13-July-2015
English
This initiative was officially launched today on the side-lines of the 3rd International Conference on Financing for Development as a partnership between the OECD and UNDP. The objective of this project is to enable the transfer of tax audit knowledge and skills to tax administrations in developing countries through a real time, “learning by doing” approach.
13-July-2015
English
The OECD and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) have launched a new initiative to help developing countries bolster domestic revenues by strengthening their tax audit capacities.
9-July-2015
English
Meeting budgetary targets is hard enough in any country, but for developing countries struggling to lift their economies, it can seem a near impossible task. However, governments and local authorities everywhere in the world have a duty to provide public and social services for their citizens, and infrastructure that will attract investors. Tax revenues are therefore vital for meeting public demands as well as development aspirations.
3-July-2015
English
Taxes are potentially among the most effective ways of cutting pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, but they are currently – with very few exceptions – underused; and even where used, they are frequently designed in a sub-optimal way.
2-July-2015
English
Concerns around potential losses of competitiveness as a result of unilateral action on carbon pricing are often central for policy makers contemplating the introduction of such instruments. This paper is a review of literature on ex post empirical evaluations of the impacts of carbon prices on indicators of competitiveness as employed in the literature, including employment, output or exports, at different levels of aggregation.
2-July-2015
English
Proposals to increase environmentally related taxes are often challenged on competitiveness grounds. The concern is that value creation in certain sectors might decline domestically if a country introduces environmentally related taxes unilaterally. This paper provides evidence on the short-term competitiveness impacts of the German electricity tax introduced unilaterally in 1999.
1-July-2015
English
This year’s COP21 presents a unique opportunity. It will need to forge a clear path for reducing emissions, and for lessening our impact on the planet. It is therefore timely that this year’s International Tax Dialogue focuses on the role that tax can play in managing these environmental challenges.
1-July-2015
English
The International Tax Dialogue (ITD) is organising its 6th global conference at the OECD. This year’s conference will focus on Tax and the Environment, an issue of growing importance and of direct relevance in the lead up to the COP21 meeting taking place later in the year. The ITD is a joint initiative of the EC, IDB, IMF, OECD, World Bank and CIAT.
30-June-2015
English
Now more than ever, governments are striving to mobilise greater tax revenue domestically. To do so, they are increasingly reaching out to inform and engage today’s – and future – taxpayers. They aim to foster an overall “culture of compliance” based on rights and responsibilities, in which citizens see paying taxes as an integral aspect of their relationship with their government. Taxpayer education is the bridge linking tax administration and citizens and a key tool to transform tax culture. Covering innovative strategies in 28 countries, this publication offers ideas and inspiration for taxpayer education, literacy and outreach. It helps revenue authorities in developing countries to strengthen the tax morale and tax compliance of their citizens.
25-June-2015
English
Energy is a critical input into the production and consumption patterns that support economic and social wellbeing. However, many forms of energy use contribute to the environmental and climate challenges societies face today. Taxation is a key tool by which governments can influence energy use to contain its environmental impacts. This report provides a systematic analysis of the structure and level of energy taxes in OECD and selected other countries; together, they cover 80% of global energy use.
This report builds on the 2013 edition of Taxing Energy Use, expanding the geographic coverage of the 2013 data set to include Argentina, Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Russia and South Africa. The report describes energy use, taxation and pricing in these countries and presents detailed graphical profiles of the structure of energy use and taxation for each.
The analysis reveals large differences in the taxation of energy across countries, although common patterns emerge. Transport taxes are considerably higher than in other sectors, where fuels that cause considerable harm for the environment and human health are often taxed at very low – or zero – rates. With few exceptions, countries' energy taxes do not harness the full power of taxes to reduce pollution and combat climate change.