As a result of the work performed by GIZ and CIAT within the “Regional Program” framework on large companies taxation and transfer pricing which was initiated in 2008 by InWent and is currently led by GIZ, there has been progresses in the discussion of initiatives that derive in tangible results for the tax administrations in Latin America. Unanimously, the tax administrations represented at the meeting held in Lima in November 2011, stressed the need to access public information and ideas on how to deal with an initiative of this nature.

For the purpose of moving forward with this initiative and determine its feasibility, ITC provided funds that allowed elaborating the document promoted in the present newsletter, and carrying out a working group meeting with CIAT member countries of Latin America which took place in Montevideo in 2012, and a meeting with the working team that was held in Panama in 2013.

The need to access public information for tax matters has been expressed by CIAT member countries tax administrations in recent years. To have access to and exchange between states public information on tax matters through efficient mechanisms not only help to comply with essential requirements for achieving tax information exchange standards, as well as the subsidiarity principle which implies to exhaust all available resources before processing a formal request for information subject to tax secrecy, but it also contributes to the reduction of transactional costs of tax administrations in their collection of information from abroad. Even more, considering that much of the public information is available on the Internet, or electronic media. In addition, the absence of restrictions on the dissemination of this information does not require controls on its use, greatly helping the selection and verification process of taxpayers.

The next step consists in defining an action plan that will allow implementing a mechanism to share public information.

“For additional information please contact Mr. Gonzalo Arias, CIAT Director of International Taxation and Cooperation.
Email: garias@ciat.org

See document: Disponibilidad de información pública de interés tributario en países
de América Latina: Estado de Situación. (Spanish only)