Jersey’s Signature of the Addendum to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on automatic exchange of financial account information (“CRS Addendum”)

STATES OF JERSEY

JERSEY'S SIGNATURE OF THE ADDENDUM TO THE MULTILATERAL COMPETENT AUTHORITY AGREEMENT ON AUTOMATIC EXCHANGE OF FINANCIAL ACCOUNT INFORMATION ("CRS ADDENDUM")

Presented to the States on 17th July 2025 by the Minister for External Relations

STATES GREFFE

2025  R.115

REPORT

This Report to the States Assembly provides an overview of the Addendum to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account  Information,  also  known  as  the  Common  Reporting  Standard  ("CRS Addendum"), and its application to Jersey following signature of the Addendum.

Annexes

 Annex I – Addendum to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information ("CRS Addendum")

MINISTER FOR EXTERNAL RELATIONS 17th July 2025

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

On 26 November 2024, Jersey signed the Common Reporting Standard Addendum ("CRS Addendum") to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information ("CRS MCAA"). As of 14 April 2025, 55 jurisdictions have signed the CRS Addendum, including Guernsey, the Isle of Man, and the United Kingdom.

The CRS MCAA, and the subsequent CRS Addendum are made under the framework of the OECD's Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters ("MAAC"), which was extended to Jersey with effect from 2015. The CRS Addendum represents an enhancement to the existing global minimum standard on automatic exchange of financial account information under the CRS for tax purposes.

BACKGROUND

The Common Reporting Standard ("CRS") was established as a global minimum standard in tax transparency in 2014. Jersey was one of the earliest adopters of the standard, being among the first group of jurisdictions to commit to the regime and then to exchange information from 2017. This was in line with the Island's longstanding commitment  to  the  implementation  of  global  standards  in  transparency  and  the exchange of tax information.

The  CRS  is  intended  to  allow  greater  transparency  over  taxpayers'  investments. Participating jurisdictions are required to put in place legislation requiring financial institutions to undertake due diligence on their account holders and the controlling persons of their account holders, including collecting tax information numbers and details of their jurisdictions of tax residence.

It requires participating jurisdictions to gather information from financial institutions in their jurisdiction about non-resident account holders and their controlling persons and then  share  the  information  with  the  jurisdictions  in  which  the  account  holder  or controlling person is resident. The information shared is identity information of the account holder (including name, address, date of birth, jurisdiction(s) of tax residence and tax identification number(s)), information about the controlling persons of entity account holders, the financial institution reporting, the account number, the balance or value of the account on 31 December of the reportable year, and the amount of income paid  or  credited  to  the  account  by  the  financial  institution  (interest,  dividends, distributions, gross proceeds from the sale or redemption of financial assets). Jersey financial institutions report to Revenue Jersey annually by 30 June in respect of the preceding calendar year. This information is then exchanged with the tax authorities of participating  partner  jurisdictions  by  30  September  annually.  More  than  100 jurisdictions have currently committed to implement the CRS.

In  light  of  the  experience  gained  by  financial  institutions  and  governments  of implementing the CRS in practice, the OECD conducted a comprehensive review and determined that certain amendments were needed. The scope of the CRS has been expanded and modernised, bringing some entities within the scope of the CRS for the first time, alongside amendments to enhance the due diligence and reporting obligations.

This first comprehensive review of the CRS by the OECD has resulted in amendments to bring new financial assets, products and intermediaries within its scope, because they are potential alternatives to traditional financial products, while avoiding duplicative reporting with that foreseen in the OECD's new Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework ("CARF"). Additional amendments have also been made to enhance the reporting outcomes under the CRS, including through the introduction of more detailed reporting requirements and the strengthening of the due diligence procedures required to be performed by financial institutions on their customers. Other changes ease requirements for certain types of investments seen as lower risk, through the introduction of a new, optional category of Non-Reporting Financial Institutions for Investment Entities that are genuine non-profit organisations and the creation of a new Excluded Account category for Capital Contribution Accounts. In addition, further language has been added to the Commentary on the CRS in several areas to increase consistency in the application of the CRS and to incorporate previously released interpretative guidance.  

