India urges BRICS nations for wider info sharing under tax treaties

India on Friday called on BRICS nations to agree for wider sharing of information under tax treaties and underlined the need to tax emerging business models using digital mediums.

At a virtual meeting of the heads of BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) countries to discuss the response of tax authorities to the COVID-19 pandemic and to explore potential areas of cooperation in tax matters, Finance Secretary Ajay Bhushan Pandey highlighted various measures taken by India to mitigate the effects of the pandemic on the taxpayers including deferment of compliance requirements, reduced rate of interest on delayed payments and reduction in withholding tax rates.

The tax heads of other BRICS nations shared the measures taken by their respective tax administrations and their thoughts on other agenda items like tax challenges posed by digitalisation and exchange of information.

"The finance secretary, while extending India's support to the ongoing work in OECD/G-20 project on addressing tax challenges posed by digitalisation, underlined the need to ensure that the new tax rules are fair and simple. It should also be flexible enough to cover new or emerging business models," an official statement issued after the meeting said.

Pandey highlighted the need for adopting a 'Whole of Government Approach' in dealing with cross-border financial crimes as they have ramifications in respect of various statutes, not only taxation.

"He urged the BRICS countries to agree for wider sharing of information exchanged under tax treaties for countering corruption, money laundering and terrorist financing," the statement added.