Jersey To Sign US Tax Agreement On Its Own Behalf

by Jason Gorringe, Tax-News.com, London

13 August 2002

Jersey is to sign an agreement on tax information exchange with the United States on its own behalf, according to a report in the Jersey Evening Post last week.

Although it is necessary for the UK to be involved in the process to a certain extent - in that a letter of entrustment has been drawn up by the British government, and is awaiting the approval of various governmental departments before being returned to the Jersey States authorities - the newspaper reports that this is the first time that the Channel Island jurisdiction has acted for itself in this type of situation.

Policy and Resources Committee president, Pierre Horsfall told the JEP that this represents an important step in the Island's drive to establish more of an international presence in its own right, and additionally demonstrates the autonomy that Jersey has over its own tax affairs:

'We have to be in a position where we are responsible for delivering it. We cannot have the UK responsible for deciding if we have met the agreement,' he explained.

According to the Jersey Evening Post, the basis of the Tax Information Exchange Agreement, which first came under discussion earlier this year, is the exchange of information on request, rather than on an automatic basis, as under the EU's tax reform proposals.

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