The Ministry of Finance and Public Function has approved the Order that determines the countries and territories, as well as harmful tax regimes, which are considered tax havens based on the new international concept of non-cooperative jurisdiction.
Based on this new concept, contemplated in the Anti-Fraud Law, the list of tax havens is updated, in which they now appear 24 territories, compared to the 48 that appeared more than 30 years agoaccording to the order published this Friday in the Official State Gazette (BOE).
In order to combat tax fraud more efficiently, the aforementioned Law expanded the concept of ‘tax haven’, adapting it to the international concept of non-cooperative jurisdiction, and established new factors to be taken into account.
This implies an update of the criteria for the determination of the countries and territories that are considered non-cooperative jurisdiction, in line with the work carried out at the international level, both within the framework of the European Union and in the Organization for Cooperation. and Economic Development (OECD).
Thus, the Law requires that criteria not only of transparency, but also of fiscal equity be met, identifying those countries and territories characterized by facilitate the existence of offshore companies aimed at attracting profits without real economic activity or due to the existence of low or null taxation, or due to its opacity and lack of transparency, due to the non-existence with said country of regulations on the exchange of tax information, due to the absence of an effective exchange of information with Spain or by the results of the evaluations carried out by the Global Forum on the effectiveness of information exchanges with said countries and territories.
These criteria, valued jointly, are what allow updating the current list of countries and territories, contemplated in Royal Decree 1080/1991.
In that list published more than 30 years ago, 48 territories initially appeared, although over the years it has been reduced as specific information exchange agreements or agreements have been signed to avoid double taxation with an information exchange clause. .
The list that is published today in the BOE will be reviewed in view of international updates and national developments and advances.
In the published order, the following countries and territories, as well as the following harmful tax regimes, are considered non-cooperative jurisdictions: Anguilla, Bahrain, Barbados, Bermuda, Dominica, Fiji, GibraltarGuam, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands, Mariana Islands, Solomon Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands, British Virgin Islands, Virgin Islands of the United States of AmericaJersey, Palaos, Samoa, in respect of prejudicial tax regime (‘offshore business’), American Samoa, Seychelles, Trinidad and Tobago and Vanuatu.