Base Erosion and Profit Shifting: The New Framework of International Taxation

Abstract

Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) refers to a set of tax avoidance practices that deny the tax revenues to a nation by eroding the tax base of the nation where economic activities generating the profits are performed and where value is created, by shifting the tax incidence to locations where no or low taxes are payable (tax havens). BEPS can be achieved through the use of transfer pricing tactics, treaty shopping, digital economy maneuverings and other dubious means. The term BEPS has been used in a project headed by the OECD which produced final reports in October 2015 in response to fifteen action points agreed previously (July 2013). The BEPS project is an attempt by the world’s major economies to rewrite the rules on corporate international taxation so as to address the widespread perception that the corporations, especially MNCs, don’t pay their fair share of taxes. It seeks to ensure that MNCs report profits where economic activities are carried out and value is created.