ISLAMABAD: In bid to implement tax treaty related measures to prevent base erosion and profit, Pakistan has signed Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) convention.
Around 70 countries simultaneously signed this Convention in the OECD Centre in the presence of Secretary General OECD Angel Gurria, according to a press release received from Paris.
On behalf of the Government of Pakistan, Ambassador Moin ul Haq signed the treaty.
Speaking after the ceremony, the Ambassador said that Pakistan now will be part of global efforts to develop solutions to close the gaps in tax treaties that allow corporate profits to be artificially shifted to low or no tax jurisdictions. Besides, Pakistan will also receive consistent support and guidelines from OECD to implement BEPS’s standards to counter harmful tax practices and tax treaty abuses.
Moin ul Haque added that the signing of the Multilateral Instrument is yet another step of the incumbent to adopt international best practices in the field of tax matters and to join the multilateral fight against tax evasion through continuous and mutual exchange of information.
While counting the steps taken by the government to infuse financial transparency in Pakistan, the Ambassador said that Pakistan has already joined ‘Open Government partnership’ (OPG) in December, 2016, and as well as signed OECD’s Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters in September, 2016. Pakistan has also lately signed revised Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation with Switzerland in March, 2017. These steps, he said, were reflective of the government’s firm commitment to a transparent and accountable governance structure in the country.
Earlier, Pakistan signed the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Accounts (MCAA). The MCAA was signed by Mohammad Iqbal, chief (International Taxes), FBR. The signing was overseen by the Ambassador and Deputy Secretary General, OECD Mr. Douglas Franz.
