According to a press release of 27 January 2017, published by the OECD, as part of continuing efforts to boost transparency by multinational enterprises (MNEs), Gabon, Hungary, Indonesia, Lithuania, Malta, Mauritius and the Russian Federation have signed the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement for Country-by-Country Reporting (CbC MCAA), bringing the total number of signatories to 57. Lithuania and Hungary joined the Agreement in October and December 2016 respectively.

The CbC MCAA is an efficient mechanism that allows signatories to bilaterally and automatically exchange Country-by-Country Reports with each other, as contemplated by Action 13 of the BEPS Action Plan. It will help ensure that tax administrations obtain a better understanding of how MNEs structure their operations, while also ensuring that the confidentiality and appropriate use of such information is safeguarded. Information on the activation of exchange relationships under the MCAA will be released in due course.

Gabon, Indonesia, Malta, Mauritius and the Russian Federation signed the Agreement at a signing ceremony held during the second meeting of the Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 26-27 January 2017. The inclusive framework brings together over 100 countries and jurisdictions to collaborate on the implementation of the OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) package.