Tax information exchange agreements

There has been an increasing focus on the automatic exchange of information in recent years.

New regulations will take effect from 17 May 2017 to improve international tax compliance.

The International Tax Compliance (Amendment) Regulations 2017 amend the International Tax Compliance Regulations 2015. The new 2017 regulations extend the application of automatic tax information exchange agreements between participating jurisdictions. The agreements allow the exchange of information between tax authorities of 90 different jurisdictions about financial accounts and investments to help stop tax evasion.

The new regulations clarify reporting requirements for financial institutions and the penalty regime for non-compliance. The regulations are intended to ensure that the UK meets its obligations under other international reporting standards such as US Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and the OECD’s Common Reporting Standard (CRS).

HMRC will receive more information regarding offshore accounts held by UK taxpayers, and will share information with overseas tax authorities on accounts held in the UK.