The European Union (EU) announced a significant update to its list of tax havens, removing four territories from the “black list” and six countries from the “grey list”. The Council of Europe has taken this decision as part of its ongoing efforts to combat tax evasion and transparency.
Effective February 26, the Bahamas, Belize, Seychelles and the Turks and Caicos Islands were removed from the list of non-cooperative countries and territories for tax purposes. ‘elEconomista’ reveals that these territories were removed after showing significant progress and commitment to the tax reforms required by the EU.
Apart from blacklist removal, six countries were removed from gray list. Albania, Hong Kong, Aruba and Israel were exempted from meeting their tax reform obligations. Botswana and the Dominican Republic left the list after receiving positive reviews regarding tax information sharing.
With these changes, the EU’s list of tax havens, known as the black list, now includes twelve countries or territories: American Samoa, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Fiji, Guam, Palau, Panama, Russia, Samoa, Trinidad and Tobago, Virgin America and Vanuatu. .
The gray list, which includes territories with pending tax reform obligations, now consists of eight territories: Armenia, British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Curacao, Eswatini, Malaysia, Turkey and Vietnam.
The updated lists reflect the EU’s continuous improvement and efforts to ensure compliance with tax regulations. Removing countries from this list indicates that these territories have made significant progress in implementing transparent and cooperative tax policies. On the other hand, blacklisting others highlights areas where substantial improvements are still needed.