EU updated the list of grey tax jurisdiction countries
Russia, the British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, and the Marshall Islands are now on the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes. This was reported on the website of the EU Council.
The updated register includes countries that either have a non-constructive dialogue with the EU on tax administration or fail to meet the obligations to carry out necessary changes.
Karin Elisabeth Svantesson, the Minister of Finance of Sweden, made the following comments on the decision:
We ask all listed countries to improve their legal framework and to work towards compliance with international standards in taxation. At the same time I warmly congratulate North Macedonia, Barbados, Jamaica and Uruguay as they successfully fulfilled their commitments and could be removed from the state of play document.
As a result, with these additions, the EU tax list now consists of 16 jurisdictions:
- American Samoa;
- Anguilla;
- Bahamas;
- British Virgin Islands;
- Costa Rica;
- Fiji;
- Guam;
- Marshall Islands;
- Palau;
- Panama;
- Russia;
- Samoa;
- Trinidad and Tobago;
- Turks and Caicos Islands;
- U.S. Virgin Islands;
- Vanuatu.
The initial list was completed in December 2017. This list is part of the EU's external taxation strategy and is intended to support ongoing efforts to promote good tax governance around the world.
Those tax jurisdictions are evaluated according to a set of criteria established by the Council of the EU. These criteria cover tax transparency, fair taxation, and the implementation of international standards, aimed at preventing tax base degradation and profit shifting. Developing the list is a dynamic process. Since 2020, the Council has been updating the list twice a year. The next revision of the list is scheduled for October 2023.
