Noel Rock (Dublin North West, Fine Gael)
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71. To ask the Minister for Finance the steps being taken by his Department to remove Ireland from a blacklist of tax havens by the Department of Federal Revenue of Brazil; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29291/16]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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I was surprised and disappointed to learn that the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service added Ireland to Brazil's tax black list.  I understand that the operation of the listing was initially backdated to 1 August but was subsequently suspended until 1 October.  No notice of this decision was given to the Irish Government by the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service.   

Efforts to seek Ireland's removal from this list have been undertaken by my Department and the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade.  Ireland's ambassador to Brazil is leading our engagement with the Brazilian Federal Revenue Service to seek Ireland's removal from this list as soon as possible.  A formal request for the listing to be suspended has been filed with the Brazilian Revenue and we are awaiting a reply to this request.  My officials are in close contact with the Ambassador and supporting these efforts.

I strongly reject any allegations that we are a tax haven.  Ireland does not meet any of the international standards for being considered a tax haven.  Ireland is fully compliant with all international best practices in the areas of tax transparency and exchange of information.  Ireland's corporate tax policies are designed to attract real and substantive operations to Ireland. Ireland has not been and will never will be a brass-plate location.  We only have and want real substantive FDI, the kind that brings real jobs and investment into Ireland.  Ireland is an active participant in global work to reform the international corporate tax system.  We have implemented Country by Country Reporting, agreed the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive and are working towards the implementation of the remaining OECD BEPS recommendations both domestically and internationally.