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EU Tax Commissioner Vows to Keep an Open Mind on Pillar 2

  • By Elodie Lamer, Sophie Petitjean

The EU will not deviate from its course regarding pillar 2 but would enter any possible OECD talks on a permanent safe harbor for U.S. companies with an open mind, Tax Commissioner Wopke Hoekstra said.

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Countries Agree to Majority Decisions for U.N. Tax Convention

  • By Sarah Paez

After days of deliberation, countries finally agreed to make decisions on a U.N. tax framework convention by simple majority, with a two-thirds majority needed to approve any protocols to the convention.

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AEI Paper Recommends High-Tax Exclusion for GILTI Reform

  • By Kyle Pomerleau

Implementing a mandatory high-tax exclusion so global intangible low-tax income would apply only to income below the exclusion threshold could reduce tax avoidance, raise revenue, and be relatively simple to implement, according to a February report released by the American Enterprise Institute.

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Practicality of Carbon Border Adjustment in a Carbon Tax

  • By Shuting Pomerleau

Shuting Pomerleau compares two methods used to border-adjust a carbon price, arguing that border adjustments present unique challenges but, if designed well, would be an important part of a domestic carbon price in the United States.

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Considering a U.S. Qualified Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax

  • By Nana Ama Sarfo

Nana Ama Sarfo explains the prevalence of QDMTTs versus UTPRs in light of the Trump administration’s executive order and suggests the United States should consider implementing its own QDMTT.

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Widespread Support for Dispute Resolution in U.N Tax Talks

  • By Sarah Paez

Many countries — across income lines — said they would support dispute resolution and prevention as an early protocol to a U.N. framework convention on international tax cooperation.

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China Slaps Retaliatory Tariffs on U.S. Imports

  • By Michael Smith

China has targeted U.S. agriculture and natural gas with retaliatory tariffs after President Trump moved forward with tariffs on Chinese imports while pausing tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico.

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Past Their Prime: Updating the FTC Noncompulsory Rules for the Pillar 2 Era, Part 1

  • By David J. Sotos, J.P. Gregorcy

David J. Sotos and J.P. Gregorcy, in the first in a two-part series, examine the history of noncompulsory payment rules under reg. section 1.901-2(e)(5) and identify areas that need clarification in light of pillar 2.

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United States Pulls Out of U.N. Tax Convetion Talks

  • By Sarah Paez

The United States said it would withdraw from the entire U.N. process to negotiate a framework convention on international tax cooperation and encouraged other countries to join it.

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Significant Economic Presence Taxation: A Concept Without Practice?

  • By International Tax and Investment Center

The International Tax and Investment Center explains the concept of significant economic presence and shows the outcome of efforts by the OECD inclusive framework to develop a new net-basis taxation with parallels to the existing physical presence.

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Canada Responds to U.S. Tariffs With 25 Percent Tariffs

  • By Department of Finance Canada

Canada's Department of Finance issued a release February 1 announcing that the government will impose 25 percent tariffs on U.S. goods worth C $155 billion in response to the U.S. tariffs imposed on Canadian products, noting that the government will continue to consider additional, non-tariff-related countermeasures.

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EU Still on Fence About Future Changes to Pillar 2 Info Exchange

  • By Elodie Lamer

EU member states have not yet resolved the issue of how to quickly introduce any future changes to the OECD's standard global anti-base-erosion information return, which is implemented through the administrative cooperation directive.

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EU Faces Make-or-Break Moment at U.N. Tax Talks

  • By Elodie Lamer

Negotiations for a U.N. framework convention on international tax cooperation are slated to begin in February, and key organizational decisions could further alienate EU member states that do not want to duplicate the OECD’s work.

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Digital Tax Surveillance: Allowing an All-Seeing State

  • By Lyla Latif

 Lyla Latif reconceptualizes modern tax administration through the lens of surveillance studies, demonstrating that tax studies must expand beyond efficiency to address fundamental questions about individual autonomy and the boundaries of legitimate oversight in a digital age.

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The U.N. Model Tax Convention’s Attempt to Override Investment Treaties: A Critical and Normative Assessment

  • By Robert Danon, Adolfo Martín Jiménez

Robert Danon and Adolfo Martín Jiménez examine the new model clause for article 25 of the U.N. model tax convention, arguing against introducing it in double tax treaties because it is inconsistent with modern investment treaty policy and a "whole of government" approach and raises several problems under international law.

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EU Still on Fence About Future Changes to Pillar 2 Info Exchange (1)

  • By Elodie Lamer

EU member states have not yet resolved the issue of how to quickly introduce any future changes to the OECD's standard global anti-base-erosion information return, which is implemented through the administrative cooperation directive.

