GEORGE TOWN, Grand Cayman, 17 April 2013

In the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD’s) latest Global Forum Peer Review report, Cayman has been lauded for its “robust and transparent” legal and regulatory regime. 
An initiative established by the OECD in 2000 in response to its member countries demands for greater transparency from low tax jurisdictions, the Global Forum was established as a multilateral framework that investigates transparency and exchange of information of both OECD and non-OECD countries. The Cayman Islands is a member of the Peer Review Steering Group and the Peer Review Group.

The report commends Cayman’s financial industry for its clear and efficient system for releasing information and noted the quality of its cooperation and speedy responses to exchange of information requests, echoing the Government Accountability Report of 2008 which noted that the “Cayman government had been responsive to taxpayer-specific information requests”. The report also found Cayman’s exchange of information process to be well organised, well-resourced and adequately staffed with knowledgeable personnel.

The Cayman Islands has co-operated and complied with every international transparency initiative, based on a level playing field, for the past thirty years. The jurisdiction now has 31 tax information exchange agreements (one is a double tax treaty) and has to the greatest extent implemented the recommendations from the first phase review in 2010.

Rob Leadbetter, Chairman of the Insurance Managers Association of Cayman (IMAC) welcomed this latest report: “Cayman has a solid legal and regulatory framework that is based on a platform of tax transparency and the provision of a stable and responsive business environment. I can only hope that the commendations in this report will be heard far and wide and people will start to understand that Cayman is a successful international financial centre because of this high level of compliance and infrastructure”.