This virtual roundtable on cooperation and trust, jointly organised and co-chaired by the OECD and IOTA, was held on 20th January 2021. The event was aimed at launching a dialogue process on tax morale between businesses and governments. Over 100 representatives from tax administrations from IOTA members, MNEs operating in the region, tax professionals, and relevant business associations from IOTA member countries attended the event. The discussions were based on the key findings of new empirical research undertaken by the OECD identifying possible approaches and tools to improve tax morale in IOTA member countries.
As part of its broader work on tax morale, the OECD has carried out a global survey of more than 1240 tax officials from 139 jurisdictions, which provided perceptions of large businesses and Big Four consulting firms behaviour in accordance with voluntary tax principles developed by Business at OECD and the Big Four.
This virtual roundtable, jointly organised and co-chaired by the OECD and IOTA, facilitated a dialogue on possible approaches and tools to improve cooperation and trust between MNEs and tax authorities.
Some concrete recommendations on how to improve the relationship with tax administrations, such as the implementation of voluntary tax principles and the establishment of tax policy panels to assess advice provided against the code of conduct, were shared at the event.
Participating businesses and tax authorities also joined a group discussion in virtual breakout rooms where they discussed specific aspects of the business – tax authority relationship, including communication, trust, transparency, integrity, and timeliness.
Participants appreciated the partnership between the OECD and IOTA, highlighting the importance of continuing to facilitate discussions between the stakeholders and compiling tax best practices for engagement with tax authorities.
Following the conclusion of the first round of regional events on Tax Morale in Latin America, Caribbean and Africa regions, the OECD will finalise a report which will include the survey data, analysis and key outcomes of the roundtables. This will be published later in 2021.
Further information about the meeting is available in the Summary Statement.