WTO Adopts Package of Recommendations to Assist MSMEs
On 11 December 2020 the WTO’s Informal Working Group on Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) adopted a package of six recommendations and declarations concerning problems encountered by MSMEs when engaging in international trade. The
See MoreIMF: Report following 2020 Article IV Mission to Nigeria
On 11 December 2020 the IMF published a report following consultations with Nigeria in relation to Article IV of the IMF’s articles of association. The COVID-19 pandemic has hit Nigeria’s economy which was already experiencing problems with
See MoreOECD: Assessing Compliance by Financial Institutions with Automatic Exchange of Information
On 8 December 2020 the OECD published a document entitled Automatic Exchange of Information: Guide on Promoting and Assessing Compliance by Financial Institutions. The guide has been put together with the help of the of the tax administrations of
See MoreOECD: Enhancing International Tax Debt Management
On 8 December 2020 the OECD’s Forum on Tax Administration (FTA) issued a report entitled Enhancing International Tax Debt Management, looking at challenges around international tax debt collection. Problems faced in international tax debt
See MoreOECD: How Tax Administrations Can Support SMEs with Tax Compliance
On 8 December 2020 the OECD’s Forum on Tax Administration (FTA) released a report on Strategic Planning as part of a planned series called Supporting SMEs to Get Tax Right. The report aims to support tax administrations in the development and
See MoreOECD: Digital Transformation of Tax Administration
On 8 December 2020 the OECD’s Forum on Tax Administration (FTA) released a paper entitled Tax Administration 3.0: The Digital Transformation of Tax Administration outlining a concept for digital development of tax administrations that leads over
See MoreOECD: Forum on Tax Administration Agrees Action on Administrative Challenges
On 8 December 2020 representatives of the members of the OECD’s Forum on Tax Administration (FTA) agreed on an agenda for 2021 focusing on tax certainty and digital enhancement of tax administration. The FTA is a global forum on tax
See MoreUK: Research on Enablers and Facilitators of Tax Evasion
On 2 December 2020 HMRC published a research report by IFF Research aiming to reach an improved understanding of the situation of wealth managers, UK goods importers and freight forwarders who may be in a position where they are at risk of
See MoreOECD: Revenue Statistics 2020
On 3 December 2020 the OECD released the annual Revenue Statistics publication with the results of a survey of OECD countries. The data indicates that the average tax to GDP ratio in the OECD countries surveyed fell slightly to 33.8% in
See MoreGerman Upper House Approves MLI to Implement Tax Treaty Related BEPS Measures
On 6 November 2020 the Bundesrat (the upper house in the German parliament) gave its approval to ratifying the Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, also known as the
See MoreUK: Evaluation of the Patent Box regime
On 17 November 2020 the UK published an evaluation of the patent box regime. The patent box was designed as an incentive for companies to retain and commercialise their intellectual property in the UK. A lower 10% rate of corporation tax is
See MoreUK: Preliminary Estimate of VAT Gap for 2019/20
On 25 November 2020 HMRC published the preliminary estimate of the value added tax (VAT) gap for 2019/20. The VAT gap indicates the VAT lost for various reasons and is measured as the difference between the amount of VAT actually collected and
See MoreOECD: Tax Crime Investigation Maturity Model
On 30 November 2020 the OECD published a publication outlining the Tax Crime Investigation Maturity Model. The maturity model has been developed to help jurisdictions to assess their capability in relation to the investigation of tax crimes and to
See MoreOECD and UNDP: Building tax capacity in Georgia
A case study by the OECD and UNDP published on 27 November 2020 focuses on capacity building work undertaken with the Georgian tax administration through the Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB) initiative. The study notes that the practical
See MoreOECD and IMF: Report on Analysis of Tax Expenditures in Chile
A report was issued on 23 November 2020 following a mission conducted by staff from the IMF and the OECD from April to October 2020. The main purpose was to provide technical support in relation to the methodology for reviewing Chile's tax
See MoreOECD: Update on Peer Reviews of Harmful Tax Practices
On 23 November 2020 the OECD published an update on its work in relation to harmful tax practices. Harmful tax practices are highly favourable tax rulings or preferential tax rules or regimes intended to attract foreign income, potentially
See MoreOECD: Tax relief for philanthropic entities
A report published by the OECD entitled Taxation and Philanthropy contains a detailed review of the taxation of philanthropic entities and donors in 40 countries, setting out potential policy options for countries. Reasons for giving tax
See MoreOECD: Consultation on review of the minimum standard under BEPS Action 14
A consultation document issued by the OECD on 18 November 2020 invites input from interested parties on proposals for the 2020 review of the Action 14 minimum standard on making dispute resolution mechanisms more effective. A number of possible
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