The Politics of Fighting Tax Avoidance and Tax Evasion

Event Type
International Workshop on Domestic Revenue Mobilization

Location / Date
Bonn, 23.06.2015 until 24.06.2015

German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE)

Reports on worldwide tax avoidance, tax fraud and illicit global financial flows (IFF) have been appearing more and more frequently in recent times. In spite of the attention which such revelations attract, the international community is still far from an effective system of controls. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and other international organisations such as the G20, the G7, the European Union (EU), the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the United Nations (UN) are advocating more international cooperation and a number of relevant initiatives and standards have been defined lately. However, everyone is aware that the implementation of the related resolutions is going to be a major task for many governments. Today, states are called upon to co-operate better in the drafting and implementation of international standards referring to the automatic exchange of information, reporting obligations for companies, transfer pricing guidelines, identification and recovery of stolen assets and other issues. Governments and public administrations in all countries have to manage these requirements domestically and internationally, but countries which are poorer and have less administrative capacities are particularly challenged.

Against this background, the German Development Institute / Deutsches Institut für Entwicklungspolitik (DIE) is preparing its 4th International Workshop on Domestic Revenue Mobilisation with a focus on the politics of fighting tax avoidance and tax evasion. Key issues to be discussed at the workshop include preventing base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) activities by private sector companies in developing countries and the impact of illicit activities (such as for instance, informal mining) on domestic revenue mobilisation. As in previous workshops, the aim of this event is to bring together renowned scholars, government officials and other experts to discuss ongoing research in this area and assess its policy implications.

This year the workshop will be held in cooperation with BMZ and OECD. The German Federal government is promoting international cooperation in tax matters, inter alia, from its current position as chair of the G7. The OECD has emerged in recent years as a key player in the fight against IFF and BEPS. Today it is reaching out to developing countries to become engaged in this battle as well. The workshop will provide an opportunity to present the conclusions of the preceding G7 summit (7./8. June, Elmau Castle, Germany) as well as the series of activities initiated by the OECD. Further, DIE and LSE will present the findings from a joint project on the role of developing countries in fighting BEPS.

The workshop will have a duration of 1,5 days. A detailled agenda will be distributed in due course.

Hinweis

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