OECD appoints new head of its tax treaty unit

International Tax Review is part of Legal Benchmarking Limited, 1-2 Paris Garden, London, SE1 8ND

Copyright © Legal Benchmarking Limited and its affiliated companies 2026

Accessibility | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Modern Slavery Statement

OECD appoints new head of its tax treaty unit

people move 2 big

Sophie Chatel has been appointed head of the tax treaty unit in the OECD’s Centre for Tax Policy and Administration.

Chatel joins from Canada’s Department of Finance, where she has worked since 2008 and served as associate chief of tax treaties and international tax. She has also worked at the Canada Revenue Authority, where she has had the role of director of international tax, financial sector and GST division. In this role, Chatel supervised tax dispute resolution with multinationals.

Chatel has also held other roles at Canada’s tax authority, where her work included negotiating tax treaties and working on advance rulings in international matters.

She will take up her duties at the OECD on September 6 2017 and will report to Jefferson VanderWolk, who is head of the tax treaty, transfer pricing and financial transactions division.

sophie chatel

more across site & shared bottom lb ros

More from across our site

Partners want to join Ryan because it’s a disruptor firm, truly global and less bureaucratic, Tom Shave told ITR
If Trump continues to poke the world’s ‘middle powers’ with a stick, he shouldn’t be surprised when they retaliate
The Netherlands-based bank was described as an ‘exemplar of total transparency’; in other news, Kirkland & Ellis made a senior tax hire in Dallas
Zion Adeoye, a tax specialist, had been suspended from the African law firm since October over misconduct allegations
The deal establishes Ryan’s property tax presence in Scotland and expands its ability to serve clients with complex commercial property portfolios across the UK, the firm said
Trump announced he will cut tariffs after India agreed to stop buying Russian oil; in other news, more than 300 delegates gathered at the OECD to discuss VAT fraud prevention
Taxpayers should support the MAP process by sharing accurate information early on and maintaining open communication with the competent authorities, the OECD also said
The Fortune 150 energy multinational is among more than 12 companies participating in the initiative, which ‘helps tax teams put generative AI to work’
The ruling excludes vacation and business development days from service PE calculations and confirms virtual services from abroad don’t count, potentially reshaping compliance for multinationals
User-friendly digital tax filing systems, transformative AI deployment, and the continued proliferation of DSTs will define 2026, writes Ascoria’s Neil Kelley
Gift this article