[OffshorePrivacy]

The Cayman Islands’ government on June 23 signed a Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with Ireland at a ceremony held at the British Embassy in Berlin.

Signing the agreement on behalf of the Cayman Islands was the Leader of Government Business/Premier Designate and Minister for Financial Services, McKeeva Bush. Commenting at the signing, he said:

“The Cayman Islands is pleased to sign this agreement today with Ireland, marking another important step towards our ongoing commitment to international cooperation and OECD standards for transparency and exchange of information on tax matters. This signing will commemorate the beginning of what I am sure will be a highly productive and mutually rewarding relationship between the Cayman Islands and Ireland.”

He added: “Our newly formed ‘negotiation team’ has worked tirelessly to secure technical agreements quickly. Our signing last week of a Double Taxation Agreement with the UK together with today’s signing is a direct result of their commitment and hard work. We look forward to continuing these efforts and I am confident that we will be on the OECD’s white list very soon.”

Signing on behalf of the Irish government, Martin Mansergh, Minister of State at the Irish Department of Finance, said:

“We are very pleased to sign a TIEA with the Cayman Islands. It is concrete evidence of the significant progress that has been made in recent months. Ireland welcomes the commitment of the Cayman Islands to implement the OECD standards of transparency and exchange of information in tax matters and their willingness to enter into tax information exchange agreements. The signing of this agreement represents a new chapter in relations between Ireland and the Cayman Islands.”

The Cayman Islands now maintains ten bilateral tax information agreements with the following countries: United States, United Kingdom, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Norway and Sweden.

Ireland has now signed four Tax Information Exchange agreements, having recently concluded agreements with the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey. According to a statement from the Irish government an additional TIEA with Gibraltar is expected to be signed soon.