2025

This article examines tax sovereignty as the ability of a political community to design a fiscal system that supports its collective self-determination, emphasizing that sovereignty is rooted in legitimate authority rather than mere power. It explores the challenges globalization poses to tax sovereignty, particularly its impact on the state’s capacity to provide public goods, promote distributive justice, and uphold political participation. The article warns that globalization, if unchecked, could erode substantive tax sovereignty and questions how states can maintain viable and legitimate tax systems in a competitive global environment. It concludes by evaluating cooperative measures, arguing that such cooperation must prioritize leveling the international tax playing field and progressively allocating its benefits to sustain substantive tax sovereignty.

This article discusses the integral role of tax in advancing sustainable development goals (SDGs) and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) frameworks, emphasizing the shared responsibility of governments and businesses in achieving sustainability. It argues that corporate tax governance should align with an organization's sustainability commitments, values, and principles, with sustainable tax practices being a board-level priority. Companies dedicated to SDG and ESG objectives should expand upon corporate social responsibility (CSR) principles, recognizing an ethical obligation to pay a fair share of tax and maintain proactive transparency to enhance accountability. Key challenges include fostering a mindset shift to integrate tax into ESG frameworks and developing a public transparency benchmark that provides detailed tax data for analyzing corporate tax performance effectively.