BERMUDA AGREES TO CONCEPT OF G7 CORPORATE TAX

Bermuda has joined several other countries in agreeing to the concept of a global corporate tax structure being implemented by the G7 group of leading industrial nations.

At their recent meetings in London, the G7 countries have agreed to push ahead with the implementation of a global corporate tax rate of 15 per cent on multinational companies.

They say it's intended to curb the practice of large corporations banking their profits in low tax jurisdictions.

Bermuda’s Premier David Burt, calling for fairness in how the tax is ultimately implemented, said the island was adhering to existing international agreements on tax compliance and anti-money laundering initiatives.

“The G7, the G20, the OECD and all the rest, they are going to keep coming. Our resilience is what has taken us through each and every single time they have done it. We are going to continue to do that, because we have demonstrated to the world that we are a high-quality jurisdiction.”

However, Mr Burt said there were some technical aspects of the plan which his government has reservations about and would like to see addressed before the tax is applied.

In a statement following a preparatory meeting last week on the implementation of the tax, the Bermuda government said: “We remain committed to working collaboratively with partners in the public and private sector to maximise benefits which can be achieved as a result of this initiative.”

It also stated, “Bermuda has been actively involved in ongoing discussions relating to this initiative to present positions that reflect the national interest and that of our various stakeholders.”

Technical discussions on implementing the global corporate tax are continuing ahead of the meeting of G20 Finance Ministers in October when the details will be further fine-tuned. The law is planned to be in place by 2023.

The Cayman Islands, Gibraltar and the British Virgin Islands have also accepted the broad outline of the plan.