The finance ministers of Spain and Brazil, Arcadi España and Dario Durigan, signed this Tuesday a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with an initial term of three years, renewable, to cooperate on fiscal progressivity and on the taxation of the super-rich and large fortunes.
As the Spanish side has detailed in a statement, the purpose of the memorandum is for it to function as a basis for promoting an international coalition that will drive the “effective taxation” of people with high net worth. This commitment falls under “the fight against global inequality and the strengthening of social cohesion.”
The finance minister, Arcadi España, stressed that cooperation between the Government of Pedro Sánchez and that of Lula da Silva must become a “spur” so that “fiscal justice gains ground in the international arena.”
“We are two progressive governments who know that it is impossible for there to be social justice if we do not ensure that large fortunes contribute in an equitable way. For us, it is a source of pride to share this fight with the Government of Lula da Silva and with my counterpart Dario Durigan,” he said.
From Brazil, Durigan considers it “unacceptable” that the super-rich “continue paying proportionally less in taxes” and he reiterated that international cooperation “is an indispensable pillar for building fairer and more balanced tax systems.”
“We will continue joining forces with the Spanish Government, strengthening our ability to act jointly to promote global and sustainable fiscal justice,” the Brazilian official added.
Scope of the memorandum
The MoU is intended to facilitate the implementation of evidence-based reforms on fiscal progressivity and on the taxation of high net worth persons both in Spain and in Brazil, as well as from a comparative perspective, while in all cases respecting the sovereign decisions of each State.
It is also expected to open spaces for dialogue on tax policies based on collaboration between researchers and public officials of the signing institutions, and to analyze the possibility of sharing fiscal microdata on a global scale to obtain more precise estimates of the actual tax rates that the super-rich bear.
The agreement will also serve as a platform for peer review of current practices and of advances that are produced, will strengthen the exchange of experience and technical knowledge, and will provide “mutual support” in the exchange of information on international trends in taxation.
Finally, the text provides for reactivating tax cooperation in multilateral forums such as the United Nations (UN) or the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and for fostering debates on fiscal progressivity, democracy and sustainability.