The new round of peer reviews – launched in mid-2016 – follows a six-year process during which the global forum assessed the legal and regulatory framework for information exchange (phase 1) as well as the actual practices and procedures (phase 2) in 119 jurisdictions worldwide.

The global forum’s new peer review process combines the phase 1 and phase 2 elements into a single undertaking, with new focus on an assessment of the availability of and access by tax authorities to beneficial ownership information of all legal entities and arrangements.

In its first set of published outcomes, the global forum reviewed exchange of information practices through combined peer review reports in ten jurisdictions. Three jurisdictions – Ireland, Mauritius and Norway – received an overall rating of ‘compliant.’

Six others – Australia, Bermuda, Canada, Cayman Islands, Germany and Qatar, were rated ‘largely compliant.’ 

Jamaica was found to be ‘partially compliant,’ leading the global forum to launch a supplementary report on follow-up measures to ensure a higher level of compliance.

The global forum has 144 members and is the premier international body for ensuring the implementation of the internationally agreed standards of transparency and exchange of information in the tax area.

All members are working together to monitor and review implementation of the international standard for the automatic exchange of financial account information, under the common reporting standard (CRS), which will start in September 2017. The monitoring and review process is intended to ensure the effective and timely delivery of commitments made, the confidentiality of information exchanged and to identify areas where support is needed. 

The countries were assessed on an individual basis, with the reports available from the OECD here.