Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes Peer Reviews:
Austria 2013
Phase 2: Implementation of the Standard in Practice
This report contains a “Phase 2: Implementation of the Standard in Practice” review
for Austria, as well as a revised version of the “Phase 1: Legal and Regulatory Framework
review” already released for this jurisdiction.
The Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes is the
multilateral framework within which work in the area of tax transparency and exchange
of information is carried out by 120 jurisdictions, which participate in the Global
Forum on an equal footing.
The Global Forum is charged with in-depth monitoring and peer review of the implementation
of the international standards of transparency and exchange of information for tax
purposes. These standards are primarily reflected in the 2002 OECD Model Agreement
on Exchange of Information on Tax Matters and its commentary, and in Article 26 of
the OECD Model Tax Convention on Income and on Capital and its commentary as updated
in 2004. The standards have also been incorporated into the UN Model Tax Convention.
The standards provide for international exchange on request of foreseeably relevant
information for the administration or enforcement of the domestic tax laws of a requesting
party. Fishing expeditions are not authorised but all foreseeably relevant information
must be provided, including bank information and information held by fiduciaries,
regardless of the existence of a domestic tax interest or the application of a dual
criminality standard.
All members of the Global Forum, as well as jurisdictions identified by the Global
Forum as relevant to its work, are being reviewed. This process is undertaken in two
phases. Phase 1 reviews assess the quality of a jurisdiction’s legal and regulatory
framework for the exchange of information, while Phase 2 reviews look at the practical
implementation of that framework. Some Global Forum members are undergoing combined
– Phase 1 and Phase 2 – reviews. The Global Forum has also put in place a process
for supplementary reports to follow-up on recommendations, as well as for the ongoing
monitoring of jurisdictions following the conclusion of a review. The ultimate goal
is to help jurisdictions to effectively implement the international standards of transparency
and exchange of information for tax purposes.
All review reports are published once approved by the Global Forum and they thus represent
agreed Global Forum reports.
Published on November 22, 2013
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