EU adds Caribbean countries to blacklist

CMC – The European Union Tuesday named Antigua and Barbuda and Belize as the latest Caribbean Community (CARICOM) countries to its list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.

In addition, the EU also named Seychelles to the list, while at the same time removing the British Virgin Islands (BVI), Costa Rica and Marshall Islands from the lost.

The EU said that apart from the new additions, the other Caribbean countries included in its 16 non-cooperative jurisdictions are Anguilla, Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos Islands.

“The Council regrets that these jurisdictions are not yet cooperative on tax matters and invites them to improve their legal framework in order to resolve the identified issues,” the EU said in a statement.

It said that the EU list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions includes countries that either have not engaged in a constructive dialogue with the EU on tax governance or have failed to deliver on their commitments to implement the necessary reforms.

“Those reforms should aim to comply with a set of objective tax good governance criteria, which include tax transparency, fair taxation and implementation of international standards designed to prevent tax base erosion and profit shifting.”

It said that the Council body which prepares the updates of the list, is cooperating closely with international bodies such as the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Forum on Harmful Tax Practices (FHTP) to promote tax good governance worldwide.

With regards to the new additions, the EU said “all three jurisdictions were found to be lacking with regard to the exchange of tax information on request.

“British Virgin Islands was removed from the list as it has amended its framework on exchange of information on request and will be reassessed in accordance with the OECD standard.

“Pending this reassessment this jurisdiction has been included in Annex II. Costa Rica was delisted because it has amended the harmful aspects of its foreign source income exemption regime. Marshall Islands was delisted as it has made significant progress in enforcement of economic substance requirements.”

The EU said in addition to the list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, the Council approved the usual state of play document which reflects the ongoing EU cooperation with its international partners and the commitments of these countries to reform their legislation to adhere to agreed tax good governance standards.

“Its purpose is to recognise ongoing constructive work in the field of taxation, and to encourage the positive approach taken by cooperative jurisdictions to implement tax good governance principles.”

The EU said four jurisdictions including Montserrat, were removed from the state of play document having “fulfilled all their pending commitments related to country-by-country reporting of taxes paid”.

The EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes was established in December 2017. It is part of the EU’s external strategy on taxation and aims to contribute to ongoing efforts to promote tax good governance worldwide.

Jurisdictions are assessed on the basis of a set of criteria laid down by the Council. These criteria cover tax transparency, fair taxation and implementation of international standards designed to prevent tax base erosion and profit shifting. The chair of the code of conduct group conducts political and procedural dialogues with relevant international organisations and jurisdictions, where necessary.

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