Guernsey, Jersey and Isle of Man sign new tax agreements

27/03/2009 - New tax information exchange agreements (TIEAs) signed in recent days by the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey mean that the three jurisdictions now have exchange of information agreements with many of their major economic partners.

During the week the Isle of Man signed an agreement with France, bringing its TIEA tally to 14, of which 12 are with OECD countries; Jersey signed agreements with France and Ireland; and Guernsey signed agreements with France, Germany and Ireland, bringing their tallies to 13 each, including in both cases 11 with OECD countries.

Commenting on the recent signings, Jeffrey Owens, Director of the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration, said: “At a time when many countries have been promising change, Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man have been delivering. I am particularly pleased that the Isle of Man now has 12 agreements with OECD countries in accordance with the OECD standard. This is an important milestone in implementing its commitment to international co-operation.”

Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man have consistently supported the work of the OECD and the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information, with Jersey and the Isle of Man taking an active and constructive role in the work of the Global Forum’s Sub-Group on Level Playing Field Issues, Mr. Owens said.

“The positive outcomes of the Sub-Group’s work, as well as the lead that these jurisdictions have taken in signing tax information exchange agreements, have played a big part in the developments in favour of greater transparency that we are now seeing around the globe,” he added.

For additional information, journalists are invited to contact:  in Guernsey, James Falla (tel: +44 1481 717225); in Jersey, Colin Powell (tel: +44 1534 440 414); in the Isle of Man, Malcolm Couch (tel: + 44 1624 685 350); at OECD, Pascal Saint-Amans (pascal.saint-amans@oecd.org, tel: + 33 1 45 24 97 46).

For more information, visit the OECD site on tax - www.oecd.org/tax