EFFECTS OF THE CRS ADDENDUM

The CRS, as updated by the CRS Addendum, is a global minimum standard in tax transparency. Jersey is fully committed to the implementation of global standards in tax transparency, a longstanding policy that is a cornerstone of the Island's reputation as a cooperative and transparent jurisdiction. The impact of any change to Jersey's reputation though non-adoption of international standards would be potentially severe.

It is currently estimated that a small number of additional service providers will be brought within the scope of the CRS for the first time, either because of the changes in definitions or from the inclusion of certain types of virtual asset service providers in the scope of the CRS.

A further small number of funds and entities investing primarily in crypto-assets will be treated  as  financial  institutions  under  the  CRS  for  the  first  time,  due  to  the reclassification of certain types of virtual assets as financial assets. These entities will have new reporting and due diligence obligations in line with those applied by those currently within scope of the CRS.

In addition, existing financial institutions will be required to put in place new systems and processes to collect and report the additional information which will be required to be reported from 2027 onwards.

It is expected that the implementation of the amended CRS will be done through existing resources.

CONSULTATION PROCESS

Government has been engaging with business sectors affected by the adoption of the amended CRS, including briefings to relevant industry representative organisations. A written briefing was provided to the Economic and International Affairs Scrutiny Panel in September 2024.

It will be necessary to implement legislation to give effect to the signature of the CRS Addendum. Revenue Jersey issued a public consultation in November 2024 which ran until 13 February 2025, which covers the domestic implementation of these changes.

It is then intended to consult on the draft legislation before lodging with the States Assembly.

NEXT STEPS  

Subject to States Assembly approval of the amendments to the CRS Regulations, the amendments will come into force from 1 January 2026. Financial institutions will then be required to submit the first reports under the amended rules by 30 June 2027, after which the information would be exchanged with partner jurisdictions by the first global deadline for exchange of information under the amended CRS of 30 September 2027.

Bilateral competent authority agreements are also expected to be put in place with the UK and Crown Dependencies to allow the exchange of relevant information, in line with the original CRS MCAA.

Annex  I  –  Addendum  to  the  Multilateral  Competent  Authority  Agreement  on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information ("CRS Addendum")

DECLARATION

I,  Thomas  F.  Le  Feuvre,  Director  of  External  Relations,  on  behalf  of  the Competent Authority of the Bailiwick of Jersey, declare that it hereby agrees to comply with the provisions of the

Addendum to  the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement 011 Automatic Exchange ofFinancial Account Information

hereafter referred to as the "Addendum" and attached to this Declaration.

By  means of the present Declaration, the Competent Authority of the Bailiwick of Jersey is to be considered a signatory of the Addendum as from 26 November 2024. The Addendum will come into effect in respect of the Competent Authority of the Bailiwick of Jersey in accordance with paragraph I of Section 2 thereof.

Signed in  Asuncion on 26 November 2024

))OECD

ADDENDUM TO THE MULTILATERAL COMPETENT AUTHORITY AGREEMENT ON AUTOMATIC EXCHANGE OF FINANCIAL ACCOUNT INFORMATION

Whereas, the Competent Authorities are signatories to the Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on Automatic Exchange of Financial Account Information (the "CRS MCAA");

Whereas, the Competent Authorities intend to continuously improve international tax compliance by further building on  their relationship with respect to  mutual assistance in  tax matters, as reflected in  the existing automatic exchanges of information under the CRS MCAA;

Whereas, the CRS MCAA provides that the laws of the Jurisdictions would be amended from time to time to  reflect updates to  the Common Reporting Standard and, once such changes to  the Common Reporting Standard are enacted by a Jurisdiction, the CRS MCAA would be deemed to refer to the updated version in respect of that Jurisdiction;

