The Georgian Presidency of the Intra-European Organisation of Tax Administrations (IOTA) together with the IOTA Secretariat had the pleasure of co-hosting the 27th General Assembly of IOTA on the 27th-29th of June 2023 in Tbilisi, Georgia. During the 3-day event, the vibrant Georgian capital became the hub for this remarkable event, where East and West connected. During these turbulent times, not only for the European region but for the entire world, tax administrations shall continue to smoothly mobilize resources for enabling public services. This is a common goal, which may be adequately addressed only by joint efforts of tax administrations, partner international organisations, businesses, and academia at the largest event of IOTA this year.
This unique platform was welcomed in person by over 180 delegates and digitally by over 90 participants from IOTA Members and Associate Member Countries’ Tax Administrations, high-ranking officials of the governmental bodies of Georgia, the European Commission, the Cercle de Rencontres et d’Études des Dirigeants des Administrations Fiscales (CREDAF), Intra-American Network of Tax Administrators (CIAT), International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Customs Organization, and other representatives of international organisations, along with the business community representatives, tax practitioners, and academia.
The Administrative Session of the 27th General Assembly took place on the 27th of June and was followed by the Technical Session on the 28th and 29th of June 2023. The professional theme of the Technical Session was “Transformation of International Tax System and Tax Administrations”. As a part of the Technical Session, delegates also had the unique opportunity to visit the IOTA TechExpo “Digital Transformation in Action”. This exhibition showcased new developments and solutions that can help shape the digital transformation of tax administrations.
ADMINISTRATIVE SESSION 27th JUNE 2023, TUESDAY
The Administrative Session was opened by Levan Kakava, the President of IOTA, and Samson Uridia from the Georgian Presidency along with Alix Perrignon de Troyes, the Executive Secretary of IOTA. The heads of the Organisation welcomed the attendees, outlined the agenda, and highlighted the objectives of the event.
During the Administrative Session of the 27th General Assembly, IOTA members made important decisions regarding the implementation of the final IOTA Strategy, the budget and the Work Programme. The members also made a crucial decision on the termination of the full membership of Russia and Belarus in IOTA. More specifically the Members approved by voting the followings:
- Report of the Internal Auditors for 2022/2023;
- Activities Report 2022 and the Financial Report 2022;
- Final Report on the Implementation of the IOTA Strategy 2018-2022;
- Budget and the Work Programme for 2024;
- Termination of the full membership of Russia and Belarus in IOTA;
The memberships of the Federal Tax Service of Russia and the Ministry of Taxes and Duties of the Republic of Belarus have had their membership of the Intra-European Organisation of Tax Administrations (IOTA) terminated. The decision was made by the 27th General Assembly of IOTA in Tbilisi, Georgia, and follows a 1-year suspension from all IOTA activities that took place in June 2022. The termination of membership resulted from an absolute majority vote of IOTA members and came into effect on 27 June 2023.
The next Presidency of IOTA for the period 2023/2024 will be held by Hungary making Ferenc Vágujhelyi the new President of IOTA for the following one-year term. Hungary is one of the 7 founding members of IOTA and has held IOTA Presidency previously during the 1998/1999 and the 2005/2006 terms.
The following IOTA member countries become appointed as Executive Council members for the term 2023/2024:
- Georgia;
- Italy;
- Lithuania;
- Norway;
- Poland;
- Portugal;
- Slovenia;
- the United Kingdom.
Markus Erlmoser, from Austria, was appointed as an Internal Auditor of the Organisation for a two-year term. Randy Schmidhäusler, from Switzerland, who was appointed as Internal Auditor in last year’s General Assembly, will continue to take office during the period between the 27th and 28th General Assemblies. The Professional Theme of the 28th General Assembly of IOTA will be “Using Data Science to Build Capacity and Enhance Capabilities in Tax Administrations” and the event will be held in Budapest, Hungary.
TECHNICAL SESSION 28TH-29th JUNE 2023, WEDNESDAY-THURSDAY
The Professional Theme of the 27th General Assembly was “Transformation of International Tax System and Tax Administrations”. The Technical Session of the 27th General Assembly of IOTA in 2023 explored a wide range of topics related to changes and modernisation of the international landscape of taxation rules, technology, and business models that are causing unprecedented challenges to Tax Administrations as they adapt to the digital world. With over six distinct sessions, including keynote speeches, presentations and panel discussions, the technical programme provided the opportunity to showcase new and emerging tax technology solutions and to debate the challenges, opportunities and implications of the digital transformation.
