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I. Introduction
In November 2016, the EU Economic and Financial Affairs Council, represented by EU finance ministers, mandated the Code of Conduct Group (business taxation) to carry out the preparatory work for establishing the EU ECOFIN blacklist of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes.
The Code of Conduct Group initially screened 92 jurisdictions, selected based on their economic ties with the EU, institutional stability and the importance of their financial sector. Following the group’s screening and assessment report, the Council adopted the EU’s first ‘country blacklist’ on 5 December 2017. Since then, the Council updates this list twice a year.
The most recent meeting to make changes to the blacklist was held on 17 February 2026.
II. Blacklisted jurisdictions
Most recently, Vietnam and the Turks and Caicos Islands were added to the list, while Fiji, Samoa, and Trinidad and Tobago were removed from Annex I.
The following 10 jurisdictions are listed in Annex I as of March 2026:
- American Samoa
- Anguilla
- Guam
- Palau
- Panama
- Russia
- Turks and Caicos Islands
- US Virgin Islands
- Vanuatu
- Vietnam
The Turks and Caicos Islands were relisted after initially being removed in the 20 February 2024 meeting due to deficiencies identified in the enforcement of economic substance requirements, as assessed against international standards on harmful tax practices. Vietnam was added following findings that it did not sufficiently comply with the international standard on exchange of information on request, as evaluated under the OECD Global Forum peer review process.
The removal of Fiji, Samoa, and Trinidad and Tobago from the blacklist followed the Council’s assessment that these jurisdictions had addressed previously identified deficiencies and achieved compliance with the EU’s tax transparency and fair taxation criteria within the agreed timelines
III. ‘Greylisted’ jurisdictions
In addition to the list of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, a state of play document (Annex II) reflects ongoing EU cooperation and the commitments of these countries to reform their legislation to adhere to agreed tax good governance standards.
Its purpose is to recognize ongoing constructive work in the field of taxation, and to encourage the positive approach taken by cooperative jurisdictions to implement tax good governance principles.
On 17 February 2026, the Council removed Antigua and Barbuda and the Seychelles from Annex II, concluding that both jurisdictions had achieved compliance with the international standard on exchange of information on request. Brunei Darussalam remained on Annex II, with the Council acknowledging ongoing legislative reform efforts and granting additional time to complete implementation.
IV. Measures against blacklisted jurisdictions
Possible ‘defensive measures’ against Annex I blacklisted jurisdictions include:
- Denying deduction of costs and payments made to entities or persons in blacklisted jurisdictions.
- Including income in the corporate taxpayer’s home tax base where such income is derived from an entity or permanent establishment situated in a blacklisted jurisdiction, in accordance with the Controlled Foreign Company (CFC) rules under the Anti-Tax Avoidance Directive (ATAD).
- Applying a withholding tax at a higher rate on payments such as interest, royalties, service fees or remuneration, when these payments are treated as received in blacklisted jurisdictions.
- For those member states with rules that permit excluding or deducting dividends or other profits received from foreign subsidiaries, denying, or limiting these ‘participation exemptions’ if the dividends or other profits are treated as received from a blacklisted jurisdiction.
The next revision of the list is scheduled for October 2026.