George Town, Grand Cayman – In the practical application of its legal and regulatory systems, the Cayman Islands has been found to be transparent and robust, according to an independent assessment by the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes.

The Global Forum is the world’s largest international tax body, with 119 member jurisdictions now committed to implementing its standards.  Cayman’s assessment was undertaken between July 2012 and January 2013, and the Global Forum’s findings were published today in its Phase 2 Peer Review Report.

Overall feedback included peers’ acknowledgement of Cayman’s clear and coherent communication, as well as the quality of its cooperation and speed in response times, during the course of an exchange of information request. The report also states that Cayman’s exchange process is very well organised for handling requests, and that the jurisdiction is well resourced, with knowledgeable personnel, in this area.

Minister for Financial Services, the Hon. Rolston Anglin, said Cayman has had similar outcomes following other multinational, independent reviews of its structure. He noted that the Global Forum results should indicate again, to politicians, advocacy groups and the general public, that Cayman’s financial services industry operates within a sound legal and regulatory framework in regard to the exchange of information for tax purposes.

‘We’ve developed, and we remain committed to enhancing, this framework not just because we know there’s a misperception about Cayman that stubbornly persists and is promulgated, perhaps innocently, by certain groups, but because we know that Cayman will have a stable economy only if we continue to attract good and responsible business,’ he said.

‘And every country – no matter how small, and regardless of its topography – should be allowed to build a strong economy, as long as it fulfils its responsibilities to the global economy’.

Conducted by the Global Forum’s Peer Review Group (PRG), Phase 2 assessments review member jurisdictions’ practical application of legal and regulatory systems for the exchange of information for tax purposes. Phase 2 builds on the PRG’s Phase 1 assessments, which evaluate the quality of member jurisdictions’ legal and regulatory framework for the exchange of information for tax purposes.

Cayman’s Phase 1 Peer Review Report was published in 2010, and its Supplementary Report to Phase 1 was published in 2011. The Phase 2 report published today states that Cayman has addressed all of the recommendations contained in the Phase 1 report and therefore , all elements from the Phase 1 review are rated as being ‘in place’.

Government agencies that provided assistance and / or information to the PRG during the Phase 2 assessment were the Attorney General’s Chambers; the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority; the Tax Information Authority; and the Financial Services Secretariat. During the review’s on-island component, the assessment team also met with representatives of the Cayman Islands Compliance Association.

The Cayman Islands is a member of the Global Forum’s Steering Group, which prepares and guides the forum’s work. It also is a member of the forum’s PRG, which is responsible for the peer review process.

In addition to the Phase 2 report, the Cayman Islands’ financial services regime has been assessed favourably by, among other transnational bodies, the Global Financial Centres Index in 2013 and the Financial Stability Board in 2011.

Also, in 2012, research conducted by Professor Jason Sharman of Griffith University in Australia found that Cayman had a ‘perfect compliance record’ in terms of collecting all of the identify information required by the Financial Action Task Force’s anti money-laundering regulations.

The next step in the peer review process will be the preparation of Phase 2 jurisdictional ratings, which are expected to be discussed and assigned at the September 2013 PRG meeting in Paris.

The link to Cayman’s Phase 2 report is http://eoi-tax.org/jurisdictions/KY#p2