The US Department of the Treasury propose that the global minimum tax rate could be 15 percent in its recent meetings with the OECD/ G20 to discuss the reform of the international corporate tax framework.

Officials from the US Treasury’s Office of Tax Policy recently participated in meetings with the Steering Group of the Inclusive Framework on base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) as part of the OECD / G20 international tax negotiations.

At the meetings, the US Treasury expressed its belief that the international tax architecture must be stabilised, that the global playing field must be fair, and create an environment in which countries work together to maintain their tax bases and ensure the global tax system is equitable and equipped to meet the needs of the 21^st century global economy.

The US Treasury stated that there was a need to work multilaterally to end the pressures of corporate tax competition and corporate tax base erosion. In their view, there has been a race to the bottom on corporate taxes which is undermining the United States’ and other countries’ ability to raise the revenue needed to make critical investments and they believe that a global minimum corporate tax rate would level the playing field in the taxation of multinational corporations.

According to the press release, Treasury officials proposed that the global minimum tax rate should be at least 15 percent.