Peter Dunne
22 July, 2009
NZ, Guernsey sign tax info exchange agreement
New Zealand has signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement with Guernsey, Revenue Minister Peter Dunne announced today.
Mr Dunne signed the agreement on behalf of New Zealand at a ceremony in London overnight New Zealand time.
"The Tax Information Exchange Agreement with Guernsey will help to encourage greater co-operation between tax authorities," Mr Dunne said. "I am very pleased with this important addition to New Zealand's network of information exchange agreements."
"Tax Information Agreements are bilateral international treaties that establish a mechanism by which tax authorities can request tax records, business books and accounts, bank information, ownership information, and other tax-related information from each other for purposes of preventing tax avoidance and evasion.
"Recent months have seen increasing numbers of TIEAs signed, all over the world, as growing numbers of financial centres agree to adopt OECD and United Nations standards for exchange of tax-related information..
"This is the third such agreement that New Zealand has signed since March, and several more are in the pipeline and due to be signed soon," he said.
The new Tax Information Exchange Agreement with Guernsey will come into force once both countries have given legal effect to it.
The text of the agreement is available at http://www.taxpolicy.ird.govt.nz .
