Countries participating in the OECD/G20 BEPS Project have agreed on the core elements of the implementation of transfer pricing documentation and Country-by-Country Reporting.
This agreement calls for the master file and the local file to be delivered by MNEs directly to local tax administrations. Country-by-Country Reports should be filed in the jurisdiction of tax residence of the ultimate parent entity and shared between jurisdictions through automatic exchange of information, pursuant to government-to-government mechanisms such as the multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters, bilateral tax treaties or tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs). In limited circumstances, secondary mechanisms, including local filing can be used as a backup.
These new Country-by-Country Reporting requirements are to be implemented for fiscal years beginning on or after 1 January 2016 and apply, subject to the 2020 review, to MNEs with annual consolidated group revenue equal to or exceeding EUR 750 million. It is acknowledged that some jurisdictions may need time to follow their particular domestic legislative process in order to make necessary adjustments to the law. In order to facilitate the implementation of the new reporting standards, an implementation package has been developed consisting of model legislation which could be used by countries to require MNE groups to file the Country-by-Country Report and competent authority agreements that are to be used to facilitate implementation of the exchange of those reports among tax administrations. As a next step, it is intended that an XML Schema and a related User Guide will be developed with a view to accommodating the electronic exchange of Country-by-Country Reports.
RKG Consulting will be pleased to advise on all aspects of Country-by-Country reporting as well as to assist in the filing of the necessary reports.