- Tax evasion and illicit financial flows hinder domestic resource mobilization in Latin America, with estimated revenue forgone of 6.1% of GDP. Due to non-compliance, tax authorities collect less than half of the revenues they should theoretically gather in several Latin American countries.
- Latin American countries have strongly committed to tax transparency initiatives like the Punta del Este Declaration to tackle these issues. All Latin American members of the Global Forum are now signatories.
- Progress has been made in building tax transparency capacities and infrastructure in Latin America, but more work remains to fully implement transparency standards, encourage automatic exchange of information, and advance the wider use of treaty-exchanged information.
Flyer: The Changing Global Landscape of International Tax Co-operationOECDtax
Flyer OECD/UNDESA Side Event 2017 FfD Forum
A panel of senior experts will discuss the progress made by the UN and the OECD since the Addis call for more inclusiveness, both in terms of institutional arrangements and policy guidance, to support developing countries in coping with the challenges posed by international tax avoidance and evasion.
Flyer: The Changing Global Landscape of International Tax Co-operationOECDtax
Flyer OECD/UNDESA Side Event 2017 FfD Forum
A panel of senior experts will discuss the progress made by the UN and the OECD since the Addis call for more inclusiveness, both in terms of institutional arrangements and policy guidance, to support developing countries in coping with the challenges posed by international tax avoidance and evasion.
► Digital economy is raising complex issues for VAT systems
► OECD (November 2015): “International VAT/GST Guidelines” published with a heavy
focus on the place of supply of cross-border supplies of services and intangibles and the
application of the principles of destination and neutrality
► Trend toward digital supplies becoming taxable in the country of consumption
► Businesses increasingly needing to make VAT decisions in real time (at the point
of sale)
► Policymaking is developing – typical developments:
► Joint and several liability for online marketplaces
► Active searches for non-established ESS suppliers
► Removal of low value import thresholds
► Tax authorities are going digital
► Plus increasing inter-governmental cooperation
► Reputational risk rising
Presentation by: David Bradbury (OECD, Head, Tax Policy and Statistics Division)
OECD Conference on wealth inequalities: Measurement and policies
Paris, 26 April 2018.
Seema Hafeez presentation on United Nations E-government Survey Leveraging ...SEEMA HAFEEZ
UN E-Government Survey 2010 focuses on the issue of how willing and ready are the governments around the world to improve the access, and quality, of basic economic and social services to the people
Seema Hafeez presentation to 3rd parliamentary forum 2010SEEMA HAFEEZ
UN e-government Index; how willing and ready are the governments around the world to:
–improve the access, and quality, of basic economic and social services to the people ; and
–involve them in public policy making via e-participation.
The BEPS Project and Developing Countries - From Consultation to ParticipationOECDtax
Taxation plays a central role in promoting sustainable development, and developing countries face significant challenges in developing their tax capacities and mobilising domestic resources. Engagement of developing countries in the international tax agenda, including on BEPS, is therefore important, in particular to ensure they receive appropriate support to address the specific challenges they face.
More information: www.oecd.org/tax/developing-countries-and-beps.htm
Inter-American Centre for Tax Administration (CIAT) WE-SECO
The Swiss State Secretariat of Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Inter-American Centre for Tax Administration (CIAT) have created closer ties, mainly with the purpose of strengthening the effective management of tax administrations in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The cooperation program has taken it upon itself to offer support to tax administrations in order to promote the mobilization of additional tax revenues, reduce dependency on official assistance for development (ODA) and allow for a sustainable financing with an aim to diminish the poverty levels.
Tax management within multinational enterprises (MNEs) has never been more challenging. 'Getting to grips with the BEPS Action Plan' is the latest Grant Thornton report exploring the OECD’s planned overhaul of the international tax system, what it means for businesses and how they can prepare.
