India keeps getting into arguments with foreign firms over tax; is it wise to do so? The Financial Times, for one, is in no doubt that India is scaring off foreign investors, and that it is making a mistake. A recent editorial had the unambiguous title: India’s tax laws are deterring investors. The immediate trigger…
The developing world and Sub Saharan Africa (SSA) in particular, is witnessing a renewed global race for its resources. From mid-2000 to recent years, the real price has multiplied several times for key minerals, despite a recent slowdown. This change is most likely part of what could be characterised as a fourth super cycle in mineral…
On July 19, the OECD released its recommendations for global efforts to counter the much-publicised phenomenon of “base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS).”1 Base erosion is the use of legal arrangements by members of multinational business groups to shift income from affiliates located in countries where the group conducts business activities, to affiliates in low-…
Does Argentina collect its taxes more efficiently and effectively than Azerbaijan? Brazil than Burundi? Chad than Colombia? You can find some numbers that throw some light on the question. In particular, for the countries of the OECD and now for Latin America we have relatively good data on the money consumed by tax agencies relative…
Alan Carter, senior economist at the Internatinal Tax Dialogue says high quality international accounting standards are required to mitigate tax avoidance. He argues that improved standards will benefit corporate taxpayers and tax authorities as they will; – enhance transparency in the extractive industries; – help tax administrators to deter profit shifting and tax businesses…
Never has there been such extensive popular and political interest in tax reform. Never have so many governments declared that they intend to change the global tax system and ensure that transnational corporations pay their fair share. Never have arcane issues like ‘transfer mispricing’ received so much media coverage. And never have there been…
In recent years, tax exemptions for donor-financed projects have come to the fore within the international community.[1] Interest has increased because of the need to improve domestic resource mobilisation (DRM). This has become all the more necessary following a series of recent development crises, which led to a predictable decrease in the volume of aid (it decreased by…
A new report from the OECD is contemplating major changes to international tax rules. This is a progress report on its project on ‘base erosion and profit shifting’ (BEPS), which highlights the large tax revenue losses to countries around the world due to tax avoidance by transnational corporations (TNCs). This interim report was called for by the…
Along with a colleague who is a specialist on Latin America, I recently attended a meeting in Africa on African tax issues. After a couple of days of discussions, my colleague told me that he was surprised that so much attention had been paid to company taxation. By contrast, he said, in Latin America there…
The ICTD Annual Centre Meeting on tax exemptions concluded with a presentation by Professor Richard Bird. Drawing on his vast experience, Professor Bird summarised key practical messages about tax exemptions, while challenging the audience to move beyond the stale debates that have been repeated for almost four decades. His key message on systems of tax…
For people living in the Eastern villages of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), it is often impossible to carry out daily activities without being taxed. But can an ‘all-pervasive system of taxation’ have an upside?” Katherine Haver discusses how taxation affects people’s livelihoods. Read more…
In August of this year, the UK Parliament’s International Development Select Committee published a report on its investigations into DFID’s work on tax and development. The process was in some ways impressive. A number of MPs on the Committee showed a real interest in the topic. A visit to Zambia brought them right up…
