Paris, 6 November 2015 - At the 3rd OECD Global Forum on Value Added Tax (VAT) and Goods and Services Tax (GST) held in Paris today, BIAC welcomed the endorsement of the completed OECD International VAT/GST Guidelines and called for their consistent implementation globally to remove VAT/GST obstacles to cross-border trade in services and intangibles.

Bernhard Welschke, Secretary General of BIAC, said that “The Guidelines are a milestone for the global business community and a foundation for further work on the removal of obstacles to international trade and investment created by globally inconsistent VAT/GST rules”.

The Global Forum brought together senior officials from over 100 delegations representing governments, international organizations, business representatives and academia to discuss progress made in the development of the International VAT/GST Guidelines. The Guidelines were endorsed by governments as an International Standard to address issues of double taxation and unintended non-taxation resulting from inconsistencies in the application of VAT to international trade.

Paris, 5 October 2015 – “The BEPS project needed to happen, and the OECD and G20 should be congratulated both for their hard work and for achieving high-level consensus across many issues”, said BIAC Tax Committee Chair Will Morris today on the occasion of the long-awaited release of the OECD’s 2015 BEPS deliverables package. “Moreover this high-level consensus was achieved while working to an exceptionally ambitious timetable.”

“Business does still have concerns that some of the recommendations may lead to double taxation of income, and many important details remain to be worked out. We look forward to working with the OECD and G20 on those”, Morris added. “Nevertheless, BIAC has always acknowledged that modifications were required to international tax rules in order to keep pace with rapid globalization, and we believe that the broad direction of many of the BEPS recommendations will help with this. But this next – implementation – phase will be crucial.”

Istanbul, 5 October 2015 – “Mobilizing private investment that supports sustainable economic growth should be a priority for governments around the world”, said BIAC Secretary General Bernhard Welschke at the OECD/G20 Global Forum on International Investment today. “In the global business community, there is a new sense of urgency for governments to refrain from conflicting requirements for investors and adverse measures such as the forced localization of data.”

Paris, 9 September 2015 – At the B20 Conference in Ankara (Turkey) on 3-5 September, BIAC Secretary-General Bernhard Welschke and Chair of the BIAC Taxation and Fiscal Policy Committee Will Morris welcomed the B20 recommendation on taxation and BEPS which emphasizes the need to encourage trade and investment flows especially in relation to infrastructure and cross border Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).

Paris, 1 July 2015 – “China and the OECD need each other now more than ever,” said Joerg Wuttke, Chair of the BIAC China Task Force, commenting on the visit of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang to the OECD Headquarters in Paris. “As Chinese companies ramp-up overseas investment, and as OECD-based companies continue to sow investments in China, a new and enhanced program for China-OECD cooperation should benefit both parties” he added.

Paris, 30 June 2015 – “BIAC considers the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) as an essential instrument for companies to navigate markets, to reduce risk, and to follow good practice in responsible business conduct”, said BIAC Secretary General Bernhard Welschke following the launch of a new BIAC publication for business on the MNE Guidelines.

Paris/Ankara, 15 June 2015 – “For SMEs to benefit more fully from global value chains, urgent actions are needed to improve the coordination of financial regulations, strengthen access to financing and skills, and maximize the sharing of information through digital platforms,” said Bernhard Welschke, BIAC Secretary-General, commenting today on the release of a BIAC-B20 Turkey special publication.
Faced with the slowest post-crisis global investment recovery since the early 1970s, there is a pressing need to unlock growth, investment and jobs. However, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) – which account for the majority of employment and over half of value-added in OECD countries – have struggled to access the financing they require to participate in and across world markets as banks have deleveraged to meet new regulatory requirements.

Paris, 10 June 2015 – BIAC continues to support the G20 mandated Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) project, and has always sought to provide constructive and detailed input from the international business community across the full spectrum of OECD’s Action Items.
As the project enters its final phase, BIAC is releasing its BEPS Position Paper detailing specific concerns of the business community over the full range of BEPS Actions. The BEPS Position Paper aims to more closely focus the scope of the recommendations, with the aim of achieving a pragmatic, flexible and incremental approach to tax policy development. BIAC believes this will help tackle the important issues of base erosion and profit shifting that have concerned governments and their electorates, while at the same time protecting, and indeed encouraging where possible, the cross-border trade and investment that leads to critically needed growth and jobs.

Paris, 4 June 2015 – “Actions are urgently needed to step-up SME financing and enable companies to participate in global value chains”, said Phil O’Reilly, Chairman of BIAC, speaking today at a BIAC-B20 Turkey special event.

Challenges in accessing appropriate financing are often most acute for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and thus, their ability to participate in and across world markets. As banks continue to deleverage to meet new regulatory requirements, SMEs struggle to obtain sufficient finance through bank lending.

Paris, 3 June 2015 – “Policymakers must foster widespread confidence if they want to restore investment flows”, said BIAC Chair Phil O’Reilly at the OECD Council Meeting at Ministerial level (MCM) today. “Structural reforms are urgently needed to deliver growth that is stronger, more sustainable and more inclusive in the longer-term”.

BIAC welcomes the focus of this year’s MCM which takes place under the overarching theme of Unlocking investment for Sustainable Growth and Jobs. Business calls upon the OECD to speak up and convince countries of the need to remove the most persistent barriers to markets and put in place pro-investment policies.