A statement by the Financial Secretary outlines plans for new or revised Double Taxation Agreements as well as an emphasis on completing Tax Information Exchange Agreements.

According to the Financial Secretary Ms Jane Kennedy MP:

“We plan to complete work on new DTCs with the Faroes, Macedonia, Moldova, Slovenia and Thailand; and on Protocols with Australia, Mexico, New Zealand, South Africa and Switzerland. We also plan to complete work on new Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEAs) with Jersey, Guernsey, the Isle of Man, Anguilla, Bermuda and the British Virgin Islands.

We intend to progress negotiations with Bahrain, the Cayman Islands, China, Croatia, Germany, Hungary, Luxembourg, Libya, Netherlands, Peru and Saudi Arabia.

We have plans to commence negotiations with the Turks & Caicos Islands, the Netherlands Antilles, Aruba, the Bahamas and Panama on TIEAs. We will make further announcements about DTC talks with other jurisdictions as and when arrangements are in place.”

The proposed timeframe for these developments is the period up to the end of March 2008.

Also, a new double taxation agreement between the United Kingdom and the Faroes was signed in London on 20 June 2007; and a Protocol to the double taxation agreement between the United Kingdom and Switzerland was signed in London on 26 June 2007.

The Protocol and Treaty have not yet entered into force. They will do so when both countries have completed their legislative procedures.

The protocol to the Swiss treaty and the treaty with the Faroes will in due course be laid as a Schedule to a Draft Order in Council for consideration by the House of Commons and will then also be available from the Stationery Office.

The protocol to the Swiss treaty is available at
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/legislation/uk-swiss-protocol.pdf.

The new treaty with the Faroes is available at
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/legislation/uk-faroes-convention.pdf.