In order to strengthen tax administration cooperation under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) framework guided by the principle of achieving shared growth through consultation and collaboration, the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Mechanism (BRITACʘM) was officially launched at the first Conference of the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Cooperation Forum (BRITACOF) in Wuzhen, the People' s Republic of China, from April 18th to 20th, 2019. Heads and their representatives of tax administrations or finance departments from 85 jurisdictions, 16 international organizations, and a number of academic institutions and businesses participated in the Conference.
May 14h-16th, 2018 BRITCC Participants called for the establishment of the BRITACʘM.
The Belt and Road Initiative Tax Cooperation Conference (BRITCC) was held in Astana during May 14th-16th, 2018, co-hosted by the State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Kazakhstan (SRC), the State Taxation Administration of the People' s Republic of China (STA), the OECD's Centre for Tax Policy and Administration and the OECD's Forum on Tax Administration. More than 200 delegates from tax administrations, international organizations, academic institutions and businesses attended the Conference. Four correlated topics on taxation, i.e. rule of law, taxpayer service, dispute settlement and capacity building, were deliberated at the Conference.
Delegates agreed that stronger support is needed to achieve better coordination and cooperation among tax administrations of BRI jurisdictions and thus proposed that a mechanism should be officially established to enhance BRI tax administration cooperation. The Conference marked a milestone in strengthening tax exchanges and cooperation among jurisdictions supporting the Belt and Road Initiative with a view to promoting sustainable and inclusive economic development.
September 26th- 28th, 2018 multilateral consultations were held for the establishment of the BRITACʘM.
Building on the Astana Proposal, the Working Group Meeting of the BRITACʘM, co-chaired by STA of China and SRC of Kazakhstan, was held in Yangzhou, China from Sept. 26th to 28th, 2018, with 35 delegates from tax administrations of 22 jurisdictions and one representative each from OECD and IBFD convened for consultation on the establishment of the BRITACʘM. The meeting achieved fruitful outcomes where all participants expressed willingness of participation in the BRITACʘM and provided inputs on the draft Memorandum of Understanding on the establishment of the BRITACʘM.
The First BRITACOF Conference aims to provide a platform for facilitating dialogue, strengthening cooperation in tax administration, and improving capacity building for tax administrations, international organizations, academic institutions, businesses and other stakeholders who are willing to participate in tax administration cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative.
We note the pressing need for tax administration capacity building amongst BRI jurisdictions. We will prioritize our work in this area and support increasing efforts by international organizations, in particular, the Platform for Collaboration on Tax, in assisting BRI jurisdictions to accomplish the objectives of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Addis Ababa Action Agenda.
We will fulfill our collective commitment to establishing an inclusive and sustainable capacity building platform by promoting training, conducting research as well as sharing knowledge products and best practices of Member TAs and BRITACEG Members, particularly in the areas of following rule of law, raising tax certainty, expediting tax dispute resolution, streamlining tax compliance and digitalizing tax administration.
We will align our capacity building activities with other initiatives run by international organizations in an effort to avoid duplication and deliver the BRI tax administration capacity building initiatives in a coordinated, cost-effective and sustainable manner, which is tailored to the real needs of emerging and developing economies.
A growth-friendly tax environment must be shored up by robust tax administration. We reiterate the essential role of the rule of law principle in underpinning the fairness and impartiality of tax administration.
To this end, we will respect the spirit and letter of law in taxation, and expect that taxpayers will make a similar commitment. We reaffirm our commitment to ensuring the tax system is administered fairly, transparently and with consistency.
We are determined to apply the laws and the tax treaties in a fair, predictable and consistent fashion.
We recognize that the accessibility and the efficiency of a domestic tax dispute prevention and resolution regime are crucial to build investors’ trust in the fairness of the taxation system. We support continuing efforts by BRITACʘM Member TAs in building fair, coherent and efficient domestic tax dispute prevention and resolution mechanisms.
We recognize the importance for BRI jurisdictions to minimize and resolve cross-border tax disputes in a timely and principled manner in order to better protect the legitimate rights of taxpayers on one hand, and to secure domestic tax base on the other.
We call on BRITACʘM Member TAs to respect and comply with international standards, particularly those relating to Base Erosion and Profit Shifting and to Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes, as well as those in tax treaties signed by their governments.
We encourage BRITACʘM Member TAs to dedicate resources to relevant parts of their administrations dealing with dispute resolution procedures.
We encourage BRITACʘM Member TAs to dedicate resources to relevant parts of their administrations dealing with dispute resolution procedures.
We will intensify the collaboration between BRITACʘM Member TAs to improve dispute resolution mechanisms and explore the potential of alternative dispute resolution procedures adaptable to the needs and circumstances of their home jurisdictions.
