Jersey Signs TIEAs With Seven Nordic Countries

by Robert Lee, Tax-News.com, London

31 October 2008

In Helsinki Jersey’s Chief Minister, Senator Frank Walker, signed Tax Information Exchange and related agreements with Ministers from seven Nordic countries – Denmark, the Faroes, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

At the signing ceremony Senator Walker said: “Through the signing of TIEAs Jersey obtains both economic and political benefits. Our commitment to the OECD standards of tax information exchange was publicly recognised at a conference held in Paris last week, and we are pleased to see the firm action that is to be taken to put greater pressure on those countries, including some OECD members, who have not yet shared Jersey’s commitment.”

Jeffrey Owens, the Head of the OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, said at the signing ceremony: “We at the OECD recognise the importance of the progress Jersey has made in signing TIEAs, and in receiving clear political endorsement from OECD member countries. To show that the choice Jersey has made is the right one, we recognise the need for firm action to be taken with regard to those jurisdictions that are not showing the same commitment to tax information exchange.“

The tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs) are accompanied by political commitments by the Nordic countries to continue discussing what measures can be adopted to further enhance and broaden their political and economic relationships with Jersey. This includes the further clarification of aspects of double taxation, discrimination and other undesired tax barriers and the further extension of the arrangements for information exchange.

The tax information exchange agreements will come into force once domestic procedures are completed in Jersey and the Nordic countries. In the case of Jersey these procedures include the ratification of the agreement by the States of Jersey and the adoption of the necessary regulations.

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