Following on from the publication of the 15 point Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, the OECD and G20 countries released their first set of recommendations for a co-ordinated international approach to combat tax avoidance by multinational enterprises. The OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project aims to create a single set of updated international tax rules to close the loopholes and gaps that enable multinationals to artificially shift profits and erode the tax bases of the countries where the economic activities generating those profits occur. In November 2014 the OECD released its new Strategy for Deepening Developing Country Engagement in the BEPS Project, which will strengthen their involvement in the decision-making processes and bring them to the heart of the technical work. The remaining set of deliverables will be finalized later this year.
On 21 July 2014, the OECD released the full version of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters. The Standard calls on governments to obtain detailed account information from their financial institutions and exchange that information automatically with other jurisdictions on an annual basis. The Standard was approved by the OECD Council on 15 July 2014 and was formally presented to G20 Finance Ministers in September. Already 93 jurisdictions have committed to early implementation of this standard by the end of 2018 and training is underway to ensure its effective implementation. Implementation of this Standard will truly mark the end of bank secrecy for tax purposes.
Convention multilatérale pour la mise en œuvre des mesures relatives aux conv...OECDtax
Cet instrument transposera les résultats du Projet sur l'érosion de la base d'imposition et le transfert de bénéfices (BEPS) dans plus de 2 000 conventions fiscales à l'échelle mondiale.
Multilateral instrument for BEPS tax treaty measures - Overview OECDtax
The Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent BEPS will implement minimum standards to counter treaty abuse and to improve dispute resolution mechanisms while providing flexibility to accommodate specific tax treaty policies. It will also allow governments to strengthen their tax treaties with other tax treaty measures developed in the OECD/G20 BEPS Project.
Version January 2023.
Learn more about the BEPS MLI: https://oe.cd/mli
► Digital economy is raising complex issues for VAT systems
► OECD (November 2015): “International VAT/GST Guidelines” published with a heavy
focus on the place of supply of cross-border supplies of services and intangibles and the
application of the principles of destination and neutrality
► Trend toward digital supplies becoming taxable in the country of consumption
► Businesses increasingly needing to make VAT decisions in real time (at the point
of sale)
► Policymaking is developing – typical developments:
► Joint and several liability for online marketplaces
► Active searches for non-established ESS suppliers
► Removal of low value import thresholds
► Tax authorities are going digital
► Plus increasing inter-governmental cooperation
► Reputational risk rising
Presentation by: David Bradbury (OECD, Head, Tax Policy and Statistics Division)
OECD Conference on wealth inequalities: Measurement and policies
Paris, 26 April 2018.
Seema Hafeez presentation on United Nations E-government Survey Leveraging ...SEEMA HAFEEZ
UN E-Government Survey 2010 focuses on the issue of how willing and ready are the governments around the world to improve the access, and quality, of basic economic and social services to the people
Seema Hafeez presentation to 3rd parliamentary forum 2010SEEMA HAFEEZ
UN e-government Index; how willing and ready are the governments around the world to:
–improve the access, and quality, of basic economic and social services to the people ; and
–involve them in public policy making via e-participation.
The BEPS Project and Developing Countries - From Consultation to ParticipationOECDtax
Taxation plays a central role in promoting sustainable development, and developing countries face significant challenges in developing their tax capacities and mobilising domestic resources. Engagement of developing countries in the international tax agenda, including on BEPS, is therefore important, in particular to ensure they receive appropriate support to address the specific challenges they face.
More information: www.oecd.org/tax/developing-countries-and-beps.htm
Inter-American Centre for Tax Administration (CIAT) WE-SECO
The Swiss State Secretariat of Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Inter-American Centre for Tax Administration (CIAT) have created closer ties, mainly with the purpose of strengthening the effective management of tax administrations in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The cooperation program has taken it upon itself to offer support to tax administrations in order to promote the mobilization of additional tax revenues, reduce dependency on official assistance for development (ODA) and allow for a sustainable financing with an aim to diminish the poverty levels.
Tax management within multinational enterprises (MNEs) has never been more challenging. 'Getting to grips with the BEPS Action Plan' is the latest Grant Thornton report exploring the OECD’s planned overhaul of the international tax system, what it means for businesses and how they can prepare.
Following on from the publication of the 15 point Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, the OECD and G20 countries released their first set of recommendations for a co-ordinated international approach to combat tax avoidance by multinational enterprises. The OECD/G20 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project aims to create a single set of updated international tax rules to close the loopholes and gaps that enable multinationals to artificially shift profits and erode the tax bases of the countries where the economic activities generating those profits occur. In November 2014 the OECD released its new Strategy for Deepening Developing Country Engagement in the BEPS Project, which will strengthen their involvement in the decision-making processes and bring them to the heart of the technical work. The remaining set of deliverables will be finalized later this year.
On 21 July 2014, the OECD released the full version of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters. The Standard calls on governments to obtain detailed account information from their financial institutions and exchange that information automatically with other jurisdictions on an annual basis. The Standard was approved by the OECD Council on 15 July 2014 and was formally presented to G20 Finance Ministers in September. Already 93 jurisdictions have committed to early implementation of this standard by the end of 2018 and training is underway to ensure its effective implementation. Implementation of this Standard will truly mark the end of bank secrecy for tax purposes.
Convention multilatérale pour la mise en œuvre des mesures relatives aux conv...OECDtax
Cet instrument transposera les résultats du Projet sur l'érosion de la base d'imposition et le transfert de bénéfices (BEPS) dans plus de 2 000 conventions fiscales à l'échelle mondiale.
Multilateral instrument for BEPS tax treaty measures - Overview OECDtax
The Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to Prevent BEPS will implement minimum standards to counter treaty abuse and to improve dispute resolution mechanisms while providing flexibility to accommodate specific tax treaty policies. It will also allow governments to strengthen their tax treaties with other tax treaty measures developed in the OECD/G20 BEPS Project.
Version January 2023.
Learn more about the BEPS MLI: https://oe.cd/mli
Presentation: Economic impact assessment of the Two-Pillar Solution (January ...OECDtax
The OECD provided an update on its ongoing work to assess the economic impact of the Two-Pillar Solution to Address the Tax Challenges Arising from the Digitalisation of the Economy, including new estimates of the revenue impacts of implementing Pillar One and Pillar Two. These estimates are based on updated data and incorporate many recently agreed design features of Pillar One and Pillar Two, many of which have not been accounted for in other studies.
As the COVID-19 crisis continues to affect people's lives and force governments to take action, the international tax agenda remains highly relevant. Work has continued throughout the crisis on the pressing issue of reaching a multilateral, consensus-based solution to the tax challenges arising from the digitalisation of the economy, and in other areas of the OECD's tax agenda. With a number of recent and upcoming developments in the OECD's international tax agenda, experts from the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration gave an update on our work.
Topics included:
- Update on G20
- Tax and digitalisation update on Pillar One and Pillar Two
- Tax policy
- COVID-19 response – tax treaties and transfer pricing
- BEPS implementation and tax transparency
- Tax and crime
Visit our website: http://oe.cd/taxtalks
Mastering the Concepts Tested in the Databricks Certified Data Engineer Assoc...SkillCertProExams
• For a full set of 760+ questions. Go to
https://skillcertpro.com/product/databricks-certified-data-engineer-associate-exam-questions/
• SkillCertPro offers detailed explanations to each question which helps to understand the concepts better.
• It is recommended to score above 85% in SkillCertPro exams before attempting a real exam.
• SkillCertPro updates exam questions every 2 weeks.
• You will get life time access and life time free updates
• SkillCertPro assures 100% pass guarantee in first attempt.
Collapsing Narratives: Exploring Non-Linearity • a micro report by Rosie WellsRosie Wells
Insight: In a landscape where traditional narrative structures are giving way to fragmented and non-linear forms of storytelling, there lies immense potential for creativity and exploration.
'Collapsing Narratives: Exploring Non-Linearity' is a micro report from Rosie Wells.
Rosie Wells is an Arts & Cultural Strategist uniquely positioned at the intersection of grassroots and mainstream storytelling.
Their work is focused on developing meaningful and lasting connections that can drive social change.
Please download this presentation to enjoy the hyperlinks!
This presentation, created by Syed Faiz ul Hassan, explores the profound influence of media on public perception and behavior. It delves into the evolution of media from oral traditions to modern digital and social media platforms. Key topics include the role of media in information propagation, socialization, crisis awareness, globalization, and education. The presentation also examines media influence through agenda setting, propaganda, and manipulative techniques used by advertisers and marketers. Furthermore, it highlights the impact of surveillance enabled by media technologies on personal behavior and preferences. Through this comprehensive overview, the presentation aims to shed light on how media shapes collective consciousness and public opinion.
18. Thank you
For more information
https://oe.cd/ttila2022
https://twitter.com/OECDtax
gftaxcooperation@oecd.org
https://oe.cd/tax-news
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Editor's Notes
Tax Transparency in Latin America is the annual progress report of the Punta del Este Declaration. This second edition presents the work carried out and the results achieved in 2021 in the region. I am delighted to share with you the main findings of the report.
Tax evasion and other forms of IFFs are a global problem that hinder domestic resource mobilisation, undermine the credibility of the tax system, and result in significant revenue loss for governments.
The problem of tax evasion significantly affects Latin America.
The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) estimates that EUR 272 billion, amounting to 6.1% of the region’s GDP was lost to tax non-compliance in 2018.
Moreover, ECLAC estimates that several countries from the region have an income tax gap of more than 50%, meaning that tax authorities collect less than half of the revenues they should theoretically gather (countries with income tax gap of or more than 50%: Argentina, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama, Peru).
Therefore, Initiatives like the Punta del Este Declaration are highly relevant to tackle tax evasion and fostering economic recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Punta del Este Declaration was signed in November 2018 as a call to action for Latin American countries to implement international tax transparency standards and to tackle tax evasion and other financial crimes through tax transparency and co-operation with the aim of strengthening domestic resource mobilisation.
Since its inception in 2018, the number of signatories of the Declaration has been steadily increasing. In 2021, we were pleased to welcome Mexico and El Salvador as new signatories. Now, all Latin American countries that are members of the Global Forum are now signatories of the Declaration. Bolivia is an observer to the Declaration and we hope that it will join other Latin American countries as member of the Global Forum in the future.
This shows the strong and continued commitment of the region to the tax transparency agenda as a leverage for domestic resource mobilisation.
The strong partnership with our development partners: the Inter-American Center of Tax Administrations, the Inter-American Development Bank and the World Bank Group, are key to the success of this Initiative and on this day I would like to welcome as new partner of the Declaration, the International Finance Corporation. This collaboration will surely be of the outmost importance in strengthening our ability to keep providing useful and effective capacity building in Latin America.
Latin American members continue working towards implementing the 2021-2023 agreed work plan to achieve the Declaration’s objectives.
During 2021, strong awareness on tax transparency was built in the region. The activities developed last year helped advance the tax transparency agenda in Latin America. In particular:
In 2021, we published a milestone report, the first Punta del Este Declaration Initiative progress report, featuring for the first time key findings in the implementation and use of tax transparency in Latin America
A baseline, milestone study on the use of information exchanged under tax treaty channels for purposes other than tax (so called “wider use of treaty-exchanged information”) was discussed by the PdE members. This study should provide for a baseline for future work in this area.
We also continued advocating for tax transparency in regional events, in collaboration with the Chair of the Declaration, with a key highlight to the CIAT General Assembly.
In addition, during 2021 the Global Forum and the regional partners of the Punta del Este Declaration have continued to maintain a fruitful collaboration.
With the IDB, we published a New Beneficial Ownership toolkit, and the last week we were pleased to publish its Spanish version.
With the WBG, we prepared a revised Model EOI Manual, and its Spanish version will be published very soon.
With the CIAT, we are working on a future chapter on International Co-operation, as part of its Manual on the Control of International Tax Planning.
And we have collaborated together on other technical assistance projects, including in the context of country specific capacity-building programmes.
On the capacity-building front, in 2021 efforts continued to focus on broadening technical capacities of tax authorities across the region, and on delivering training to enhance tax officials understanding of exchange of information and its use in their day-to-day work.
Assistance covered different aspects, including assistance with exchange of information on request, beneficial ownership, automatic exchange of financial account information, confidentiality and information security management, and adherence to the Convention on mutual administrative assistance in tax matters. Non-member countries of the Global Forum (Bolivia) also received pre-membership support.
These activities resulted in concrete results that I would like to highlight:
3 countries benefitted from an induction programme, which is a comprehensive technical assistance programme offered to all Global Forum members that joined from 2016 onward.
7 other countries received tailored technical assistance adapted to their particular needs.
The Global Forum also continued to adapt its training events due to the ongoing global pandemic, offering 5 virtual trainings, allowing over 530 tax officials from the region to attend trainings on different topics - showing the great interest from authorities and staff to further deepen their knowledge.
The Global Forum has also continued to develop tools such as e-learning courses, toolkits and manuals on relevant topics. These are:
Two e-learning courses on confidentiality and data safeguards which is a critical element of cross-border exchange of information
Three toolkits : I already mentioned two of them: 1) The new toolkit on Building Effective Beneficial Ownership Frameworks with the IDB and 2) The Model Manual on Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes with the WBG. The third one is the Toolkit for the Implementation of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information
Various technical tools including to monitor the exchange of information activity and results and to implement a sound information security management were also developed (tools shared with Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras and Peru).
Before going into detail on the progress made by Latin American countries on the implementation of the standards, I would like to show you the impressive numbers achieved by the region so far in relation to domestic resource mobilisation.
The effectiveness of exchange of information is measured by how the information is effectively used to enforce tax compliance and generate additional revenue.
The results of the TTiLA 2022 survey indicate that all the efforts done by Latin American countries are generating additional revenue. Since 2019, EUR 25.7 billion in additional revenue were identified through voluntary disclosure programmes, offshore investigation and use of exchange of information. If we look in greater detail the main component of this impressive figure, we have:
The use of EOIR brought additional tax revenue in Latin America for a total of EUR 2.6 billion during the 2014-2021 period, of which EUR 261 million were collected in 2021. In 2018, one country alone reported extraordinary tax revenue gains due to EOIR of EUR 1.7 billion.
The deterrent effect of the implementation of AEOI has contributed to the impressive results of the voluntary disclosure programmes launched prior to the first AEOI exchanges. Until 2021, such programmes raised at least EUR 21.5 billion in additional revenue.
This figures may be even bigger in reality as most countries do not systematically identify and record revenue collected due to EOIR but only do so on a case-by-case basis. Countries have various approaches to track and report revenue generated through EOIR. Some countries rely on revenue identified while other on revenue collected. The Global Forum is working with countries to ensure that they monitor and record the revenue generated as a result of exchange of information.
Implementing the tax transparency standards is a major task, and involves putting in place the legal framework, and the organisational and practical infrastructure required to carry out EOIR and AEOI and therefore enhance domestic resource mobilisation.
The success of this journey depends a lot on the commitment at political and administrative level to address all possible legal, technical and resource implications for the implementation of the standards and to promote exchange of information among tax auditors.
The results for 2021 show that the commitment from Latin American countries remains strong. 13 out of 16 countries (81% of respondents) give such a high priority to exchange of information. Countries have indicated that this commitment is driven by their need to:
have a solid network of partners for exchange of information
use exchange of information not only to strengthen tax audit and control processes but to tackle other types of financial crimes, such as money laundering and terrorism financing.
The medium priority given by 3 countries (19% of respondents) is mainly explained by the still limited awareness of auditors, who are one of the main actors in this process as they trigger requests for information.
Requesting information from abroad is critical in most of the cross-border audits and investigations. Without obtaining crucial information which is held abroad, tax auditors may not be able to tackle effectively cross-border tax evasion. In the context of the Punta del Este Declaration, Latin American countries have committed to increase the number of requests sent while at the same time ensuring their relevance and quality.
The results for 2021 indicate that, overall, the region as a whole has improved its performance due to some countries undertaking measures to increase the use of exchange of information on request sent to support their tax investigations.
