Costa Rica removed from the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes

On October 17, 2023, three jurisdictions were removed from the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes: Costa Rica, British Virgin Islands and Marshall Islands.

With these updates, the EU list consists of 16 jurisdictions.

The EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes was established in December 2017. It is part of the EU’s external strategy on taxation and aims to contribute to ongoing efforts to promote tax good governance worldwide.

Jurisdictions are assessed on the basis of a set of criteria laid down by the Council. These criteria cover tax transparency, fair taxation and implementation of international standards designed to prevent tax base erosion and profit shifting. The chair of the code of conduct group conducts political and procedural dialogues with relevant international organisations and jurisdictions, where necessary.

Work on the list is a dynamic process. Since 2020, the Council updates the list twice a year. The next revision of the list is scheduled for February 2024.

This EU list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions includes countries that either have not engaged in a constructive dialogue with the EU on tax governance or have failed to deliver on their commitments to implement the necessary reforms. Those reforms should aim to comply with a set of objective tax good governance criteria, which include tax transparency, fair taxation and implementation of international standards designed to prevent tax base erosion and profit shifting.

Costa Rica was delisted because it has amended the harmful aspects of its foreign source income exemption regime.