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Uzbekistan has joined the international efforts against tax evasion and avoidance by becoming the newest member of the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS.

This new publication from the OECD follows a comprehensive review of the Standard for Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information in Tax Matters (released in 2014). The new standard includes the Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework and amendments to the Common Reporting Standard, along with associated commentaries and exchange of information frameworks.

The OECD recently organised a training session for representatives from the 15 members of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, the Commissions of ECOWAS, and the West African Economic and Monetary Union. This training workshop is part of a three-year training cycle on transfer pricing organised by the OECD.

The European Commission recently welcomed the political agreement reached by EU Finance Ministers on new tax transparency rules for all service providers facilitating transactions in crypto-assets, for customers resident in the EU. In its May Newsletter, the Commission interviewed Henrik Paulander, the responsible Head of Sector in DG TAXUD’s Administrative Cooperation Unit, on the new so-called 'DAC8' rules.

Revenue has published a new manual on the treatment of pensions taxable in Ireland in respect of service in the OECD and certain other international organisations. This manual explains the tax treatment of pensions received by retired employees' resident in Ireland in respect of service in OECD, including certain other international organisations, and how these pensions are dealt with in accordance with international agreement.

Revenue has updated its guidance on Expression of Doubt for income tax, corporation tax and CGT purposes. The amendment, contained in paragraph 3, clarifies that interest will apply where a liability is not paid within 30 days of the relevant assessment.

Revenue has published a new Tax and Duty Manual incorporating previously published dividend withholding tax (DWT) technical guidance notes for Paying Companies Authorised Withholding Agents and Qualifying Intermediaries). Although much of the content is the same, some of the key amendments include: A reminder that intermediaries operating through nominee companies must file a Form 21R in certain instances. The removal of the guidance on the treatment of PEPs, ISAs, and SIPs. The amendment of the guidance on how certain entities/types of entities are dealt with for DWT purposes, removing the list of entities that was in the previous publication, with a link to its guidance on the classification of foreign entities for Irish tax purposes.

Revenue has published three new VAT manuals on the treatment of clothing, human medicines and animal medicines.

Revenue has updated its Tax and Duty Manual  for State aid granted to individuals reflecting the new publication thresholds outlined in the Agricultural Block Exemption Regulation and Finance Act 2023. The publication threshold has been reduced from €60,000 to €10,000.

Revenue has updated its Stamp Duty Manual where duty is to be charged on Irish securities which transferred electronically in accordance with Part 6 SDCA 1999.

Revenue has published a new manual containing guidance on section 83DA SDCA 1999. This new section, introduced in Finance 2022, provides for a full repayment of stamp duty where a residential property is sold for the purposes of an affordable dwelling purchase arrangement under the Affordable Housing Act 2021, within 12 months of its acquisition. The section is effective from 1 June 2023.

Revenue has published a new manual containing guidance on section 83DB SDCA 1999. This new section, introduced in Finance Act 2022, provides a partial repayment of stamp duty where residential property is let under a qualifying lease, including lettings to a housing authority or other approved housing body. The new section amalgamates two pre-existing schemes under sections 83E and 83F SDCA 1999 (both now repealed).

Revenue has updated its Tax and Duty Manual on claiming the rent tax credit. The guidance now includes further information for taxpayers using ROS and those using MyAccount. There is also further information on obtaining the Residential Tenancies Board registration number and for landlords who prefer to report directly to Revenue.

Revenue has published a new manual providing guidance on the new online Non-resident Landlord Withholding Tax (NLWT) system. This system will be operational from 1 July 2023. Finance Act 2022 introduced key changes to the withholding tax provisions for non-resident landlords. Whilst the withholding tax requirement has been a long-standing albeit much maligned feature of Irish tax legislation, collection agents or tenants paying directly to landlords are no longer chargeable persons. The new NLWT system will enable tenants or collection agents to make Rental Notifications when making payments to the non-resident landlord. The notification and accompanying payment need to be submitted within 21 days of the rental payment.

The Temporary Business Energy Support Scheme (TBESS) guidelines have been updated in line with the Finance Act 2023 changes. Chartered Accountants Ireland advocated for these changes back in February. The key changes are the extension of the scheme to 31 July 2023, a reduction in the energy costs threshold to 30 percent, and an increase in the overall payment to 50 percent of eligible costs.

