Convention on international assistance in tax matters

The government recently signed the Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters.

“It is the most powerful instrument for international tax cooperation,” the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) said in a statement.

The pact involves different kinds of administrative assistance in tax matters. These include exchange of information on request, spontaneous exchange, automatic exchange, tax examinations abroad, simultaneous tax examinations, and assistance in tax collection.

It also provides safeguards for the protection of taxpayers' rights.

The agreement paves the way for Lebanon to implement the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters by 2018. It also facilitates the adoption of other transparency measures.

“The convention is also a powerful tool in the fight against illicit financial flows,” the OECD said.

The convention was originally developed in 1988 by the OECD and the Council of Europe. It was amended in 2010 to open it to all countries and to bring it into line with the international standard on exchange of information.

The signing of this pact is part of the country’s commitment to abide by international laws on tax evasion, money laundering, terrorism financing, and other financial crimes.

Parliament passed laws to fight such crimes in 2015 and in 2016.