| THE
G20 Summit, which concluded here on 6 th September, has endorsed plans
to tackle the menace of cross-border tax evasion and avoidance.
In
a 27-page ‘G20 Leaders' Declaration', the Summit supported “ FATF's
ongoing work in the anti-corruption field. Leveraging anti-money
laundering (AML)/countering the financing of terrorism (CFT) measures to
fight corruption will remain a significant area of growing cooperation
between anti-corruption experts of the G20 and FATF as well as
increasing cooperation against tax crimes, addressing the risks posed by
tax havens.”
As
regards Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS), the Declaration has
urged member countries to examine how our own domestic laws contribute
to BEPS and to ensure that international and our own tax rules do not
allow or encourage multinational enterprises to reduce overall taxes
paid by artificially shifting profits to low-tax jurisdictions.
It
says: “We acknowledge that effective taxation of mobile income is one
of the key challenges. We look forward to regular reporting on the
development of proposals and recommendations to tackle the 15 issues
identified in the Action Plan and commit to take the necessary
individual and collective action with the paradigm of sovereignty taken
into consideration.”
The
G20 leaders also urged all countries to join the Multilateral
Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters without
further delay.
The
Declaration says: “We look forward to the practical and full
implementation of the new standard on a global scale. We encourage the
Global Forum to complete the allocation of comprehensive country ratings
regarding the effective implementation of information exchange upon
request and ensure that the implementation of the standards are
monitored on a continuous basis. We urge all jurisdictions to address
the Global Forum recommendations in particular those 14 that have not
yet moved to Phase 2.”
As
regards issues falling under domains other than taxation, the
Declaration says: “Our most urgent need is to increase the momentum of
the global recovery, generate higher growth and better jobs, while
strengthening the foundations for long-term growth and avoiding policies
that could cause the recovery to falter or promote growth at other
countries' expense.”
The
Summit also urged all the WTO members to show the necessary flexibility
and reach a successful outcome in this year's multilateral trade
negotiations. We extend our commitment to refrain from protectionist
measures and aim at enhancing transparency in trade, including in
regional trade agreements.
|