Whereas, the Common Reporting Standard has been updated in  2023 to amend its scope and enhance the reporting requirements and due diligence procedures;

Whereas, the present Addendum seeks to  add certain information items to be exchanged under the CRS MCAA to  reflect  the additional  reporting  requirements introduced  by  the 2023  update  to  the Common Reporting Standard;

Now, therefore, the Competent Authorities have agreed as follows:

SECTION 1

Additions to  the Information to  be  Exchanged with Respect to  Reportable Accounts

Subject to the notification pursuant to subparagraph 2(a)(i) of Section 2 of this Addendum, the additional information to be exchanged pursuant to subparagraph 2 of Section 2 of the CRS MCAA, with respect to each Reportable Account of another Jurisdiction, is:

I.  whether a valid self-certification has been provided for each Account Holder;

2. the role(s) by virtue of which each Reportable Person that is a Controlling Person of an Entity Account Holder is a Controlling Person of the Entity and whether a valid self-certification has been provided for each such Reportable Person;
3. the type of account, whether the account is a Preexisting Account or a New Account and whether the account is a joint account, including the number of joint Account Holders; and
4. in the case of any Equity Interest held in an Investment Entity that is a legal arrangement, the role(s) by virtue of which the Reportable Person is an Equity Interest holder.

ADDENDUM A L'ACCORD MULTILATERAL ENTRE AUTORITES COMPETENTES CONCERNANT L'ECHANGE AUTOMATIQUE DE

RENSEIGNEMENTS RELATIFS AUX COMPTES FINANCIERS

Considerant  que  lcs  Autorites  competentes  sont  signataires  de  I' Accord  multilateral  entre  autorites competentcs concernant l'echangc automatique de renseignements relatifs aux comptes financiers(« AMAC NCD »);

Considerant  quc  les  Autorites  competcntes  ont  I' intention  d' ameliorer  en  permanence  le  respect  des ohligations fiscalcs a l'echelle internationale en mettant a profit lcurs relations d'assistance mutuellc en

maticre fiscale, comme en temoignent les echanges automatiques de renseigncments existants en vertu de l'AMAC NCD;

Considerant qu'aux termes de I' AMAC NCD  la  legislation des Juridictions devrait etre periodiquement modifiee afin de tcnir compte des mises a jour de la Norme commune de declaration, et qu'une fois ces

modifications promulguecs par une Juridiction, l' AMAC NCO sera repute faire reference a la version misc i1jour pour cettc Juridiction;

Considerant quc la Normc commune de declaration a ete misc a jour en 2023 afin de modifier son champ d'application et de rcnforcer les obligations declaratives et les procedures de diligence raisonnable;

Considerant quc le present Addendum visc a ajoutcr certains renseigncmcnts au  perimetre des echangcs scion I' AMAC NCO afin de tcnir compte des obligations declaratives supplementaires instaurees par la mise

11jour 2023 de la Norme commune de declaration ;

Les Autorites competentes sont convcnues des dispositions suivantes

SECTION 1

Ajouts aux renseignements a echanger concernant des Comptes declarables

Sous reserve de la notification prevue a l'alinea 2(a)(i) de la section 2 du present Addendum, les ajouts aux rcnseignements 11 echanger en  vertu de I' alinea 2 de  la  section  2 de I' AMAC NCO, concernant chaque

Compte declarahlc d'une autre Juridiction, sont les suivants

1. Preciser si unc auto-certification valahlc a ete fournie pour chaque Titulairc de compte ;
2. La ou  lcs fonction(s) en vcrtu desquellcs chaque Pcrsonne devant faire l'objet d'une declaration qui est unc Pcrsonne detenant le controlc d"une Entite Titulaire de compte est une Personne detenant le controle de l'Entite, en precisant si  une auto-certification valahlc a ete fournie pour cette Personne ;
3. Le type de compte, si le compte est un Compte preexistant ou un Nouveau compte et si le comptc est detenu conjointement, y compris le nombre de Titulaires de compte joint ; et
4. Oans le cas d'un Titre de participation dans une Entite d'investissement qui est une construction juridique, la/les fonctions en vertu desquelles la Personne devant faire l'objet d'une declaration est un detenteur de Titres de participation.

