OECD business representatives meet with India and China to discuss G20 BEPS

The meetings followed on from discussions at the end of last year with the Brazilian government.

BIAC delegates said the meetings were “very open and constructive and the BIAC delegation made clear that it is committed to making the BEPS project work to meet the concerns of all governments involved, while at the same time keeping at the forefront of everyone’s mind the broader goal of continuing to encourage cross border trade and investment that will provide jobs and growth”.

“China and India are key members of the G20, and will play a critical role in the outcomes of the BEPS project,” said Will Morris, chair of the BIAC Tax and Fiscal Affairs Committee.

In New Delhi the BIAC delegation met with Raj Tewari, incoming chair of the Central Board of Direct Taxes, and Akhilesh Ranjan, the Indian Competent Authority. The delegation also met with Partho Shome, Special Adviser to the Finance Minister and Chair of the Tax Administration Reforms Commission (TARC).

Topics for discussion included the avoidance of double taxation and the enhancement of dispute resolution (one of the BEPS action items).

BIAC has been invited to submit ideas to the Indian tax authorities on speeding up the process of dispute resolution in the country and to minimise the risk of new ones arising.

In Beijing, BIAC met with Tizhong Liao, Director General of the State Administration for Taxation (SAT) International Tax Department, and with a senior group of SAT officials led by Wenqin Wang, Liao’s Deputy Director General.

Discussions in China covered a number of BEPS topics, including information reporting and the digital economy.

BIAC delegates said they were “greatly encouraged by SAT’s close engagement with, and balanced views on all of the issues discussed”.

Both Indian and Chinese officials are concerned that many of the difficult issues up for discussion in both meetings will not be solved over the next 18 months. BIAC agreed with this, recognising that many of the issues will require further discussion and inspection.

“We are very grateful to both the Indian and Chinese governments for such constructive engagement on these important issues,” said Morris.

“We are greatly encouraged by their deep involvement in the project and by their desire to take the time to reach consensus-based solutions to these difficult issues,” he added. “BIAC very much hopes that, with both governments, this will be the start of an on-going dialogue on BEPS and international tax issues.”

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