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| Achim
Pross is a new entry this year |
"2015 was probably the busiest in a series of already busy
years," admits Pross.
And it is hard to argue with him when you consider his 2015
workload, which included: five BEPS actions to deliver, keeping
the CRS implementation on track and delivering the information
exchange and IT infrastructure to help translate BEPS policy
outcomes, such as country-by-county (CbC) reporting, into a tax
administration reality. But Pross wouldn't have it any other
way.
"It's the varied role here that is the most fun and the most
challenging, ranging across the full spectrum of international
tax policy and tax administration," he says. "It may be the
dark web and fighting financial crime at one moment, finding a
consensus on patent boxes the next, dealing with a tax
administration issue and then issuing detailed CRS
implementation guidance later in the day."
The influence of Pross and his colleagues during the past 12
months is unquestionable when you consider the far-reaching
impact of the BEPS Project alone. The scale of their
achievement is matched by their sense of pride and
accomplishment, says Pross.
"We helped design, develop and now deliver two big waves of
international tax policy redesign, first on automatic exchange
of information (AEoI), and then on BEPS. Having been part of a
small team and driven several aspects of this work at a time of
unique changes in the international tax landscape has made the
last year immensely rewarding."
The breadth of jurisdictional involvement in the AEoI and
BEPS initiatives is a particular achievement which Pross
highlights.
"Having done this with all OECD and G20 countries working
together and with real tangible impact around the world is
probably the biggest achievement," says Pross.
The workload for Pross and his division – which is
responsible for, among other things: exchange work, including
CRS automatic exchange, exchange of rulings, CbC work, TRACE
(the treaty relief and compliance enhancement initiative); BEPS
actions on harmful tax practices, interest, hybrids, mandatory
disclosure and CFC work; the work of the Forum on Tax
Administration; work on serious non-compliance which links to
OECD work on illicit flows; and the Multilateral Convention on
Administrative Assistance and related competent authority
signings, such as for CRS and CbC exchange – shows no
sign of letting up.
The new year is already off to a busy start, with a signing
ceremony on January 27 for more than 30 countries that have
agreed to CbC exchanges. The event in Paris represents the
first signing ceremony for adherence to the Multilateral
Competent Authority Agreement, which will facilitate automatic
exchange of CbC reports called for in the BEPS Project.