Paschal Donohoe (Dublin Central, Fine Gael)
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Primary responsibility for investigation of fraud, and consequent sharing of information, rests with An Garda Siochána, and is therefore a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Justice and Equality.

The Revenue Commissioners and the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement (ODCE) play a role in cross-jurisdictional information sharing in matters of fraud by financial institutions, as outlined below. 

In terms of information sharing related to tax fraud by financial institutions, the Revenue Commissioners share information in a number of ways. Exchange of information (EOI) is the cross-border sharing of taxpayer information by tax administrations. A tax administration may ask for specific information on a particular case from another jurisdiction. When this happens, it is known as EOI on request. Alternatively, a jurisdiction may freely offer information it believes to be of interest to another tax authority. This voluntary sharing is known as spontaneous EOI. Automatic Exchange of Information (AEOI) is the exchange of information between countries without having to request it. AEOI exists to reduce global tax evasion.

Ireland has implemented the Common Reporting Standard (CRS) which provides for the automatic exchange of financial account information between tax authorities. The first information exchange began in September 2017.

Financial institutions, for the purpose of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and CRS, include banks, investment traders, fund management companies and trust managers. Credit Unions are considered financial institutions for CRS but not for FATCA.

Revenue has published a detailed guide to exchange of information, available at the following link: www.revenue.ie/en/tax-professionals/tdm/income-tax-capital-gains-tax-corporation-tax/part-35/35-01-01a.pdf. 

The Companies Act, 2014 includes provisions for the sharing of information in specified circumstances with appropriate investigative and supervisory authorities both domestically and in other jurisdictions.  This includes, for example, the power to share information with the Revenue Commissioners and the Central Bank.  The ODCE has in place a number of Memoranda of Understanding with relevant bodies in Ireland which outline the arrangements for information sharing and other cooperation.

Further queries in relation to the ODCE or the Companies Act should be directed to my colleague, the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation.