UK and International Tax news

OECD Releases First BEPS Recommendations To G20

Wednesday 17th September 2014

In July 2013, the OECD issued its Action Plan on Base Erosion and Profit Shifting, produced at the request of the G20 and introduced at the G20 Finance Ministers’ meeting in Moscow in February 2013.  The Action Plan identified 15 specific actions to be addressed by 2015.

The OECD has now released its first recommendations for a coordinated international approach to combat tax avoidance by multinational enterprises.  These cover seven elements of the Action Plan being: 

Action 1 – Address the tax challenges of the digital economy.

Action 2 – Neutralise the effects of hybrid mismatch arrangements.

Action 5 – Counter harmful tax practices more effectively taking into account transparency and substance.

Action 6 – Prevent treaty abuse.

Action 8 – Transfer pricing issues in the key area of intangibles.

Action 13 – Improved transfer pricing documentation and country by country reporting.

Action 15 – Develop a multilateral instrument to amend bilateral treaties.

The OECD recommendations will be a key item on the agenda when G20 finance ministers meet in Cairns on 20-21 September 2014.

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