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EU Faces Make-or-Break Moment at U.N. Tax Talks (1)

  • By Elodie Lamer

Negotiations for a U.N. framework convention on international tax cooperation are slated to begin in February, and key organizational decisions could further alienate EU member states that do not want to duplicate the OECD’s work.

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ESG Irony: Why Corporate Tax Avoidance Must Be Considered

  • By Reuven S. Avi-Yonah

Reuven S. Avi-Yonah points out the importance of considering taxes when evaluating corporate environmental, social, and governance goals and suggests efficient solutions for the resulting gaps.

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High Stakes for Global Companies in Trump’s Latest Tariff Threats

  • By Patricia Cohen, River Akira Davis, Eshe Nelson

According to a U.S. official, challenges in global anti-base-erosion (GLOBE) rules negotiations under the OECD's pillar 2 taxation framework have made a permanent safe harbor provision seem unlikely.

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EU’s Competitiveness Compass Not Relying Much on Taxation

  • By Elodie Lamer

The taxation aspects of the European Commission’s promise to boost the EU’s competitiveness will be limited, as steps in that direction rely mainly on coordination and member states’ goodwill.

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The Termination of Tax Treaties by Developing Countries

  • By Lucas De Lima Carvalho

Lucas de Lima Carvalho examines why a developing country might terminate a bilateral tax treaty with a developed country and what happens after it does.

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H.R. 591 Would Impose Reciprocal Taxes on Foreign Countries

  • By House Ways and Means Committee

H.R. 591, the Defending American Jobs and Investment Act, introduced by House Ways and Means Committee Chair Jason Smith, R-Mo., would impose reciprocal taxes on the U.S. income of companies and investors in foreign countries that impose extraterritorial or discriminatory taxes on U.S. businesses.

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Eurozone Economy Stagnates as It Braces for Fresh Blow From Tariffs

  • By Joshua Kirby

The economy returned to stagnation as 2024 drew to a close, a blow to its hopes for a recovery as it braces for the possibility that Trump will deliver a long-threatened increase in tariffs.

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OECD, Latin American Partners Work to Improve Tax System Trust

  • By Sarah Paez

The OECD and its partners in Latin America are working to improve low trust in the tax system through better communication, digitalization, and shifting tax authorities from an enforcement to a service model.

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Trump and the External Revenue Service: What Just Happened?

  • By Robert Goulder

Robert Goulder comments on the new federal agency to administer U.S. tariffs, and the motivations behind it.

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Multilateralism or Bilateralism in Building a Tax Treaty Network: A Comparison

  • By P.V.S.S. Prasad

P.V.S.S. Prasad explains the difficulties of reaching multilateral agreements among jurisdictions with varying tax and economic policies, and he argues that bilateralism will remain prominent because it avoids those difficulties while still allowing negotiators to address their specific concerns.

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Trump Executive Orders Bring U.S. Course Change on International Tax

  • By Mindy Herzfeld

Mindy Herzfeld examines the potential impact of recent U.S. executive orders on international tax and trade policy.

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Opinion: A Critical Look at Trump’s Economic Plans

  • By Alan S. Blinder

The effects of tariffs and tax cuts will be mild, but an immigration crackdown is cause for real concern.

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Trump Offers Carrots and Sticks in Davos Speech

  • By Alexander Rifaat

President Trump used an address to prominent global business leaders to invite investment in the United States with the promise of low taxes but warned of stiff tariffs for companies that decide to forgo his proposition.

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EU Member States to Tackle Open DAC9 Issues

  • By Elodie Lamer

The EU Council’s Polish presidency has asked member states to exchange views on several open issues regarding the latest amendment to the directive on administrative cooperation, which will implement the OECD's standard global anti-base-erosion information return.

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House Republicans Reintroduce Anti-Pillar 2 Legislation


House Republicans have reintroduced legislation that would increase U.S. tax rates on foreign companies and investors if their countries impose extraterritorial measures on U.S. companies, like those found in the OECD international tax reform plan.

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Jason Smith Announces Bill to Counter Foreign Taxes

  • By United States House Committee on Ways & Means

According to a U.S. official, challenges in global anti-base-erosion (GLOBE) rules negotiations under the OECD's pillar 2 taxation framework have made a permanent safe harbor provision seem unlikely.

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Trump Orders Treasury to Investigate Discriminatory Taxes

  • By The White House

Treasury must act under section 891 to investigate whether foreign countries are subjecting U.S. citizens or companies to discriminatory taxes, President Trump directed as part of an executive order issued January 20.

