International Tax Review publishes an annual list of what it considers to be the top 50 most influential people and organisations in global tax. For 2012, we have also ranked the top 10 in order for the first time.
This adds an extra dimension to the list, comparing the roles of government officials, taxpayers and their CEOs, international organisations and pressure groups.
If you want to get involved in the discussion, please comment on the stories online or join us on LinkedIn or Twitter:


Director, OECD Centre for Tax Policy and Administration
The OECD's head of tax, Pascal Saint-Amans, is arguably the most important person in international tax today.
European Commissioner for Taxation and Customs Union, Audit and Anti-Fraud
The European Commission is still pushing forward with tax policy and Algirdas Semeta, the tax commissioner and former Lithuanian Finance Minister has a reputation as an ambitious reformer.
Vince Alicandri, Janice Lucchesi, joint-chairs
The Tax Executives’ Institute is the only global organisation to solely represent taxpayers’ views as its purpose.
Promote America’s Competitive Edge (PACE) Coalition is making waves by advocating that the US maintain a level playing field for taxation of international operations.
Minister of Finance, India
Chidambaram took over from Pranab Mukherjee as finance minister in July, he was no stranger to the position, having previously served in the role on two separate occasions.
Attorney Advisor, US Department of the Treasury
Michael Plowgian is the principal draftsman for the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which is arguable the biggest story in international tax of the last 12 months.
Social movements
Occupy London Stock Exchange and UK Uncut represent how corporate tax moved from a solely-boardroom issue to a public concern.
Will Morris has a lot on his plate. The global tax policy director for GE also chairs the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) tax committee, the AmCham EU Tax Task Force, the European Tax Policy Forum and has just accepted the role of chairman of BIAC’s (Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD) tax and fiscal policy committee, taking over from Chris Lenon.
Chairman of the African Tax Administration Forum
Oupa Magashula is leading the way in enhancing tax administration across sub-Saharan Africa.
Chief Executive Officer, GSK
Sir Andrew Witty, the CEO of pharmaceuticals company, GSK, has been one of the few corporate leaders to address publicly issues about how multinationals manage their tax affairs.
What do you think of the top 10? Is there anyone missing from the top 10? Have your say on Twitter (#GlobalTax50) or LinkedIn. Share this article on twitter.
View the complete Global Tax 50 list

