Anguilla Signs Tax Agreement With UK

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

24 July 2009

The Caribbean jurisdiction of Anguilla signed its first Tax and Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA), with the United Kingdom, on July 21.

The agreement, which will allow the sharing of tax-related information to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) standards, was signed in London by Chris Bryant, UK Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and Osbourne Fleming, Chief Minister of Anguilla.

The taxes covered by the arrangement in the case of the UK include income tax, corporation tax, capital gains tax, inheritance tax and value-added tax. In the case of Anguilla, the taxes covered by the TIEA include property tax, stamp tax, accommodation tax, the vacation residential asset levy and various duties, fines and other levies in relation to the import, export, transshipment, storage and circulation, among other things, of certain goods.

Welcoming the signatures, UK Financial Secretary to the Treasury, 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 very much welcome the fact that Anguilla has joined the growing number of jurisdictions making good on their commitments to apply high standards of transparency and exchange of information in tax matters.”

HM Revenue and Customs Permanent Secretary for Tax, Dave Hartnett, added: “The information exchange provisions in this arrangement meet international standards and are especially welcome for that. HM Revenue & Customs is playing its part to help ensure that ultimately there will be no offshore financial centres that facilitate avoidance and evasion.”

The text will shortly be laid as a Schedule to a draft Order in Council for consideration by the UK House of Commons. The agreement will come into effect as soon as each government has completed the necessary procedures to give effect to it under its domestic laws.

The UK has now signed six comprehensive TIEAs, including with Guernsey in January and with Jersey in March 2009. The UK also exchanges information with over 100 countries worldwide under Double Taxation Agreements, the provisions of EU Directives and Regulations, and through the Council of Europe/OECD Convention on mutual administrative assistance in tax matters. The UK’s other TIEAs are with Bermuda (in force), the Isle of Man (in force) and the British Virgin Islands (signed in 2008). The UK also signed an arrangement with the Cayman Islands in June 2009 that provides, among other things, for information exchange to OECD standards. More TIEAs are being negotiated.

The government of Anguilla expects to sign more TIEAs soon.

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