The National Economic Dialogue (NED) 2023, is taking place today, 12 June, in Dublin Castle. The theme of the forum, hosted by both the Department of Finance and Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, is “the economy in 2030: enabling a sustainable future for all.” The NED provides a forum for public consultation and discussion ahead of Budget 2024 later this year. The Institute is being represented at the forum by Cróna Clohisey, Tax and Public Policy Lead. Further information on the event including a link to the livestream can be found on gov.ie. We will provide members with information from the event in Tax News next week.

Employers seeking qualified accountants should consider recruiting from outside the EEA through the Critical Skills Employment Permit, writes Emma Richmond With Ireland now at close to full employment, employers are increasingly facing challenges in recruiting suitably qualified staff to meet their needs. One area in which this challenge is becoming acute is in accountancy and finance.  However, it doesn’t have to be that hard! One solution to tackle this is to broaden the recruitment pool by availing of a work permit to bring in a non-EEA worker to meet the requirement. In recent times, there has been an increase in work permit applications from accountancy firms and, particularly those relating to suitably qualified audit staff. Figures published by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment show that, so far this year, almost 700 work permits have been issued in the finance sector. Through the Critical Skills Work Permit, Irish government policy has strategically targeted the sectors most in need.  The Government is using this permit to attract highly skilled people into the labour market where there are identifiable skills shortages, and with the aim of the holders taking up permanent residence in the State.  The list of roles designated for a Critical Skills Work Permit is updated on a biannual basis following consultation with stakeholders with the aim of ensuring that the permit system is meeting the demands of the market at any given time. The Critical Skills Employment Permit is the ‘golden ticket’ of work permits. It is available to individuals for a role with a minimum salary of €64,000 or where the role is listed on the Critical Skills Employment List and there is a minimum salary of €32,000.  The advantage of this permit is that it offers a spousal permit to any spouse of the holder of the work permit. From the time of their arrival in Ireland, the holder will also begin gaining residency recognition for a future citizenship application. These elements make this type of permit very valuable and attractive to non-EEA nationals looking to relocate to Ireland on a permanent basis. The more common work permit applications processed for accountancy firms relate to the following roles:  qualified accountants with at least three years’ auditing experience; chartered and certified accountants and those specialising in regulation, solvency or financial management; and taxation experts specialising in tax compliance. These roles are all listed on the Critical Skills Employment List and, as such, these permits are granted with relative ease once all the necessary proofs and details have been provided in the application. The current processing time is two to three weeks from the date of application.  It is worth noting that, depending on nationality, prospective employees may still need to apply for a visa if they are coming from a visa-required country, and this should be factored into the lead time when recruiting by this means. The Critical Skills Work Permit provides a fast and effective way of bridging the gap between the demand for suitably qualified accountancy staff and the supply.  Emma Richmond is a Partner with Whitney Moore

