MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th February, 2023) The European Union has decided to include Russia along with the British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, and the Marshall Islands in the list of jurisdictions that do not cooperate on tax issues, the Council of the EU said on Tuesday.
"The EU continues to promote fair tax competition and address harmful tax practices. The Council today decided to add British Virgin Islands, Costa Rica, Marshall Islands, and Russia to the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes," the Council said in a statement.
According to the statement, the EU adds to the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions those countries that do not meet the criteria for tax standards, inviting them to improve their legal work.
Russia was added to the list after a group of experts checked the new Russian legislation, adopted in 2022, against the criteria for good tax administration. The group found that Russia failed to fulfill its obligation to eliminate harmful aspects of a special regime for international holding companies, the statement said.
"In addition, dialogue with Russia on matters related to taxation came to a standstill following the Russian aggression against Ukraine," the Council said.
In 2018, the Russian government created special administrative regions or the so-called "Russian offshores" after adopting a package of laws aimed at creating conditions and mechanisms for the return of Russian businesses and attracting foreign ones from other jurisdictions. The special administrative region regime operates on the Russky and Oktyabrsky Islands.
