The timing couldn’t have been worse, so soon after new revelations about the use of tax havens sparked a worldwide commotion. Nevertheless, the finance ministers of the European Union decided on Tuesday to shorten an already not very extensive blacklist of tax havens. Anguilla, Dominica and the Seychelles were removed from the list of so-called ‘non-cooperative tax jurisdictions’.
Adjusting the list every six months is normally a formality that attracts little attention. But the publication of the Pandora Papers this Sunday sheds light on Europe’s flawed approach to tax avoidance, which critics say the ‘black list’ symbolizes.
Also read this article: Hoekstra, Putin and Blair – which political leaders are there in the Pandora Papers?
“In light of the thriving tax havens, it is absurd that the finance ministers are shortening the blacklist right now,” said German MEP Sven Giegold (Greens). His compatriot Markus Ferber (CSU): “Even after years of scandal, the EU list of tax havens is still toothless.”
Critical from the start
Since the end of 2017, the EU has had a list of non-EU countries that promote tax avoidance. Countries that insist on it are more difficult to qualify for EU funds and European companies doing business there are subject to stricter scrutiny. The list came after previous revelations about tax evasion and should help the EU put pressure on countries that refuse to cooperate.
Yet since the beginning there has been criticism that the list is a sham. The criteria for adding or removing countries are vague and, in practice, appear to be very sensitive to political considerations. For example, there has been dissatisfaction for years about the inadequate way in which Turkey shares tax information, but the country has never made it onto the list because of the possible diplomatic consequences, for example for migration cooperation.
As a result, some of the most infamous tax havens are not even on the list, such as Singapore, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Spicy: the British Virgin Islands, of which it was leaked this weekend that outgoing minister Wopke Hoekstra (CDA) had an investment in the past, have never made it to the list either.
Two European politicians
Oxfam Novib noted earlier that of the 31 countries where little or no profit tax is charged, only two are on the blacklist. Anguilla and the Seychelles are “at the heart of this latest scandal,” according to a representative of that organization, making the removal “a joke.”
Also read this article: Pandora Papers show that there is still plenty of tax evasion
The ‘toothless’ list is not the only difficult part of the European approach to tax avoidance. Internally, no agreements have been reached for years, for example about an unambiguous tax base that could put an end to creative shifting of profits within Europe.
Within the EU, there are also still obstacles to the global agreement on a minimum corporate tax rate. For example, Ireland, which charges a much lower rate. Two prominent European politicians also appeared in the list of people who used a tax haven: next to Hoekstra, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of October 6, 2021
The timing couldn’t have been worse, so soon after new revelations about the use of tax havens sparked a worldwide commotion. Nevertheless, the finance ministers of the European Union decided on Tuesday to shorten an already not very extensive blacklist of tax havens. Anguilla, Dominica and the Seychelles were removed from the list of so-called ‘non-cooperative tax jurisdictions’.
Adjusting the list every six months is normally a formality that attracts little attention. But the publication of the Pandora Papers this Sunday sheds light on Europe’s flawed approach to tax avoidance, which critics say the ‘black list’ symbolizes.
Also read this article: Hoekstra, Putin and Blair – which political leaders are there in the Pandora Papers?
“In light of the thriving tax havens, it is absurd that the finance ministers are shortening the blacklist right now,” said German MEP Sven Giegold (Greens). His compatriot Markus Ferber (CSU): “Even after years of scandal, the EU list of tax havens is still toothless.”
Critical from the start
Since the end of 2017, the EU has had a list of non-EU countries that promote tax avoidance. Countries that insist on it are more difficult to qualify for EU funds and European companies doing business there are subject to stricter scrutiny. The list came after previous revelations about tax evasion and should help the EU put pressure on countries that refuse to cooperate.
Yet since the beginning there has been criticism that the list is a sham. The criteria for adding or removing countries are vague and, in practice, appear to be very sensitive to political considerations. For example, there has been dissatisfaction for years about the inadequate way in which Turkey shares tax information, but the country has never made it onto the list because of the possible diplomatic consequences, for example for migration cooperation.
As a result, some of the most infamous tax havens are not even on the list, such as Singapore, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Spicy: the British Virgin Islands, of which it was leaked this weekend that outgoing minister Wopke Hoekstra (CDA) had an investment in the past, have never made it to the list either.
Two European politicians
Oxfam Novib noted earlier that of the 31 countries where little or no profit tax is charged, only two are on the blacklist. Anguilla and the Seychelles are “at the heart of this latest scandal,” according to a representative of that organization, making the removal “a joke.”
Also read this article: Pandora Papers show that there is still plenty of tax evasion
The ‘toothless’ list is not the only difficult part of the European approach to tax avoidance. Internally, no agreements have been reached for years, for example about an unambiguous tax base that could put an end to creative shifting of profits within Europe.