Three new reporting requirements are pushing nature and biodiversity up the ESG agenda. Orla Delargy explains why Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) topics are currently top of mind in business and finance. Climate change has dominated under the ‘E’ of ESG, but nature and biodiversity are catching up. Three developments have helped drive the momentum: the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures, the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the new Global Biodiversity Framework. Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures    The latest Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) status report found that over 3,800 organisations support the TCFD and are working towards TCFD-aligned reporting. The question is whether the newer Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) will follow the same path, and whether nature-related disclosures will become mandatory in certain jurisdictions.  Like the TCFD framework, the TNFD proposes disclosures across four pillars: Governance – the organisation’s governance around nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities; Strategy – the actual and potential impacts of nature-related risks and opportunities for the organisation’s businesses, strategy and financial planning where such information is material; Risk & impact management – how the organisation identifies, assesses and manages nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities; and Metrics & targets – the metrics and targets used to assess and manage relevant nature-related dependencies, impacts, risks and opportunities where such information is material. Relatively few organisations have started incorporating biodiversity into their broader ESG governance and strategy. However, over 200 organisations are piloting the TNFD guidance and there is a public consultation currently open, with the first full version of the framework expected in September 2023.  Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive  Where the TNFD is a global, voluntary framework, the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) is EU-specific and mandatory. The CSRD significantly expands the existing rules on non-financial reporting, with close to 50,000 companies across Europe likely to be affected in the coming years.  The CSRD disclosure requirements on biodiversity go much further than the previous reporting directive, requesting information on biodiversity metrics, policies and targets. Again, organisations are asked to identify and assess material impacts, risks and opportunities that relate to biodiversity, and the TNFD is explicitly referenced.  Crucially, organisations are asked to disclose whether they have a transition plan in line with the new Global Biodiversity Framework, agreed during the UN conference in Montreal in December 2022. Global Biodiversity Framework  The overarching vision of the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) is no net loss of biodiversity by 2030, net gain from 2030 and full recovery by 2050. The GBF sets out a plan for the next decade, with four long-term goals and 23 targets, spanning a wide range of topics including spatial planning, nature restoration, invasive alien species, agriculture and climate change. Although almost all the targets are relevant to the private sector, Target 15 stands out. It asks countries to take measures to ensure that organisations assess and disclose their risks, dependencies and impacts on biodiversity. The question is how national governments will interpret this and what measures they will take.  How organisations can use the frameworks Organisations will be encouraged to see the degree of alignment and overlap between emerging frameworks such as the TNFD, CSRD and GBF. The challenge is to get familiar with these frameworks and, crucially, get started now.  As many of the frameworks discussed above are still in development, it is tempting to adopt a ‘wait-and-see’ approach. However, organisations can progress training and capacity building now. This is a new topic for many people but getting informed is the prerequisite for taking the right actions. Orla Delargy is an Associate Director with KPMG

As cyber security comes increasingly under threat, Michael Rooney outlines how businesses can deal with a cyber attack  Accountancy firms are a rich target for hackers because of the types of documents they handle. Beyond the normal personally identifiable information (PII) that they store for clients and employees, accountancy firms also deal with sensitive information on financial transactions, payroll and business affairs. Without a good cyber security strategy, businesses affected by an attack can incur serious costs, including remediation of the security breach, reputation damage and data privacy compliance penalties.  The steps you take after a breach can either increase or reduce the impact. Not having a cyber security response plan can lead to you paying much higher costs due to a delayed reaction. In its Cost of a Data Breach Report 2022, IBM estimated the average global cost of these incidents at €4.43 million. But organisations with a tested incident response plan can reduce that by €2.71 million, a saving of 39 percent. Here are seven steps accountancy firms should take immediately following the discovery of a data breach, ransomware incident or another attack to minimise its impact. 1. Disconnect infected devices from your network Many types of malware are designed to spread throughout a network as fast as possible. This is especially true for ransomware, which locks users out of their files using encryption.  As soon as you discover that a breach has occurred, disconnect the infected device(s) from your network. This includes disconnecting the device from Wi-Fi and any hardwired ethernet connections. You shouldn’t necessarily shut off the device’s power until you’ve spoken to an IT professional. But you should isolate it from other systems, including any syncing cloud services. 2. Have a professional assess the damage Don’t try to deal with a cyber breach yourself or download a free virus scanning tool (it could actually be a malware trap). Instead, once your machine has been isolated, get a trusted IT provider to assess the damage and provide guidance.  3. Remediate the infection  Once the breach is assessed, your IT security expert will begin remediating the breach. This will secure your network so your client files or sensitive business information isn’t stolen while you’re dealing with the fallout.  4. Determine whether client data was breached Find out what type of data was compromised e.g. client database, sensitive cloud documents. It is important to determine the extent of the breach so you can notify impacted third parties (such as your clients) whose data might have been exposed. 5. Contact accountancy enforcement and the police Report the incident to accountancy enforcement and the police. This has several benefits: You have a record of the incident for any potential insurance claims. Accountancy enforcement can track the breach, which may connect to others that have been reported. Your police report can be referred to in data privacy compliance reports and this shows responsibility on the part of your organisation. 6. Carry out a notification plan according to data privacy requirements Review the data privacy regulations that your office is subject to, such as General Data Protection Regulation, and notify third parties in accordance with these guidelines. If notification isn’t made in a timely manner, it can lead to penalties, as well as a significant loss of trust in your business. 7. Improve defences to stop future breaches Reinforce your defences by having a cyber security assessment performed. This can help an IT provider pinpoint specific weaknesses in your network that need to be fortified to ensure this type of attack doesn’t happen again. Michael Rooney is Managing Director of FutureRange