BRICS economies must shape global tax rules for next generation, says FM Sitharaman
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said BRICS countries need to ensure their views are reflected in the new global tax rules, as decisions taken in the next few years could shape cross-border taxation for a generation.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman emphasized Thursday that decisions made in ongoing multilateral tax negotiations over the coming years will set the standard for international tax rules for an entire generation. Speaking at the BRICS Tax Heads Meeting in New Delhi, Sitharaman stressed the necessity for BRICS economies to shape the emerging global tax framework, ensuring their concerns are incorporated.Sitharaman stated that the rules of international taxation are being renegotiated through several multilateral processes, including the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation.
She noted that the decisions taken in these processes over the next few years will determine cross-border taxation for generations to come.Sitharaman highlighted that BRICS economies, as source jurisdictions and large developing nations that have developed substantial domestic tax capacities from a low starting point, possess valuable insights to contribute to these negotiations.
Their perspectives are critical to the fairness and longevity of international tax rules, she argued.The Finance Minister emphasized that cooperation among BRICS tax administrations aims to establish institutions and tools that will persist beyond India's current chairmanship. These working groups exist because each country in the room has faced these challenges, and they create the enduring institutional framework necessary to make progress continue, regardless of who holds the chair.Sitharaman outlined the new working groups on international taxation and transfer pricing, as well as revenue statistics, as tools designed to tackle shared challenges faced by member countries.
She pointed out India's experience in leveraging technology in tax administration, such as faceless assessment, pre-filled returns, real-time invoice authentication, and AI-enabled taxpayer assistance. She identified technology, the use of data, and digital infrastructure as central themes emerging from BRICS tax cooperation.Sitharaman revealed that the BRICS tax collaboration tool, tax knowledge hub, and cross-learning lab were being developed as practical instruments, not just policy initiatives.
The tax collaboration tool, the tax knowledge hub, and the cross-learning lab are all working instruments developed through sustained effort across the working groups.Several months ago, Revenue Secretary Arvind Shrivastava announced the proposed International Taxation and Transfer Pricing Working Group, which would create a permanent BRICS platform for sharing expertise on treaty interpretation, transfer pricing audits, and other tax mechanisms.
Shrivastava stressed that in multilateral tax negotiations, a collective voice is needed, yet the current collective voice is insufficient.
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