The Swiss Finance Department has said that changes to tax law are not currently needed in response to developments in distributed ledger technology and blockchain.

The Swiss Federal Council has launched a consultation on the amendments to the VAT law, with a focus on the tax treatment of mail order businesses and the administrative burden on SMEs.

Switzerland has proposed introducing the value-added tax reverse charge mechanism for domestic transactions in emission allowances.

The Swiss Government is anticipating a shortfall in tax receipts of over CHF5bn in 2020.

Switzerland's Federal Department of Finance is extending the time limit within which tourists can export goods purchased in the country tax free.

Switzerland has signed protocols to its double taxation agreements with Cyprus, Liechtenstein, and Malta to implement minimum standards developed as part of the OECD's BEPS project.

On July 20, 2020, the French Government published in the Official Gazette a decree to expand the list of jurisdictions exempt from local filing reporting requirements under the country's country-by-country reporting regime.

Effective August 1, 2020, Switzerland relaxed the rules for tourists seeking to export goods free from tax.

Russia's double tax agreements with Hong Kong and Switzerland are next on the radar for authorities in Russia, who are seeking to ensure the country can subject to at least 15 percent withholding tax outbound dividends and interest payments.

The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released the text of an arbitration agreement between the US and Switzerland, in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2020-35, published August 24.

The Swiss Government has confirmed it will extend a tax exemption for surface disinfectants in light of COVID-19.

On August 26, 2020, the Swiss Federal Council ratified a new double taxation agreement with Bahrain and a Protocol to revise its DTA with Kuwait.

Russia's Ministry of Finance has announced that it signed a Protocol to amend its double tax agreement with Cyprus on September 8, 2020.

Russia's Government has approved wording for a draft Protocol that it will seek to conclude with Malta, to revise their double tax agreement to increase withholding tax rates at source for cross-border dividends and interest income.

On September 11, 2020, the Swiss Federal Council launched a consultation on proposals for the total revision of the customs system.

The Cyprus Tax Department has released ten-year government bond yield rates for five new territories, to support businesses in calculating claims for Cyprus's Notional Interest Deduction. The rates are for Bermuda, Denmark, Jordan, Portugal, and Switzerland.

In an October 15, 2020, statement, the Swiss Government announced it will not pay interest on federal taxes paid early.

The Swiss Federal Council has approved proposed legislative changes to alter how the country interprets double tax agreement provisions.

On November 17, 2020, Luxembourg's tax authority published Circular LG – Conv. DI no. 66, outlining the changes made by the BEPS multilateral instrument (BEPS MLI) to the double tax agreement in place with Switzerland.

Germany and Pakistan have deposited their instrument of ratification with the OECD to bring into force the BEPS multilateral instrument for their networks of tax treaties.

On December 23, 2020, Switzerland and Italy signed a new agreement on the taxation of cross-border commuters and an amendment to their existing double taxation agreement.

A group of experts assessing the Swiss tax regime has drawn up an action plan on improving Switzerland's international tax competitiveness.

As part of its commitment to fighting cross-border tax evasion and profit shifting, Switzerland sent information on over 3m financial accounts in 2021, according to a new review of the Swiss financial center by the State Secretariat for International Financial Matters.

At its meeting on May 18, 2022, the Swiss Federal Council approved the dispatch on the introduction of the automatic exchange of information on financial accounts (AEOI) with 12 other partner countries.

Saudi Arabia has announced its decision to increase its headline value-added tax rate to 15 percent from five percent, in a surprise break from the Gulf Cooperation Council's harmonized value-added tax framework.

Tax revenues fell in 2019 in two-thirds of economies across Asia and the Pacific as a result of an economic slowdown prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new OECD report.

As part of its commitment to fighting cross-border tax evasion and profit shifting, Switzerland sent information on over 3m financial accounts in 2021, according to a new review of the Swiss financial center by the State Secretariat for International Financial Matters.

On March 10, the OECD released a new VAT Digital Toolkit for Asia-Pacific (APAC) nations. The toolkit is intended to support local tax authorities to better collect value-added tax on e-commerce activities.

On May 1, 2020, the United States Internal Revenue Service Large Business and International Division announced a new compliance campaign focusing on the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and the recently enacted Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act.

On May 4, 2020, a bill was introduced in the United States House of Representatives to limit the impact of the Global Intangible Low Tax Income regime on businesses based in US territories and possessions.

On May 7, 2020, the United States Internal Revenue Service issued a reminder to employers affected by COVID-19 about the tax credits made available to them under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.

French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has said that the Government intends to introduce a digital services tax this year.

On May 15, 2020, the United States House of Representatives approved the HEROES Act, which amends previous COVID-19-related stimulus legislation by changing loss carryback rules and providing further tax support for businesses and individuals.

On May 19, 2020, the United States Treasury Department and the Internal Revenue Service issued an Announcement which clarifies the interpretation of references in US income tax treaties to the North American Free Trade Agreement once it is replaced by the Agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada.

The Office of the US Trade Representative has announced that the US will impose additional duties of 25 percent on imports of certain French products from next year in response to the country's decision to introduce a digital services tax.

On July 13, 2020, the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued a progress report on the last two years' work of the J5 group of five advanced countries, who are working collaboratively to tackle cross-border tax fraud.

The OECD has released peer review reports reviewing nine territories' progress towards implementing the BEPS Action 14 standard, on improving tax dispute resolution.

The US Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has released the text of an arbitration agreement between the US and Switzerland, in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2020-35, published August 24.

German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz is optimistic that an international agreement on taxing the digital economy will be reached this year.

Cyprus has announced that a deal for the exchange of country-by-country reports between the territory and the US is expected to become effective and cover reporting years starting on or after January 1, 2020.

French Minister of Finance Bruno Le Maire has reportedly said that France intends to collect the country's digital services tax in December 2020.

The Government of the British Virgin Islands has announced that it will seek to boost tax collections by modernizing tax administration, not by imposing new taxes.

The Internal Revenue Service is reminding US citizens, resident aliens, and any domestic legal entity that the deadline to file their annual Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) is still April 15, 2021.

The US Internal Revenue Service has issued a reminder to taxpayers who pay estimated taxes that they have until June 15 to pay their estimated tax payment for the second quarter of tax year 2021 without incurring a penalty.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told a congressional hearing on June 17, 2020, that the US Government has withdrawn from international negotiations on new global tax rules for digital companies at the OECD.

The European Commission has launched an in-depth investigation into a Belgian "tax shelter scheme" which supports video game production.

The OECD has released its Taxing Wages 2020 report, which highlights that taxes on labor across the OECD countries fell for the sixth consecutive year in 2019.

On May 13, 2020, the Belgian tax authority announced that the competent authorities of Belgium and Germany have concluded an agreement which clarifies the tax situation of cross-border workers in the context of the COVID-19 health crisis.

On May 15, 2020, the Belgian tax authority announced that taxpayers who timely filed their value-added tax declarations but were then informed that they submitted late or made an error in their submission to ignore such notifications due to technical issues with the VAT filing system.

On May 15, 2020, the competent authorities of Belgium and France concluded an agreement which clarifies the tax situation of cross-border workers in the context of the COVID-19 health crisis.