Economic growth depends in part on the growth in cross-border trade and investment, which requires high level of tax certainty.
We reaffirm our commitment to offering support to taxpayers in order to improve tax certainty by enhancing the transparency and predictability of tax laws in order to build mutual trust between taxpayers and tax administrations.
We highlight the importance of minimizing tax uncertainty by avoiding excessive discretion as well as increasing consistency and transparency of tax administration.
We call on BRITACʘM Member TAs to enhance dialogue with taxpayers by exploring cooperative compliance approaches, providing guidance to taxpayers concerning the interpretation and application of the law, making use of advanced rulings, and enhancing cooperation between BRITACʘM Member TAs.
Streamlined tax administration facilitated by digital technology helps to achieve the overarching objective of tax administrations to raise sufficient funds to finance public spending while responding to public demand for cost-effective and time-efficient services.
We encourage BRITACʘM Member TAs to streamline tax administration procedures, taking into account country-specific conditions. In light of this, we believe that efforts should be made in enhancing tax administration cooperation, improving taxpayer service, protecting taxpayers’ legitimate rights, and avoiding arbitrary decisions on taxpayers’ compliance status.
We reaffirm our commitment to maximizing the benefits of emerging technologies by adopting a long-term strategy to digitalizing tax administration, improving digital infrastructure within tax administrations and working to build improved taxpayer trust, privacy and data protection.
Focuses
Enhancing Tax Administration
Capacity
Following Rule of Law
Expediting Dispute Resolution
Raising Tax Certainty
Streamlining Tax Compliance
and Digitalization of Tax
Administration
Mr. WANG Jun, Commissioner of the State Taxation Administration of the People’s Republic of China (STA), was appointed as Chair of the Council. Mr. Marat Sultangaziyev, Chairman of State Revenue Committee of the Ministry of Finance, Republic of Kazakhstan; Ms. Tuma Adama Jabbi, Chairperson of National Revenue Authority, Republic of Sierra Leone; Mr. Khalid Ali Albustani, Director General of the Federal Tax Authority, United Arab Emirates and Mr. Joaquin Serra, Director General of Dirección General Impositiva, Oriental Republic of Uruguay were elected as Vice Chairs of the Council.
34 tax administrations or finance departments signed up to be the Members of the BRITACʘM Council, 22 tax administrations or finance departments including those from the G7 countries as well as international organizations signed up to be the Observers.
Council Members of the BRITACʘM
Observers of the BRITACʘM
19 finance departments or tax administrations signed up to be the BRITACEG Members, and 14 finance departments or tax administrations, international organizations and academic institutions signed up to be the BRITACEG Partners.
11 world-recognized tax experts signed up to be the Members of the Advisory Board.
Mr. WANG Jun passed the BRITACʘM flag to Mr. Marat Sultangaziyev, announcing the host of the 2nd BRITACOF at the closing ceremony.
A joint press conference was held on the last day of the BRITACOF Conference.
The BRITACʘM was officially launched.
The BRITACʘM mainly consists of the Council, the decision-making body, and the Secretariat which is a liaison office supporting the daily operation of the BRITACʘM. Two key pillars will underpin the success of the BRITACʘM - the BRITACOF and the Belt and Road Initiative Tax Administration Capacity Enhancement Group (BRITACEG). In addition, the Advisory Board was established to advise on and assist in fulfilling the vision and the purpose of the BRITACʘM.
The BRITACEG and its network of tax academies were established.
The BRITACEG is a network composed of willing Member Tax Administrations and Observers of the Council which, making full use of their existing training institutions or expertise, are dedicated to enhancing tax capacity of the BRI jurisdictions by conducting tax-related training, research and technical assistance programs. Four BRI Tax Academies (BRITA) have been set up, upon the approval of the Council, in Kazakhstan, the Macau Special Administrative Region of China and the Mainland of China based on their existing tax institutions. More BRITAs will be set up in future.
The Wuzhen Statement and the Wuzhen Action Plan(2019-2021) were adopted.
Based on the in-depth discussions on the five interlocking tax topics, i.e., (ⅰ) following rule of law in taxation; (ⅱ) raising tax certainty; (ⅲ) expediting dispute resolution; (ⅳ) streamlining tax compliance and digitalizing tax administration; and (ⅴ)enhancing tax administration capacity, the BRITACʘM Council adopted the Wuzhen Statement and the Wuzhen Action Plan (2019-2021).
Council Members of the BRITACʘM
Observers of the BRITACʘM
19 finance departments or tax administrations signed up to be the BRITACEG Members, and 14 finance departments or tax administrations, international organizations and academic institutions signed up to be the BRITACEG Partners.
11 world-recognized tax experts signed up to be the Members of the Advisory Board.
