A Call to Action: From Evolution to Revolution on the Common Reporting Standard

As a result of technical development and globalization, investing abroad has become much more accessible, and thus, an important channel for transferring wealth and income to offshore locations with the aim to avoid tax obligations at home. In this regard, the automatic exchange of information (AEOI) across countries is a strong weapon to stop cross-border tax evasion. This is why, in 2014, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) launched its proposal for a global AEOI standard, the so-called Common Reporting Standard (CRS). This article provides a cross-country analysis of the national CRS laws for a sample of 41 countries with the aim to determine whether significant deviations from the original OECD model may hinder the effectiveness of the AEOI. Our key recommendation to the OECD and all participating jurisdictions is to achieve a higher level of standardization when designing CRS locally. Furthermore, international pressure on the U.S. to join the CRS is needed. A global AEOI system having the potential to put an end to cross-border tax evasion can be achieved only with the elimination of all attractive locations for illicit financial flows.

Casi, Elisa, Sara Nenadic, Mark Dinko Orlic and Christoph Spengel (2018), A Call to Action: From Evolution to Revolution on the Common Reporting Standard, ZEW Discussion Paper No. 18-035, Mannheim, published in: British Tax Review.