Cayman Islands sign tax agreement
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Issued 15 June
2009
A new double taxation
arrangement (DTA) which will facilitate tax information exchange that
meets OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development)
standards, was signed today by The Right Hon Stephen Timms MP,
Financial Secretary to the Treasury and the Hon W McKeeva Bush, Leader
of Government Business, Cayman Islands.
Welcoming the DTA Stephen Timms MP, said:
“Information
exchange is a vital tool in ensuring that governments receive the
revenues they need to resource the essential public services on which
we all depend.
“I would like to congratulate the Cayman
Islands Government for signing up to an arrangement which includes
unprecedented provisions for tax information exchange that meet
international standards of transparency.”
HMRC Permanent Secretary for Tax, Dave Hartnett,
added:
“The
information exchange provisions in this arrangement meet OECD standards
of tax transparency and the agreement is especially welcome for that.
Information
exchange enables us to confront effectively tax avoidance and money
laundering whilst ensuring that we all make the right contribution to
our public services.”
The texts of the agreements can be accessed on the
internet at: www.hmrc.gov.uk/international/cayman-eol.pdf
The
text will in due course be laid as a Schedule to a draft Order in
Council for consideration by the House of Commons. It will then also be
available from the Stationery Office. The arrangement will enter into
force as soon as both governments have completed the legislative
procedures needed to give it effect.
Notes:
1.
Double Taxation Agreements and Arrangements aim to eliminate the double
taxation of income arising in one territory and paid to residents of
another. They do this by dividing the taxing rights that each territory
has under its domestic law over the same income. More
generally, they
benefit the taxpayer by ensuring certainty of treatment and, as far as
possible, by reducing compliance burdens. The new arrangement
with the
Cayman Islands covers individuals and international shipping and air
transport businesses.
2.
The UK currently has 113 Double
Taxation Agreements (DTAs) in force, and has signed five comprehensive
Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs), including with Guernsey in
January and with Jersey in March 2009. The UK’s other TIEAs
are with
Bermuda (in force), the Isle of Man (in force) and the British Virgin
Islands (signed in 2008). More DTAs and TIEAs are under
negotiation.
3.
The new arrangement also provides for comprehensive exchange of
information between the Cayman Islands and the UK to the OECD and
international tax standard in respect of direct taxes and VAT.
© Crown Copyright 2009.
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