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EU Laments Trump’s Disregard for OECD’s Global Tax Plan

  • By Elodie Lamer, Sophie Petitjean

The European Commission said it was disappointed by President Trump’s announcement that the United States will pull out of the OECD’s international corporate tax reform deal, while others displayed a “told you so” attitude.

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Oxfam Urges Governments to Use U.N. Convention to Tax Richest

  • By Sarah Paez

Noting that EU billionaires grew their collective wealth to €2.2 trillion by the end of 2024, Oxfam International called on EU countries to use the U.N. tax convention to effectively tax the ultrawealthy.

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Businesses Slam EU Countries After U.S. Rejects Global Tax Plan

  • By Elodie Lamer, Sophie Petitjean

The United States’ rejection of the OECD global tax plan shows that there are different approaches to competitiveness on either side of the Atlantic, despite the EU’s promise to declutter its tax system, a business representative said.

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White House Says Global Minimum Tax Has ‘No Force or Effect’

  • By The White House

The OECD global minimum tax rules have “no force or effect within the United States absent an act by the Congress adopting the relevant provisions of the Global Tax Deal,” because they expose American companies to retaliatory international tax regimes, the White House said in a January 20 memorandum.

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International Tax Wish List for 2025: Technical Fixes

  • By Mindy Herzfeld

Mindy Herzfeld examines how proposed updates to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act could be an opportunity to fix its international provisions.

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Illustrations and Critiques of Amount B and the New OECD Excel Tool

  • By J. Harold McClure

J. Harold McClure poses two illustrations of the appropriate profit margin for a distribution affiliate, contrasting the implications of amount B with a more straightforward economic model.

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Trump’s Proposed Tariff Agency Raises Questions, and Confusion, for Experts

  • By Ana Swanson

President Trump wants an External Revenue Service to collect tariffs on imports. One trade expert said the move may be “more branding than substance.”

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Trump Promises Tariffs on Canada and Mexico, and Paves Way for Further Trade Action

  • By Ana Swanson

The president said he planned to put tariffs on America’s neighbors on Feb. 1, as he signed an executive order mandating a sweeping review of U.S. trade policy.

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OECD Targeting Some Transactions to Protect Pillar 2 Integrity


The OECD is working on identifying related-party transactions entered into by taxpayers that may pose integrity concerns under the pillar 2 global minimum tax rules, an OECD tax adviser said.

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Trump’s Tariff Plans Prompt Retaliation Threats From Canada

  • By Amanda Athanasiou

A statement joined by the majority of Canada’s first ministers says that the government could pursue retaliatory measures if U.S. President-elect Trump follows through with threats to introduce tariffs on Canadian imports.

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OECD Issues Another Global Minimum Tax Rule Guidance Package


The OECD has published more administrative guidance for the global minimum tax rules, including a list of legislation temporarily qualified as pillar 2-compliant and advice on deferred tax assets aimed at preserving the rules’ integrity.

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Pillar 2 Permanent Safe Harbor in the Works, Levine Says

  • By Sarah Paez

Technical work is underway on a possible permanent safe harbor for multinational enterprises in scope of the pillar 2 global minimum tax rules, according to Treasury’s top OECD negotiator.

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OECD Publishes Compilation of Global Minimum Tax Guidance, Tools

  • By OECD

The OECD inclusive framework on base erosion and profit shifting has published a variety of tools and guidance regarding the administrative implementation of the global minimum tax under pillar 2 of the OECD's two-pillar tax reform plan, along with a central record of legislation that clarifies the member jurisdictions that have secured transitional qualified status for minimum tax purposes.

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OECD Publishes GLOBE Rules Guidance on Deferred Tax Assets (1)

  • By OECD

The OECD on January 15 published administrative guidance regarding the application of article 9.1 of the global anti-base-erosion model rules to deferred tax assets from benefits arranged by the government or new corporate income tax rates introduced after November 30, 2021.

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OECD Publishes Central Record of Global Minimum Tax Compliance

  • By OECD

The OECD on January 15 published a central record of legislation with transitional qualified status, providing information on the member jurisdictions whose implementation of the global anti-base-erosion model rules has been deemed consistent with the OECD's standard during a transition period.

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OECD Publishes Guidance on GLOBE Information Return

  • By OECD

The OECD on January 15 published a guide on how to complete the global anti-base-erosion information return, including a template that can be used to alert member jurisdictions that they will receive the returns through the exchange of information procedures.

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Trump’s Treasury Pick Defends Plans to Cut Taxes and Raise Tariffs

  • By Alan Rappeport, Andrew Duehren

Scott Besent, President-elect Donald J. Trump’s choice to be Treasury secretary, will be in charge of steering the president’s economic agenda if confirmed by the Senate.

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