As a part of the Technical Session, IOTA TechExpo “Digital Transformation in Action” - an exhibition of digital tools and practises was put in place, allowing delegates to learn about the newest digitalisation ideas and emerging technology solutions implemented as part of the digital transformation of tax administration to optimise and modernise the services offered to taxpayers and at the same time remain cost-effective and reduce the tax compliance burden.
This year’s Technical Session was opened by Levan Kakava, President of IOTA, Director-General of Georgia Revenue Service. The welcome speech was followed by opening remarks and keynote addresses from the high-rank officials of Georgia such as Lasha Khutsishvili, Minister of Finance of Georgia along with Buba Lomuashvili, Deputy Minister of Justice of Georgia.
The first plenary session of the General Assembly ‘Keeping up with the pace of the ongoing digital evolution and its impact on the international tax system’ featured a combination of keynote speeches and presentations from international organisations that helped to set a stage for discussions on the new challenges posed by the increasingly digitalized and globalized economy and their implications on the reform of the international tax system. International Organisations’ keynote speeches were delivered by the following guest speakers:
- Gerassimos Thomas, Director-General for Taxation and Customs Union, European Commission
- Debra Adams, International Monetary Fund (IMF)
- Marcio F. Verdi, Executive Secretary, Intra-American Network of Tax Administrators (CIAT)
The second plenary session ‘Current and future challenges posed by the collaborative economy’ explored how the evolving collaborative economy may exacerbate current and future challenges posed by the digital sector while providing new opportunities for tax administrations to manage tax compliance. The panel discussion was led by the moderator Jon Sherman, Director of Business, Assets and International Policy, HMRC, United Kingdom, while Brian Boyle, Office of the Revenue Commissioners, Ireland along with Apostolos Boutos, Independent Authority for Public Revenue (IAPR) of the Hellenic Republic joined the session as panellists.
The closing day of the General Assembly of IOTA brought new knowledge and another set of engaging discussions onto the stage. The plenary sessions aimed to offer impactful insights into the emerging innovative business models in addressing the need for the rapid acceleration of the digital transformation of tax administration.
In addition, attendees were actively involved in parallel sessions during the event. Each parallel session had a thematic stream and included short presentations on specific experiences, case studies, examples of trials and experiments illustrating how IOTA member tax administrations, respond effectively and proactively to the current and future processes required by the ongoing digital transformations. Delegates spent time considering subjects such as:
- Key strategies for driving digital transformation (Spain, Norway, Finland, and Poland);
- How the use of data analytics can drive tax compliance processes now and in the future (Georgia, France, and Italy);
- IT infrastructure and operations as the backbone of digital transformation (Lithuania, the United Kingdom + 1 presentation from the FastEnterprises as a partner of IOTA).
These sessions also included a panel debate which was driven by members’ experiences and speakers from business and academia, moderated by Øivind Strømme, International Director, Norwegian Tax Administration and facilitated by International Taxation Experts from IOTA.
The last plenary session of the General Assembly ‘Emerging new business models as the catalyst for digital transformation in tax administrations’ opened the floor for a debate and offered impactful insights into the emerging innovative business models, and how they drive the need to accelerate the digital transformation of Tax Administrations. The session was led by the moderator Victor van Kommer, Director Tax Services, International Bureau of Fiscal Documentation (IBFD) while Ronnie Nielsen, Senior Manager, Tax Administration Specialist & Thought Leader, Deloitte Center for Fiscal Systems; Ferenc Vágujhelyi, Commissioner for the National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary; Alexander Kobakhidze, Director of Tax Technology, Fonoa, member of the OECD BIAC VAT/GST Working Group; together with Christoph Schwierz, Head of Unit – Revenue Administration and Public Financial Management, DG REFORM, European Commission joined the session as panellists.
All the materials, presentations and video recordings are now available on the dedicated webpage of the 27th General Assembly of IOTA. The documentation of the General Assembly is available for registered IOTA members only.
