ABSTRACT
The effects of globalisation, advances in technology, and increasing mobility of capital have enabled individuals to hide income or profits offshore to evade their national tax liabilities. Consequently, innovative techniques have been developed to facilitate the exchange of information and assistance in tax matters between states, with the aim of providing much-needed information to combat this financial crime. These developments include the Common Reporting Standard, the Fourth European Union Anti-Money Laundering Directive, and subsequent revisions to this Directive, which provide for increased information exchange between Financial Intelligence Units, alongside transparent beneficial ownership registers. Despite the fundamental need to facilitate international cooperation in the fight against tax evasion, these developments have been heavily criticised in terms of their costs, the administrative difficulties likely to be experienced in complying with these obligations, and their effect on individuals’ privacy, security, and safety. This chapter examines these concerns in the context of assessing the efficacy and proportionality of these measures in combatting tax evasion.
