Tax Information Authority (International Tax Compliance) (Common Reporting Standard) Regulations (2021 Revision)

Summary

This is the consolidated (2021 Revision) version of the Cayman Islands regulations that implement the OECD Common Reporting Standard (CRS) for automatic exchange of financial account information. It sets out how the CRS due diligence and reporting standard (set out in the Schedule) applies in the Islands, incorporating OECD commentary as an interpretive aid.

Scope and Entities Covered

• Cayman Financial Institutions: Institutions resident in the Cayman Islands, or Cayman branches of foreign institutions.
• Cayman Reporting Financial Institutions: Distinguished from Non-Reporting Financial Institutions and exempted bodies (such as CIMA, Governmental Entities and certain Pension Funds).

Obligations on Reporting Financial Institutions

• Policies and procedures: Establish, maintain and implement written CRS policies and procedures, including due diligence for identifying account holders'/controlling persons' tax residence, and retain records for six years.
• Notification: Notify the Tax Information Authority of prescribed information (including a principal point of contact) and any changes to it.
• Reporting: Make an annual CRS return to the Authority.

Authority Powers and Enforcement

• Third parties and monitoring: The Authority may appoint or use third parties and monitor compliance.
• Offences: False self-certification, contravention of Part 2, providing inaccurate information, unauthorised access to confidential information, tampering, and hindering.
• Administrative penalty regime: Breach notices, penalty notices, appeal rights, and interest on unpaid penalties.
• Director/officer liability: Rules on directors'/officers' imputed criminal liability.

The Schedule lists Reportable Jurisdictions to which CRS applies, updated in tranches from 2017 through 2020 reporting periods, and the CRS commenced in the Islands on 1 January 2016. This consolidated/revised text reflects amendments up to the Tax Information Authority (International Tax Compliance) (Common Reporting Standard) (Amendment) Regulations, 2020, and is currently in force. It does not itself introduce new obligations beyond those already established by the underlying 2015 Regulations and subsequent amendments, but restates the full current regulatory framework compliance officers must follow.

Key obligations

• Each Cayman Reporting Financial Institution must establish, maintain, implement and comply with written policies and procedures for CRS due diligence and reporting compliance.
• Policies and procedures must identify each jurisdiction in which an Account Holder or Controlling Person is tax resident and apply CRS due diligence procedures.
• Records of information obtained or steps taken to comply with CRS due diligence must be kept for six years from the end of the year to which the information relates or during which the steps were taken.
• Each Cayman Financial Institution (other than an exempted body) must give the Authority an information notice stating required information about the institution, and must give a change notice if any notified information changes.
• Cayman Reporting Financial Institutions must make an annual return to the Authority in accordance with regulation 9 and the requirements in regulation 10.
• A Cayman Reporting Financial Institution must not rely on a self-certification or documentary evidence it knows or has reason to believe is materially inaccurate when making a return.
• The Authority must publish, at least once every calendar year, a list of Participating Jurisdictions by Notice in the Gazette.

Applies to

Cayman Financial Institutions, Cayman Reporting Financial Institutions, Non-Reporting Financial Institutions, Governmental Entities, Pension Funds, exempted bodies

Deadlines

• 1st January, 2016: Date on which the Common Reporting Standard comes into force in the Islands for automatic exchange of financial account information.
• 30th April 2017: Deadline for each Cayman Financial Institution (other than an exempted body) to give the Authority an initial information notice stating required information about the institution.
• the next 30th April after the entity became a Cayman Financial Institution: Deadline for an entity that becomes a Cayman Financial Institution after 30 April 2017 to give the Authority its information notice.
• six years from the end of the year to which the information relates or during which the steps were taken: Retention period for records of CRS due diligence information and steps taken to comply with Part 2.
• at least once every calendar year: The Authority must publish by Notice in the Gazette a list of Participating Jurisdictions for CRS purposes.

Related documents

• This document is made under Tax Information Authority Act (2021 Revision)
• Tax Information Authority (International Tax Compliance) (Common Reporting Standard) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 (SL 50 of 2025) amends this document