In brief

On 22 February 2021 the ECOFIN Council updated the EU list of third country non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes (commonly referred to as the EU 'blacklist') and also updated the EU list of third country cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes subject to the successful delivery of their commitments (commonly referred to as the EU 'greylist').

The updated EU 'blacklist' and EU 'greylist' are effective from 26 February 2021, being the date of their publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

In detail

What are the latest amendments to the EU 'blacklist' and the EU 'greylist'

As a result of the latest update effective as from 26 February 2021:

  • Dominica has been added to the EU 'blacklist'
  • Barbados has been moved from the the EU 'blacklist' to the EU 'greylist'
  • Jamaica has been added to the EU 'greylist'
  • Morocco, Namibia and Saint Lucia are no longer listed due to successful delivery of their commitments

Background

The ECOFIN Council adopted the initial EU 'blacklist' and EU 'greylist' on 5 December 2017. These have since been updated several times. The EU previously decided that, as from 2020, the lists are updated no more than twice a year. This is the first update taking place in 2021. The next update is expected to be in October 2021.

For more background on the lists and their evolution over time, please refer to our prior Tax Update Newsletters N-17-2017, N-4-2018, N-11-2018, N-19-2018, N-5-2019, N-9-2019, N-11-2019, N-14-2019 N-2-2020 and N-28-2020

Updated EU lists effective as from 26 February 2021

For your ease of reference, the latest updated lists are set out below:

The latest updated EU list of the 12 identified jurisdictions included in the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes (EU 'blacklist'), as adopted and published on 26 February 2021, grouped per reason of listing:

No commitment to address the EU's concerns Did not deliver on their commitment on time Major transparency concerns
American Samoa Fiji Anguila
Guam Palau Dominica
US Virgin Islands Samoa Panama
- Vanuatu Seychelles
- - Trinidad and Tobago

The latest updated EU list of the 9 identified co-operative jurisdictions subject to the successful delivery of their commitments (EU 'greylist'), as adopted and published on 26 February 2021:

Australia Eswatini Maldives
Barbados Jamaica Thailand
Botswana Jordan Turkey

The takeaway

Possible impacts on jurisdictions on the EU 'blacklist' include facing increased monitoring and audits, special documentation requirements, increased withholding taxes and other possible defensive tax measures by EU Member States.

In addition, increased DAC6 reporting obligations would apply to certain related party transactions between the EU and the EU 'blacklisted' jurisdictions.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.