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Showing 1-12 of 87 Blogs
The UN headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, flanked by a row of flags of different countries.
November 2025|
Blog

A new era or business as usual? Why the UN Expert Committee on Tax is still relevant

by Florian Dierich

The Committee’s most prominent contribution is the UN Model Tax Convention, which provides model language for the negotiation of bilateral tax treaties. While originally based on the OECD Model, it has increasingly diverged to better reflect the interests of capital-importing states, most notably in its stronger source-based taxing rights….
Empty hall of the United Nations General Assembly at the UN headquarters in New York.
November 2025|
Blog

UN Tax Convention Reading List Part 3: Protocol 2 – Dispute Resolution and Prevention

by Florian Dierich & Frederik Heitmüller

In Part 3 of our UN Tax Convention reading list, we bring together key research and analysis on dispute prevention and resolution….
A photo of the UN Headquarters in New York with flags of several countries flying high.
October 2025|
Blog

UN Tax Convention Negotiations: Where are we at and where are we headed?

by Frederik Heitmüller & Florian Dierich

In preparation for the Nairobi session, two documents were shared for discussion: a Framework Convention Template prepared by the Co-lead of Workstream 1, which contains draft language for some of the commitments, and a Co-Leads’ Concept Note on Ideas for Potential Solutions for the protocol on dispute resolution and prevention. The protocol on Cross-border services is not on the agenda for Nairobi, but discussions are continuing in the Workstream….
A city landscape superimposed by a transluscent globe with currency symbols around it.
October 2025|
Blog

UN Tax Convention reading list part 2: Protocol 1 – Taxation of cross-border services

by Florian Dierich & Frederik Heitmüller

The negotiations for Protocol 1 present a genuine opportunity to revisit how cross-border services are taxed. But, as we explored in our recent policy brief, this is not without difficult trade-offs involving legal form, tax base, thresholds, nexus rules, and treaty interaction….
Large convening hall with the UN logo at the front
September 2025|
Blog

UN Tax Convention reading list part 1: The UN process and institutional context

by Florian Dierich & Frederik Heitmüller

We have put together this reading list to help navigate the growing literature on the UN Tax Convention, which is thematically divided into three parts: this first part is on the UN process and institutional context….
In action shot of a busy street near a market in Bohicon, Benin, West Africa with people on motorbikes or walking.
August 2025|
Blog

How WAEMU is reshaping tax harmonisation policy across west Africa

by Raïssatou Joëlle Traore

Since its creation in 1994, WAEMU has pursued a core strategy of bringing member states’ tax systems closer together. Has it succeeded?…
Donald Trump standing behind a microphone with a book in hand and in front of a background of white and red strips.
April 2025|
Blog

The collapse of international tax truce: Trump’s impact on digital taxation

by Florian Dierich

U.S. President Donald Trump’s decisions have triggered significant shifts in international politics with ripple effects extending…
A photo of the UN Headquarters in New York with flags of several countries flying high.
March 2025|
Blog

A decision on decision-making and no disputes on dispute resolution: the Organizational Session for UN Tax negotiations

by Frederik Heitmüller

Last month’s organizational session was not a mundane discussion of practical organizational matters. After a new bureau was elected and the dust following the dramatic exit of the United States from the negotiations had settled, most of the energy was spent on a single topic: reaching a compromise on how the negotiating committee would reach its decisions….
United Nations headquarters in New York, USA. Large, glass office block with trees in front of it.
September 2024|
Blog

No “winners or losers”? Reflections on the UN tax negotiations

by Frederik Heitmüller

Read Frederik Heitmüller’s insights and reflections on the Ad Hoc Committee to draft Terms of Reference for a UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation (Second Session)….
Wide shot from the back of an empty United Nations Assembly Hall
July 2024|
Blog

The era of Reform? Agenda-Setting, Decision Making and S&DT in International Tax and Trade

by Mbakiso Magwape

With the UN Framework Convention tax negotiations currently underway, one of the most promising but politically…
Group photo from the UN Tax Convention ToR negotiations in New York
May 2024|
Blog

What to do with a global majority: making the most of a UN tax convention

by Martin Hearson

The negotiations on ‘Pillar One’ at the G20/OECD Inclusive Framework have shown quite how much effort…
Flag of the World Trade Organization
February 2024|
Blog

The right to tax: can Customs Duties on Electronic Transmissions be a turning point for developing countries?

by Karishma Banga

It is a historic moment for international trade negotiations; at the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) 13th…
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