The Lead Story
UN Tax Treaty Talks Shift Into Gear
The world’s tax diplomats have officially traded their opening statements for red pens. Over the past two weeks, United Nations members convened the first substantive negotiations for a Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation, a move Human Rights Watch calls a “historic opportunity to advance socio-economic rights” (Human Rights Watch).
For decades the OECD has dominated global rule-making, but the UN General Assembly’s one-country-one-vote format is changing the tenor,and the guest list,of the conversation. The United States walked out during February’s opening session and signaled it will reject any final deal, yet more than 60 other governments,including initially skeptical EU members,stuck around to hammer out text during the first of eight scheduled meetings.
Negotiators agreed to shape a framework convention plus two protocols: one on cross-border services, another on dispute prevention and resolution. The draft is slated for delivery to the Assembly’s 87th session in 2027. As one delegate quipped in the hallways, “We’ve moved from if we need new rules to how fast we can write them,” HRW reports.
The reaction was swift across the tax community. Advocates for developing nations say the UN venue finally gives smaller economies equal footing, while multinationals worry about a fresh layer of compliance just as they finish digesting OECD Pillar Two.
Around the Tax World
• Indonesia’s balancing act. With the U.S. pressuring on Pillar Two and regional partners pulling toward China, Indonesia’s tax chief warned the country is “between a rock and a hard place,” according to the International Tax Review article “Turmoil in international tax: what should Indonesia do?” (ITR).
• UK billionaire says ‘tax the bookies.’ Phones 4U founder John Caudwell endorsed a think-tank proposal to hike online gambling taxes, saying it could raise £3.2 billion and lift 500,000 children out of poverty (Sky News).
• Alphabet soup, but make it fun. International Tax Review profiled Wong & Partners’ Adeline Wong, who likens reading new legislation to “solving a puzzle,just bring a sturdy coffee mug” (ITR).
• $63 billion relief for U.S. seniors. Upcoming Social Security tweaks are set to slash retiree tax bills beginning in 2026, The Economic Times reports (Economic Times).
• Auckland Airport rebounds. After a bruising tax hit last year, the Kiwi hub posted a solid jump in net income, notes RNZ (RNZ).
Tax Stat of the Day
£3.2 billion , the revenue a proposed UK online gambling levy could raise, enough to fund child-poverty measures, according to analysis cited by Sky News.
Looking Ahead
Seven more UN negotiation rounds are penciled in before 2027. All eyes are now on the next session in November, where drafters will tackle the thorny question of digital services,just as OECD Pillar One hangs in the balance.
Prepared by MyTax - mytax.com.ng