How To Tackle Offshore Tax Evasion: OECD Report

The OECD has issued a report pointing out that corporate vehicles continue to play a part in a wide range of illicit activities, including tax fraud and evasion, money laundering, bribery, corruption and terrorist financing. Their misuse primarily lies in the way they are exploited, particularly in secrecy jurisdictions, to hide the identity of the beneficial owners and controllers of assets and the parties to illicit transactions. To tackle the menace of offshore tax evasion, the OECD’s Forum on Tax Administration had created a dedicated network of specialists in the field of Offshore Tax Compliance, led by France. That network is undertaking a specific project to look at best practice in countering offshore evasion. Specifically, the network is collating information from member countries on the structures, entities and territories they observe being used in offshore evasion into a practical guide to the basic “building blocks” of offshore structures.