maldives have implemented all the necessary tax reforms and have therefore been removed from it,” the EU stated.
In addition to T&T and the USVI, American Samoa, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Panama, Samoa, and Vanuatu remained on the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions.
Twice a year, the EU Council revised its list of non-cooperative jurisdictions and an accompanying state of play document.
The EU said this practice was established four years ago to promote global good governance in taxation and inform member states on which non-EU jurisdictions engaged in abusive tax practices.
They can then employ defensive measures to protect their tax revenues and fight against tax fraud, tax evasion, and tax abuse.
“The criteria for listing are in line with international tax standards and focus on tax transparency, fair taxation and prevention of tax base erosion and profit shifting,” the EU stated.
“The Council engages with the countries that do not meet these criteria, monitors their progress and regularly reviews and updates this list.”
(CMC/AR)