Within the EU, there are also still obstacles to the global agreement on a minimum corporate tax rate. For example, Ireland, which charges a much lower rate. Two prominent European politicians also appeared in the list of people who used a tax haven: next to Hoekstra, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of October 6, 2021
The timing couldn’t have been worse, so soon after new revelations about the use of tax havens sparked a worldwide commotion. Nevertheless, the finance ministers of the European Union decided on Tuesday to shorten an already not very extensive blacklist of tax havens. Anguilla, Dominica and the Seychelles were removed from the list of so-called ‘non-cooperative tax jurisdictions’.
Adjusting the list every six months is normally a formality that attracts little attention. But the publication of the Pandora Papers this Sunday sheds light on Europe’s flawed approach to tax avoidance, which critics say the ‘black list’ symbolizes.
Also read this article: Hoekstra, Putin and Blair – which political leaders are there in the Pandora Papers?
“In light of the thriving tax havens, it is absurd that the finance ministers are shortening the blacklist right now,” said German MEP Sven Giegold (Greens). His compatriot Markus Ferber (CSU): “Even after years of scandal, the EU list of tax havens is still toothless.”
Critical from the start
Since the end of 2017, the EU has had a list of non-EU countries that promote tax avoidance. Countries that insist on it are more difficult to qualify for EU funds and European companies doing business there are subject to stricter scrutiny. The list came after previous revelations about tax evasion and should help the EU put pressure on countries that refuse to cooperate.
Yet since the beginning there has been criticism that the list is a sham. The criteria for adding or removing countries are vague and, in practice, appear to be very sensitive to political considerations. For example, there has been dissatisfaction for years about the inadequate way in which Turkey shares tax information, but the country has never made it onto the list because of the possible diplomatic consequences, for example for migration cooperation.
As a result, some of the most infamous tax havens are not even on the list, such as Singapore, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Spicy: the British Virgin Islands, of which it was leaked this weekend that outgoing minister Wopke Hoekstra (CDA) had an investment in the past, have never made it to the list either.
Two European politicians
Oxfam Novib noted earlier that of the 31 countries where little or no profit tax is charged, only two are on the blacklist. Anguilla and the Seychelles are “at the heart of this latest scandal,” according to a representative of that organization, making the removal “a joke.”
Also read this article: Pandora Papers show that there is still plenty of tax evasion
The ‘toothless’ list is not the only difficult part of the European approach to tax avoidance. Internally, no agreements have been reached for years, for example about an unambiguous tax base that could put an end to creative shifting of profits within Europe.
Within the EU, there are also still obstacles to the global agreement on a minimum corporate tax rate. For example, Ireland, which charges a much lower rate. Two prominent European politicians also appeared in the list of people who used a tax haven: next to Hoekstra, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of October 6, 2021
The timing couldn’t have been worse, so soon after new revelations about the use of tax havens sparked a worldwide commotion. Nevertheless, the finance ministers of the European Union decided on Tuesday to shorten an already not very extensive blacklist of tax havens. Anguilla, Dominica and the Seychelles were removed from the list of so-called ‘non-cooperative tax jurisdictions’.
Adjusting the list every six months is normally a formality that attracts little attention. But the publication of the Pandora Papers this Sunday sheds light on Europe’s flawed approach to tax avoidance, which critics say the ‘black list’ symbolizes.
Also read this article: Hoekstra, Putin and Blair – which political leaders are there in the Pandora Papers?
“In light of the thriving tax havens, it is absurd that the finance ministers are shortening the blacklist right now,” said German MEP Sven Giegold (Greens). His compatriot Markus Ferber (CSU): “Even after years of scandal, the EU list of tax havens is still toothless.”
Critical from the start
Since the end of 2017, the EU has had a list of non-EU countries that promote tax avoidance. Countries that insist on it are more difficult to qualify for EU funds and European companies doing business there are subject to stricter scrutiny. The list came after previous revelations about tax evasion and should help the EU put pressure on countries that refuse to cooperate.
Yet since the beginning there has been criticism that the list is a sham. The criteria for adding or removing countries are vague and, in practice, appear to be very sensitive to political considerations. For example, there has been dissatisfaction for years about the inadequate way in which Turkey shares tax information, but the country has never made it onto the list because of the possible diplomatic consequences, for example for migration cooperation.
As a result, some of the most infamous tax havens are not even on the list, such as Singapore, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. Spicy: the British Virgin Islands, of which it was leaked this weekend that outgoing minister Wopke Hoekstra (CDA) had an investment in the past, have never made it to the list either.
Two European politicians
Oxfam Novib noted earlier that of the 31 countries where little or no profit tax is charged, only two are on the blacklist. Anguilla and the Seychelles are “at the heart of this latest scandal,” according to a representative of that organization, making the removal “a joke.”
Also read this article: Pandora Papers show that there is still plenty of tax evasion
The ‘toothless’ list is not the only difficult part of the European approach to tax avoidance. Internally, no agreements have been reached for years, for example about an unambiguous tax base that could put an end to creative shifting of profits within Europe.
Within the EU, there are also still obstacles to the global agreement on a minimum corporate tax rate. For example, Ireland, which charges a much lower rate. Two prominent European politicians also appeared in the list of people who used a tax haven: next to Hoekstra, Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis.
A version of this article also appeared in NRC on the morning of October 6, 2021