Two more nations, Montserrat and the Republic of Mauritius, have signed an Agreement with Australia that will assist the Government in preventing offshore tax avoidance and evasion.
The Assistant Treasurer, the Hon Bill Shorten, today announced the signing of two bilateral Tax Information Exchange Agreements (TIEA), one with the Caribbean island of Montserrat and the other with the Republic of Mauritius in the Indian Ocean.
“There are now 27 jurisdictions that have signed such Agreements with Australia, and the Gillard Government welcomes Montserrat and the Republic of Mauritius as TIEA partner countries," the Assistant Treasurer said.
This Agreement provides a legal basis for Australia to exchange taxpayer information with both nations.
"The signing of these Agreements demonstrates the commitment of both Montserrat and the Republic of Mauritius' to international tax standards. It is good to see two countries, on opposite sides of the world, working with Australia to address international tax evasion," the Assistant Treasurer said.
Tax evasion undermines the fairness of tax systems and costs governments, and honest taxpayers, billions of dollars every year. Australia has a strong network of exchange of information agreements, making it increasingly hard to avoid Australian tax.
"Securing these latest agreements further expands Australia's TIEA network, boosting transparency in both the domestic and global financial systems and helping prevent offshore tax avoidance and evasion," The Assistant Treasurer said.
Each of the agreements will enter into force when the countries' relevant domestic requirements have been completed.
Copies of the agreements can be found on the Treasury website www.treasury.gov.au.