ECOFIN reaches Anti-Tax Avoidance Agreement

An agreement on Anti-Tax Avoidance with regard to hybrid mismatches with third countries was reached last week at the ECOFIN Council in Brussels.

This agreement, just seven weeks into the Presidency, is a testament to Malta’s unwavering commitment in fighting tax avoidance..

Chaired by the Minister for Finance Edward Scicluna, the agreement at ECOFIN Council is the latest in a number of measures designed to prevent tax avoidance, especially double non-taxation, by large companies. Such arrangements can result in a substantial erosion of the taxable bases of corporate taxpayers in the EU.

Commenting on the agreement, Minister Scicluna said: “The EU is at the forefront of the fight against tax avoidance and we want to ensure coherent implementation in EU law of the OECD’s BEPS action plan.”

The ECOFIN Council agenda included a discussion on the proposal of the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions. Once compiled, the list will blacklist third countries if these are deemed to be non-cooperative with EU tax authorities—this will contribute to ongoing efforts to prevent tax fraud and money laundering.

Minister Scicluna said that: “Our aim is to promote worldwide good standards that are already applicable in the EU, and jurisdictions will be subject to a rigorous screening. This way we can ensure that non-EU countries match our minimum standards.”

Work on this file is being conducted in parallel with the OECD global forum on transparency and exchange of information for tax purposes. It is expected to be finalised by the end of 2017.