Gibraltar remains a tax haven for Spain. The Ministry of Finance approved the order identifying “countries and territories considered non-cooperative jurisdictions, as well as harmful tax regimes.” Another year, by contrast, is the British colony, which was not on the European Union list last October. sect takes place in the middle of diplomatic negotiations to reach an agreement To tear down the fence separating Gibraltar from the Peninsula and to determine the suitability of the territory in the European Union after the UK’s departure. If Gibraltar complies with its commitment to exchange tax information with London, it expires four weeks before the two-year deadline given to Spain to upgrade its credit rating.
Today’s order updates the list of so-called “tax havens” As required by the 2021 law measures to prevent and combat tax evasion. This text included updating the list of tax havens based on the new parameters of the EU and OECD as indicated by the Treasury, but this does not mean that the lists should match the list prepared by Brussels. The European Union no longer sees Gibraltar as a tax haven. The Spanish Treasury also recalls that actions to combat tax evasion are part of the requirements for receiving European assistance, in particular component 27 of the Recovery Plan.
The new listing is known only a month after the deal was signed, two years later. tax information exchange agreement and double taxation United Kingdom and Spain It’s in Gibraltar that will provide a basis for removing the region from the financially uncooperative group.
“The effective implementation of this agreement is the basis for the removal of Gibraltar from the list of tax havens,” wrote the then European Union Foreign Minister Juan González-Barba in a letter to the British ambassador in Spain. , Hugh Elliott. “For this case, Spain will take the relevant measures under the current legal framework so that Gibraltar is not considered a tax haven under Spanish legislation. within two years of the entry into force of this agreement. [13 de marzo de 2021]’, he continued, to the letter as read in his Parliament by the plain ‘prime minister’ Fabián Picardo, according to the transcript available to this newspaper.
Debugging tax havens list
It so happened that today is the first complete liquidation of the list created in 1991. 18 regions or countries emerged (including the United Arab Emirates, the residence of King Juan Carlos), and 24 more were mentioned.
Although Brussels has removed Gibraltar from its list, International Financial Action Task Force (formed by the G8 to combat money laundering and terrorist financing) remains a jurisdiction “under increased scrutiny” to address “gaps in anti-money laundering tax regimes”. Since the high-level agreement with the institution in June 2022, the region has “made progress” but has not yet implemented specific policies against tax evasion.
The European Union and the United Kingdom have been negotiating for two years to put the New Year’s Agreement black on white between London and Madrid, which aims to resolve pending issues with Gibraltar after its metropolis leaves the EU. After twelve rounds, in which Spain and Gibraltar were present, it was not possible to resolve the main obstacles to the Treaty: presence of Spanish agents in the port and Gibraltar airport for checking customs and people entering the European Schengen area; The problem of British military installations and personnel entering and leaving Gibraltar; tobacco smuggling or tax issues themselves.
As this newspaper reports, talks were about to derail at the end of last year. Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares Spain had already submitted the Treaty proposal. and whether the UK accepts it or not. Negotiations resumed a few days ago, with no known outcome so far.
Other British territories under the magnifying glass
The list of regions that the Treasury considers “uncooperative jurisdictions and harmful tax regimes” includes 24 regions. Including most countries and regions Islands or small archipelagos? spread to different continents. Most of these are additionally territories belonging to countries such as the United Kingdom or the United States or the island states of Oceania.
Among the regions, Bahrain, one of the kingdoms of the Persian Gulf and the only Arab country in the Treasury classification, also stands out.
The law, passed in 2021 for the prevention of tax evasion, expanded the features required to consider a region as a tax haven. Therefore, in addition to transparency and information exchange, there is also demand for tax fairness that “identifies countries and regions characterized by facilitating the existence of offshore companies”. profit charm Because of the absence of real economic activity or low or no taxation, as indicated by the Treasury”.