UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation

➡️ UN FRAMEWORK ON INTERNATIONAL TAX COOPERATION – UN Tax Negotiations

To help close the vast gaps in existing tax systems and ensure countries receive fair tax revenues from corporations and the wealthy, the United Nations has created an Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to finalise a new tax convention – the United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation.

Improving global tax cooperation will involve greater transparency between countries, an expansion of assistance to collect tax debts, improved detection tools, and stricter enforcement of laws.

The third session was held November 10-19, 2025, in Nairobi, following on from two sessions in New York earlier in the year. Three more sessions will be held in 2026, and then the draft is set to be finalised in 2027.

“Governments now have a chance to choose differently at the UN, to choose to use tax to protect people, economies and planet” - Liz Nelson, Tax Justice Network

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Jump straight to our resources on ➡️ International Tax Cooperation

Explore our comprehensive guides on -

• Tax Dodging & Tax Justice

• NGOs & Campaigns

• Tax Justice in the UK & U.S.

• Tax Loopholes in the EU

• Tax the Rich – UK & U.S.

• Eco Tax

• Climate Damage & Carbon Taxes

• Financial Transaction Tax

• Building Tax Capacity

• Global Minimum Corporate Tax Rate

• The Panama Papers & the Paradise Papers

Tax justice and equality advocates are calling for a 25% minimum tax on multinational corporations and a tax on high-net-worth individuals worth over £100 million. Such large-scale sweeping reforms would be transformative, especially for developing nations struggling with high levels of debt, economic crises, vast inequalities, and high-level corruption.

International cooperation would include mutual administrative assistance, transparency, and information sharing, all of which would support the application and enforcement of new domestic taxation laws.

The historically slow pace of reform in the current international tax system is a result of consensus-based decision-making, which allows countries to block amendments when they do not serve their interests, much like the outdated Nato veto policy. More often than not, it is wealthy nations that stall progressive changes, a move which many African countries have objected to. They have been pushing for a majority voting system to promote faster and stronger action. After meeting in the middle, decisions at the conventions are now based on a two-thirds majority.

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Why We Urgently Need Global Tax Reforms

• Countries lose $492 billion in tax revenue every year to tax havens, which multinational corporations and wealthy individuals use to underpay tax.

• Nearly half of these losses are enabled by just eight countries - Australia, Canada, Israel, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, the UK and the U.S.

• OECD countries are responsible for 69% of global tax losses.

• At current rates, we stand to lose nearly US$5 trillion to tax havens in the next decade.

• After tax cuts were made to multinational corporations to encourage them to pay their fair share, they were found to cheat the system even more. The theory of tax appeasement was disproved.

• The gap between the rich and the poor continues to widen. Since 2015, the richest 1% have more wealth than the rest of the world combined.

• Tax avoidance and evasion have reached unprecedented levels. These are not victimless crimes. Dramatically reduced tax revenues deprive citizens of vital services such as education and healthcare, as poor countries are forced to underinvest and make cutbacks.

• Corporate tax dodging costs poor countries at least $100 billion every year.

• Nine out of 10 of the world’s 200 richest companies have a presence in tax havens.

• Europe’s 20 biggest banks register over a quarter of their profits in tax havens.

Proposed Solutions Under Discussion

• Global minimum tax rate on high-net-worth individuals - These people often move their wealth to low-tax states. A blanket minimum tax rate would remove this privilege and ensure they pay their fair share. It will increase tax revenue for developing nations, improve global wealth distribution, and reduce inequalities.

• Stronger tax enforcement - In particular for high-income individuals in low-income countries.

• Detection - Developing more effective tools to detect tax avoidance and evasion schemes.

• Transparency - A global system for sharing information on tracking assets, revenues, employees, reported income, and the structures used to avoid paying taxes.

• Taxation of the digital economy - Operations with no physical presence must be taxed. Examples include online businesses, advertising revenue, the sale of data, and sales in app stores.

• Tackling Illicit Financial Flows (IFFs) - Including corruption, tax evasion, and money laundering. IFFs need a clear legal definition, and a regulatory baseline must be established to target the enablers.

• Environmental Taxation & Climate Financing - The ‘polluter pays’ principle taxes highly destructive industries, such as aviation, shipping, and fossil fuel production, based on their emissions and environmental impact. Developing countries can then use this revenue to help them recover from climate-related damage and fund climate adaptation.

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International taxation reforms are urgently needed to address great inequalities, human suffering, and irreparable damage to our planet. The revenue raised would be a serious boost to the Sustainable Development Goals, which are stalling in part due to a lack of financing.

Earlier in the year, the U.S. officially withdrew from negotiations, opposing more inclusive and effective international tax rules. They left the talks alone after attempting to rally others to join them. Under the leadership of Trump, this lack of cooperation is to be expected and may actually serve in the best interests of the new framework, as their vote can no longer be used to obstruct progress.

International cooperation is essential in the fight to close tax loopholes, stop tax havens, and promote equitable taxation for everyone. If delegates can pull it off, this will be the most significant reform in history to our global tax system and one of our best chances to level out inequalities.

Author: Rachael Mellor, 21.11.25 licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0

For further reading on the UN Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation see below ⬇️