In 2021, the region increased the number of requests sent by 103% with respect to 2020. This progress in the number of requests sent was driven by the notable increases in four countries: Peru (2 050%), Panama (600%), Argentina (220%) and Colombia (53%). Overall, the region was a net sender of requests with 649 requests sent and 392 requests received.
However, strong disparities in the number of requests sent continue. Most Latin American countries are still not yet using their wide exchange of information network intensively.
As you can see in the figure, four Latin American countries were responsible for 91% of all the requests sent in 2021, and one country alone accounted for 55% of the requests sent.
These encouraging progress is the consequence of the awareness-raising and training activities targeted towards tax auditors to improve their knowledge and accompany them in the effective use of exchange of information in their tax investigations. Some countries are also using CRS-AEOI-related investigations to launch specific requests for additional information
These results also indicate that more efforts and resources need to be allocated to raise awareness, train tax officials and improve the use of EOI in tax administrations in the Latin American region.
In Latin America, the framework aimed at ensuring transparency on beneficial ownership information is still in early stages of implementation. Countries report facing challenges to implement the beneficial ownership standard.
One important challenge is the definition of the policy approach best suited for the country, taking into their legal and organisational circumstances.
As detailed in our new Beneficial Ownership Toolkit, published jointly with the IDB, countries can use:
a single approach usually based on existing information held by obliged persons under the anti-money laundering framework; or
a multipronged approach comprising different sources of information. These sources can include the anti-money laundering framework, information held by the entities themselves (the entity approach), a central beneficial ownership register held by a public authority (the central register approach) or the tax authority (the tax administration approach).
The results for 2021 show that 10 Latin American countries use two or three approaches for ensuring the availability of beneficial ownership information, evidencing a trend to a multi-pronged approach. Nine Latin American countries in the region already use central registers of beneficial owners, whether held by the tax authority or by another authority
Lessons learned from the Global Forum peer reviews on exchange of information on request indicate that a multi-pronged approach generally leads to a more solid beneficial ownership system. As you see in the figure, the results for the 8 Latin American countries assessed by the global Forum so far indicate that countries using a multi-pronged approach generally have better results than those who use one approach. However, using a multi-pronged approach does not automatically lead to an efficient beneficial ownership framework as gaps could still be present in relation to some aspects of the legal framework and/or its practical implementation.
-----------------------
Countries and number of approaches:
1 approach – AML: Chile, Guatemala, Panama
2 approaches – AML + tax administration approach: Brazil, Dominican Republic
3 approaches – AML + entity approach + central register: Costa Rica, Uruguay
3 approaches – AML + entity approach + tax administration approach: Peru
A1 Determinations and ratings:
Brazil: In place but – LC
Chile: In place but – PC
Costa Rica: In place but – PC
Dominican Republic: In place – LC
Guatemala: Not in place – NC
Panama: In place but – PC
Peru: In place but – PC
Uruguay: In place – LC
The automatic exchange of financial account information is a turning point in the fight against tax evasion. In 2020, information on 75 million financial accounts were exchanged under this standard globally, covering at least around EUR 9 trillion worth of assets.
Latin America is increasingly participating and committing to automatic exchange. The first automatic exchanges in Latin America started in 2017 with three countries. Since then, seven other countries in the region have started their automatic exchanges between 2018 and 2021, bringing the number of Latin American countries participating to automatic exchange to 10. The last country starting these exchanges was Ecuador in 2021.
Five other member countries have not yet committed to implementing automatic exchange of information within a given timeframe. The Global Forum Secretariat and its regional partners will continue to raise awareness on the benefits of the implementation of this standard and to provide technical support to countries interested in committing to a specific year.
The standard for automatic exchange of financial account information is a powerful tool to detect unreported financial accounts and enforce tax rules. However, one of the main challenges for countries implementing the standard is the effective use of the large amount of data received.
Seven out of the ten Latin American countries performing automatic exchanges use the information received in their tax audits and investigations: five countries for risk assessments and tax audits, three countries for tax collection and four countries for taxpayer notification
The Global Forum and its partners will continue to work with countries to progress on the effective use of this data for domestic resource mobilisation. To that end, a comprehensive capacity-building strategy for the successful implementation of automatic exchange of information for developing countries was released late 2021 by the Global Forum.
