The BEPS Action 14 – Mutual Agreement Procedure (MAP) – Minimum Standard seeks to improve the resolution of tax-related disputes between jurisdictions. Inclusive Framework jurisdictions have committed to have their compliance with the minimum standard reviewed and monitored by its peers through a peer review process. The OECD has published the stage 2 peer review monitoring reports for Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg and Sweden.

The reports evaluate the progress made by these jurisdictions in implementing any recommendations resulting from jurisdictions’ stage 1 peer review reports. The stage 2 monitoring considers any developments in the period 1 April 2017–30 September 2018 and the MAP statistics are based on years 2016 and 2017.

Highlights from the peer review reports include:

• The Multilateral Instrument was signed by all seven jurisdictions and has already been ratified by five of them.
• All jurisdictions now have a documented notification/bilateral consultation process to be applied in cases where an objection is considered as being not justified by their competent authority.
• Austria, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and Sweden have added more personnel to the competent authority function and/or made or initiated several organisational improvements (e.g. more face-to-face meetings between competent authorities) with a view to handle MAP cases in a more timely, effective and efficient manner.
• Austria, Germany and Sweden decreased the amount of time needed to close MAP cases and Liechtenstein and Luxembourg met the sought-after 24-month average timeframe to close MAP cases.
• Austria introduced legislative changes to ensure that all MAP agreements can be implemented notwithstanding domestic time limits if the treaty does not provide for it, while in five of the other six this is already the case.
• Austria, Germany, Luxembourg and Sweden have updated or clarified issues in their MAP guidance.