China Signs Multilateral Tax Convention to Combat Tax Evasion

August 30, 2013 Posted by China Briefing Reading Time: 3 minutes

Aug. 30 – On August 27, the Administrator of China’s State Administration of Taxation (SAT), Wang Jun, signed the “Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administration Assistance in Tax Matters (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Convention’)” of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris on behalf of Chinese government, illustrating China’s determination to combat cross-border tax evasion.

Wang said on the signing ceremony that the Convention is the first such multilateral tax agreement signed by China. Joining the Convention will further expand China’s international tax collection net, and build broader and deeper international tax cooperative relationships. It will also benefit and improve the administration of tax collection and service standards for cross-border taxpayers.

“Today’s signing is both timely and important,” said Angel Gurría, the OECD Secretary General, on the signing ceremony. “This convention provides the ideal instrument to swiftly implement automatic exchange, and to do so with a wide range of partners. This also represents another significant step in the strengthening of collaboration between China and the OECD.”

The Convention was developed jointly by the Council of Europe and the OECD, and opened for signatures by the member states of both organizations on January 25, 1988. The Convention includes providing spontaneous exchange of information, simultaneous tax examinations, and assistance in tax collection matters. Furthermore, it ensures compliance with national tax laws and respects the rights of taxpayers by protecting the confidentiality of the information exchanged.

At the last meeting attended by Ministers of Finance and Central Bank Governors of G20 countries, they called on all countries to join the Convention without further delay.

China is the 56th country joining the Convention. With China’s signing, all G20 countries have now fulfilled the commitment they made at the 2011 Cannes G20 Summit and, according to the OECD, are moving towards automatic exchange of information as the new global standard.

Currently, the 56 signatories to the Convention are: Albania, Argentina, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Belize, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Moldova, Morocco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

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