A solid exchange of information infrastructure is also essential. Exchange of information units should be set up and allocated with adequate technical and human resources, so that exchange of information is performed with the timeliness and quality that administrative assistance in tax matters requires. In addition, having the competent authority status assigned to the unit ensures that processes are dealt with efficiently and effectively.
The results for 2021 show that the countries in the region have solid EOI infrastructures: 15 countries have already established an specialised unit acting as delegated competent authority and with manuals to support its work.
Moreover, 12 countries have implemented an EOI tracking tool which enables them to better manage and monitor the EOI activity.
The implementation of a robust EOI infrastructure will continue to be a key area for the Global Forum's capacity-building programme.
The report also shows that Latin American countries needs to further promote capacity building in exchange of information within the tax administration.
The perceived level of knowledge on exchange of information should continue to be improved: 10 Latin American countries indicated that the level of knowledge, particularly among tax compliance staff, is “medium”, and six countries rated it as “high”.
The number of countries considering having staff with a high level of knowledge on exchange of information decreased by 25% compared to 2020, which can be partially attributed to: (i) experienced staff leaving the tax administration (ii) relatively low practice in exchange of information, or (iii) exchange of information unit recently implemented.
The Global Forum and regional partners will continue to train Latin American tax officials on EOI.
Exchange of Information is only possible if there is an international agreement that allows it. Most Latin American Countries have a broad network for exchange of information thanks to their participation in the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters (MAAC).
With Paraguay having deposited the instrument of ratification of the MAAC in July 2021, almost all Latin American countries members of the Global Forum are now parties to the MAAC.
Moreover, in January 2022, Honduras received the formal invitation from the Co-ordinating Body to become a party to the MAAC. With Honduras, the full circle of EOI relationships will be complete for Latin American Global Forum members.
One of the possible areas of work exploited in the Declaration is the wider use of treaty-exchanged information. On the progress made in 2021 on this front, we have the following highlights:
In the November 2021 meeting, the Global Forum Secretariat presented a baseline study on wider use in Latin America. The study concluded that the majority of the Latin America countries have the international and domestic grounds for wider use. However, so far, only one country in the region (Argentina) has a strategy for the use of treaty-exchanged information for non-tax purposes, which has been used in practice.
To stimulate this wider use, the Global Forum proposed further work in the area comprising a framework for the wider use of treaty-exchanged information in Latin America, to be developed during 2022
We will present and discuss in further detail the main components of this framework tomorrow, which includes –
Tailored agreements
Definition of a pilot project between interested countries
Delivery of confidentiality and data safeguards trainings.
After two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, physical meetings and on-site missions have started to resume in 2022 to strengthen capacity-building projects and activities in the context of the Punta del Este Declaration.
The Punta del Este Declaration Initiative will keep up the extensive work during 2022:
We will continue to work with governments in the region to help them build sustainable capacities for exchanging information under tax transparency standards. The Global Forum Secretariat will deliver a dedicated “Train the Trainer” programme for Latin America during 2022.
The Global Forum Secretariat and its regional partners will put particular effort to ensure that countries in the region have a solid and effective framework for exchange of information on request, including by ensuring transparency of beneficial ownership information
Efforts will be deployed to raise awareness of non-committed Latin American countries on the potential of the standard for automatic exchange of information and on the technical support available for the implementation of the standard.
Latin American countries will be encouraged and assisted in starting the implementation of the wider use of treaty-exchanged information to further take advantage of it for non-tax purposes, and a pilot project between interested countries could be launched.
Female leadership roles and gender balance in tax will be championed, through the “Women Leaders in Tax Transparency” pilot programme (participating countries are Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Honduras, Peru).
Finally, the Punta del Este Declaration Initiative will continue to seek the promotion and engagement at the highest political level of countries in the region. Co-operation with the regional partners will continue to be key for the Initiative.
All this work would not be possible without the trust and support of donor countries. I would like to acknowledge their important contribution to the work carried out by the Global Forum Secretariat.