Barbados's Minister of International Business and International Trade, George Hutson
has noted the efforts made by the government to meet international standards to
ensure the continued growth of the country as an international financial centre.
Hutson made the comments speaking to the international business community at
a lecture and panel discussion entitled Regional Tax Treaties and Tax Information
Exchange Agreements and OECD Standards, at the Law Faculty of the University
of the West Indies.
According to Hutson, new agreements negotiated between Barbados and other nations
should see markedly better feedback this year than was received last year in terms of the rating received by the Global Forum
on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes in its assessment of how
Barbados legislates for tax transparency and how its tax information systems operate
in practice.
The Minister explained that one criticism by the Forum was that Barbados had
not signed any tax information exchange agreements (TIEA) with other countries.
"Since then, we have signed TIEAs with Denmark and its administrative
dependants... and we are in the process of negotiating a TIEA with Germany, which had objected to us progressing beyond phase one," he said,
adding that negotiations are ongoing with South Africa and France to create
similar arrangements.
Hutson further disclosed that the government had also reviewed existing agreements
with the United States, the United Kingdom and Sweden to ensure conformity
with international tax standards.
He added that the CARICOM Multilateral Convention on Double Taxation was also
being amended to ensure its tax information clauses were in compliance with
international best practices.
This multilateral convention covers 11 countries: Antigua and Barbuda, Belize,
Dominica, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Montserrat, St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent
and the Grenadines, St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago.
LAWANDTAX-NEWS.COM
