Premier Dr. Orlando Smith said Friday afternoon that he was shocked to learn yesterday that the government of France has added the Virgin Islands to its list of uncooperative tax havens.
“When I saw that news I was really shocked because we have done the necessary things,” Dr. Smith said Friday during a press conference.
He listed the VI’s 2010 Tax Information Exchange Agreement with France and signing on to the pilot multilateral information exchange programme with five European countries, which also includes France.
The premier said his office will be investigating why French officials might blacklist the VI and make sure that any problems are corrected “so that we can continue to have a good relationship with France.”
According to a report from Reuters, the VI has responded to 31 of 41 requests for information from France, but Dr. Smith said today that government’s policy is to respond to all “true” requests.
For requests that aren’t clear or seem to be missing information, the International Tax Authority, the unit that receives the requests, would correspond with the requester to get further information, such as a reason for the request, Dr. Smith said.
France also added Jersey and Bermuda to the blacklist.
See full the Sept. 5, 2013 edition for full coverage.
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