SECTION 2 General Terms

1. This Addendum will be in  effect with respect to Competent Authorities that are also signatories to

the Addendum. It will be an integral part of the CRS MCAA and the provisions of the CRS MCAA will be applied mutatis mutandis to this Addendum.

2. A Competent Authority must provide to the Co-ordinating Body Secretariat at the time of signature of this Addendum or as soon as possible thereafter:

1. an updated notification pursuant to subparagraph  1 (a) of Section 7 of the CRS MCAA:
   1. confirming that its Jurisdiction has the necessary laws in  place to  implement the 2023  update  to  the  Common  Reporting  Standard  and  specifying  the  relevant effective dates with respect to Section  I of this Addendum and the application or completion of the enhanced reporting and due diligence procedures, or any period of provisional application of this Addendum due to  pending national legislative procedures (if any); or
   2. indicating that  its Jurisdiction does not yet have the necessary  laws in  place to implement the 2023  update to  the Common Reporting Standard and,  therefore, requesting  consent  to  continue  sending  information  without  the  application  or completion of the enhanced reporting and due diligence procedures of the 2023 update to the Common Reporting Standard during a specified transitional period; and
   3. an  updated notification pursuant to  subparagraph  1 (0 of Section 7 of the CRS  MCAA, specifying the Jurisdictions of the Competent Authorities for which it accepts their request specified in the notification provided pursuant to subparagraph 2(a)(ii) of this Addendum.

Done in English and French, both texts being equally authentic.

SECTION 2 Conditions generales

I.  Cet  Addendum  s·appliquera  aux  Autorites  competcntcs  qui  sont  egalement  signataires  de !"Addendum. II  fera partie integrante de l' AMAC NCO et lcs dispositions de I' AMAC NCO s'appliqueront mutatis mutandis au present Addendum.

2.  Une Autorite competente doit,  au  moment de la  signature du  present Addendum ou  le  plus tot possible par la suite, adresser au Secretariat de l"Organe de coordination :

1. Une notification mise a jour conformemcnt a l'alinea 1 a) de la section 7 de l' AMAC NCO:

1. Confirmant que sa Juridiction s'est dotec de la legislation necessaire pour mettre en reuvre la misc a jour 2023 de la Normc commune de declaration et precisant

les dates d'effet pertinentes au regard de la section 1 du present Addendum et de !'application ou de l'achevement des procedures renforcecs de declaration et de diligence  raisonnablc,  ou  toute  periode  d"application  provisoire  du  present Addendum en raison de procedures legislatives nationales (evcntuelles) en cours

; OU

2. Indiquant que sa Juridiction ne s'est pas encore dotee de la legislation necessaire pour mettre en cruvrc la mise a jour 2023 de la Norme commune de declaration

et dcmandant par consequent l'autorisation de pouvoir continuer a envoyer des renseigncments sans avoir a appliquer ou  a achever les procedures rcnforcees de

declaration et de diligence raisonnable prevucs par la  misc a jour 2023 de  la Normc commune de declaration pendant une periodc transitoirc detcrminec ; et

2. Unc notification misc tjour conformemcnt a l"alinea l(f) de la section 7 de l"AMAC NCO, precisant lcs Juridictions des Autorites competentes dont ellc acceptc lcs dcmandes soumises

au moyen de la notification prevuc en vcrtu de l'alinea 2(a)(ii) du  present Addendum.

Fait en  fran ais  et en anglais, les deux textcs faisant egalement foi.