EU blacklists 17 countries

The EU has agreed on a tax blacklist of 17 countries that could face sanctions for failing to bring their standards in line with the bloc, as it seeks to step up its fight against practices that facilitate avoidance by multinationals and individuals.

The EU has agreed on a tax blacklist of 17 countries that could face sanctions for failing to bring their standards in line with the bloc, as it seeks to further step up its fight against opaque practices that facilitate avoidance by multinationals and individuals.

The group of jurisdictions, which was rubber stamped by EU finance ministers at a meeting in Brussels on Tuesday, includes South Korea, Panama, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Barbados, Samoa, Grenada, St Lucia, Palau and Macau, according to an EU official.

The final list is the result of months of screening 92 countries and territories, and backand-forths between the 28country bloc and various jurisdictions around the world.

It could still change depending on the ministers’ political decision. Ministers decided that 17 countries would be blacklisted, while another 47 would be included in a separate grey list, to be monitored for compliance.

It comes as the EU has stepped up its efforts to tackle tax avoidance and evasion around the world. Its plans have received fresh impetus following leaks such as the Paradise Papers, which exposed largescale tax avoidance and fed a public backlash against such practices.