The Philippines has been reinstated on the OECD’s white list of tax havens following their implementation of the international tax standard. The country’s government welcomes the news, with their removal from the OECD’s grey list meaning that they will attract more investments from OECD countries like the US, Japan and the United Kingdom.
“The Philippines today moved up to the list of jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard,” said the Paris-based Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in a Press Release.
Understanding Tax Haven Status
In April 2009, at the G20 summit, the OECD were given the task of providing a list of publishing a list of tax havens that were believed to be failing to comply with the agreed standards. The OECD published eventually three groups of jurisdictions;
- The White List: List of compliant countries
- The Grey List: List of countries that were committed to the regulations but were not yet fully compliant
- The Black List: List of countries that were not in compliance.
Last April The Philippines were identified as lacking transparency with their tax information and were moved from the white list to the grey list because the OECD considered investment in this county to pose a risky proposition for overseas investors. However, since improving their systems and approach, The Philippines have now been removed from the grey list and have been identified as a much safer destination for off shore savings.
Countries on The OECD White List
The following countries are listed on the OECD White List: Jurisdictions that have substantially implemented the internationally agreed tax standard.
| Andorra
Antigua and Barbuda Brunei Anguilla Argentina Aruba Australia Austria Bahrain Barbados Bahamas Belgium Bermuda British Virgin Islands Canada Cayman Islands China Chilie Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Dominica Estonia France Germany Gibraltar Greece |
Grenada
Guernsey Hungary Iceland India Ireland Isle of Man Isreal Italy Japan Jersey Korea Liechtenstein Luxembourg Malaysia malta Mauritius Mexico Monaco Netherlands Netherlands Antilles New Zealand Norway Philippines Poland Portugal Russian Federation |
Samoa
San Marino Seychelles Singapore Slovak Republic Slovenia South Africa Spain St Lucia St Kitts and Nevis St Vincent and the Grenadines Sweden Switzerland Turkey Turks and Caicos Islands United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States US Virgin Islands
|
Countries on the OECD Grey List
Jurisdictions that have committed to the internationally agreed tax standard, but have not yet substantially implemented
- Belize
- Costa Rica
- Guatemala
- Liberia
- Montserrat
- Nauru
- Niue
- Panama
- Uruguay
- Vanuatu
There are currently no countries on the OECD Black List.
