A report on Bermuda's progress in meeting international tax transparency standards will be made public at a major international conference in Singapore today.

The Island is expected to pass the test — with some suggestions for improvements — as judged by an international Peer Review Group at the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development's Global Forum 2010 meeting.

More than 200 delegates from 75 of the Forum's 95 member jurisdictions are taking part in the meeting, which started yesterday and concludes today.

A Peer Review Group of 30 countries, chaired by France — whose President Nicholas Sarkozy has been one of the most outspoken critics of "tax havens" — will give its verdict on the progress of Bermuda and seven other countries at a press conference early today at the famous Raffles hotel.

"Bermuda met all required elements considered for the peer review, albeit there are some suggestions for enhancements," Financial Secretary Donald Scott told The Royal Gazette yesterday.

"The proposed enhancements will be considered by Ministry of Finance, in consultation with industry, so that Bermuda's competitive position is sustained in the global financial services markets."

While Finance Minister Paula Cox and Mr. Scott were in New York yesterday for the Business Bermuda Annual Financial Services Conference, Bermuda was represented in Singapore by the Finance Ministry's Treaty Unit.

The delegation is headed by Assistant Financial Secretary Wayne Brown, along with treaty adviser Laura Hershey, research officer Dennis Simons and legal adviser Shakira Dill, from the Attorney General's Chambers.

Bermuda is sharing the vice-chairmanship of the OECD Global Forum Steering Group with China and Germany, under the chairmanship of Australia.

The Island will also host the 2011 Plenary Global Forum Meeting next spring and so the team is "taking note of the detailed organisational work required by a host country", Mr. Scott added.

The other countries whose progress reports will be examined by the Peer Review Group are Botswana, the Cayman Islands, India, Jamaica, Monaco, Panama and Qatar.

Francois d'Aubert, an official charged by the French government with cracking down on tax fraud who chairs the Peer Review Group, made it clear in comments to AFP that he was be calling for tighter transparency standards.

He said "a much tougher system" will be introduced including tighter information-disclosure requirements. Mr. D'Aubert added that two jurisdictions had failed this first examination and if the Forum followed the recommendations of the reviewing group, they would not proceed to the second stage of the examination.

He did not name the two countries.

Bermuda is already on the OECD's "white list" of countries deemed to be implementing international tax transparency standards, having cleared the qualifying hurdle of 12 tax information exchange agreements signed back in June 2009. It currently has 21 TIEAs signed and another nine agreed in principle.

Since early last year, the OECD has stepped up its efforts to combat cross-border tax evasion and avoidance, prompted by strong condemnation of "tax havens" from world leaders including US President Barack Obama, Mr. Sarkozy and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown.

A briefing paper issued ahead of the Singapore meeting stated: "Tax avoidance and tax evasion threaten government revenues throughout the world. In many developed countries, the sums run into billions of euros and developing countries lose vital revenue through tax evasion.

"Better transparency and information exchange for tax purposes are key to ensuring that taxpayers have no place to hide their income and assets and that they pay the right amount of tax in the right place."

The reviews are the first step in a three-year process approved by the Global Forum in response to the call by the Group of 20 (G20) leaders at their Pittsburgh Summit in September 2009 for improved tax transparency and exchange of information.

In March this year, Mike Rawstron, the Australian chairman of the Global Forum Steering Group, said: "This is the most comprehensive, in-depth review on international tax cooperation ever. There has been a lot of progress over the past 18 months, but with these reviews we are putting international tax cooperation under a magnifying glass."

He added that those jurisdictions found not to be implementing required standards effectively would be provided with guidance on the changes required and a deadline to report back on the improvements made.

The aim is to ensure that the TIEAs work as they're supposed to.

The peer review process involves a two-phase process. Phase one is an examination of each jurisdiction's legal and regulatory framework, while phase two deals with practical implementation of the standards on transparency and the exchange of tax information.

The reviews will also involve an "in-depth ongoing monitoring of legal instruments which allow for exchange of information", according to the OECD documents.