Commission to present proposals introducing public reporting requirements for the largest companies operating in the EU

The Commission will today present a proposal which leads the way towards greater corporate tax transparency by introducing public reporting requirements for the largest companies operating in the EU. The plans will build on the Commission’s work to tackle corporate tax avoidance in Europe, estimated to cost EU countries EUR 50-70 billion a year in lost tax revenues, and supplements other measures such as the introduction sharing of information between tax authorities. The proposal is a simple, proportionate way to increase large multinationals’ accountability on tax matters without damaging their competitiveness. It will apply to thousands of large firms operating in the EU, without affecting small and medium sized companies. Speaking ahead of the launch of the proposal, Jonathan Hill, Commissioner for Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union said: “This is a carefully thought through but ambitious proposal for more transparency on tax. While our proposal on CBCR is not of course focused principally on the response to the Panama papers, there is an important connection between our continuing work on tax transparency and tax havens that we are building into the proposal”. Follow the press conference with Commissioner Hill live from Strasbourg on EbS at 15h00. The press conference will be followed by technical briefings for accredited journalists in Brussels (Berlaymont Press Room) and Strasbourg (Room WIC 700). A press release will become available here.