Key Takeaways
- TIEAs let a partner country request specific tax information from the Marshall Islands rather than allowing open or automatic access.
- Confidentiality rules limit how exchanged data may be used, so requested information is tied to a defined tax purpose.
- Unlike double tax treaties and CRS, TIEAs focus on request-based exchange rather than relief from double taxation or automatic reporting.
- Non-resident owners should know which partner countries hold agreements and how the request process could reach their information.
TIEAs and the Marshall Islands: Where Information Exchange Stands
Tax Information Exchange Agreements in the Marshall Islands form the primary formal channel through which foreign tax authorities can request data on entities and account holders linked to the Republic. The country has built a network of bilateral TIEAs over more than a decade, and it participates in the OECD Global Forum process that monitors how well jurisdictions meet international transparency standards, as reflected in the OECD Global Forum reviews.
This matters to anyone who owns, controls, or advises on a Marshall Islands company while living elsewhere. The pages that follow explain what these agreements cover, which countries can use them, how a request moves, and how TIEAs sit alongside the automatic reporting under CRS. The material is most relevant to non-resident business owners, investors, and their tax advisers weighing exposure under their home-country rules.
What a Tax Information Exchange Agreement Actually Is
A TIEA is a bilateral treaty built for a single purpose: letting one country ask another for information relevant to a specific tax investigation. The standard it implements is Exchange of Information on Request (EOIR), meaning data moves only when a formal request is made, never as an automatic feed.
The instrument grew out of the 1998 OECD report on harmful tax practices and the model that followed in 2002. The OECD Model Agreement on Exchange of Information on Tax Matters exists in both bilateral and multilateral forms, drafted by the Global Forum Working Group on Effective Exchange of Information.
What can be requested is information "foreseeably relevant" to the administration and enforcement of a partner country's tax laws. That covers the determination, assessment, and collection of taxes, the recovery of tax claims, and investigations or prosecutions.
These agreements are not permanent fixtures. Either party may end a TIEA by notifying the other, with termination taking effect six months after the notice is received.
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Why the Marshall Islands Signed TIEAs: The OECD Transparency Story
The push behind these agreements came from the OECD Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes, founded in 2000 and restructured in September 2009. More than 100 jurisdictions sit within this framework, which conducts peer reviews of how members implement transparency and information-exchange standards.
The Republic entered that review process and has been assessed repeatedly. A Phase 1 review examining the legal and regulatory framework took place in 2012, a Phase 2 review of practical implementation in 2016, and a second-round EOIR review in 2019.
Signing TIEAs was part of demonstrating cooperation rather than opacity. The Marshall Islands has appeared on international lists associated with tax avoidance while working in parallel to satisfy the standards those lists measure.
That dual track produced a concrete result. The country was removed from EU Annex I, the bloc's blacklist, in October 2023 after its enforcement of economic substance requirements for the 2022 monitoring cycle was judged to have improved enough. It sits on neither the EU blacklist nor the greylist.
How Many TIEAs and With Which Partner Countries
A foreign tax authority can only use the TIEA route if its country has actually concluded an agreement with the Republic. Thirteen TIEAs are in force, and the partner list determines who can submit a request.
| Region | Partner jurisdictions |
|---|---|
| Asia-Pacific | Australia, Korea, New Zealand |
| Nordic and territories | Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden |
| Other Europe | Ireland, Netherlands |
| Americas | USA |
The network has grown sharply over time. At the 2012 Phase 1 review, only five of the agreements signed were actually in force, all permitting exchange to the international standard.
Beyond the core thirteen, India signed a TIEA with the Republic on 18 March 2016 in Majuro, and it entered into force on 6 December 2018. Some sources also cite the United Kingdom as a partner. The total may therefore exceed thirteen depending on how the India agreement is counted; a single definitive official tally was not confirmed in the sources reviewed.
Whether a tax authority can use a TIEA against a Marshall Islands entity depends entirely on a treaty existing between the two countries. If no agreement is in force with your country of residence, the on-request channel is simply not available to it.
Two further points shape the picture. The Republic has no comprehensive double tax treaties with any country, consistent with its zero-corporate-tax status, so TIEAs are its sole formal bilateral exchange instrument. It has also not signed the BEPS Multilateral Instrument.
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Scope of Information Covered Under a Marshall Islands TIEA
The India agreement, structured across twelve articles, is representative of the model the Republic uses. It obliges the competent authorities to exchange information foreseeably relevant to administering and enforcing each side's tax laws, including assessment, collection, recovery of tax claims, and prosecution.
Two features extend the reach further than some owners expect. Information can be requested about a person who is not resident in either country, and the requested side must gather data it does not already hold, even where it has no domestic tax use for that information.
Earlier framework gaps were a focus of review. The 2012 Phase 1 review flagged a broad scope of professional privilege with no exception for EOI requests, and noted that ownership information was assured only for domestic corporations and licensed foreign corporations, with no express obligation covering non-resident LLCs. Later reforms tied to the 2015, 2016, and 2019 reviews addressed several of these points, though the precise post-2019 statutory provisions were not retrievable from the sources accessed.
The Exchange of Information Request Process Explained
A TIEA request is not a casual inquiry. The requesting authority must confirm that it has exhausted available domestic sources, that the request conforms to its own laws and administrative practice, and that it conforms to the agreement itself.
To support consistency, the OECD has published a Model Template for TIEA requests, available in eight languages including English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Turkish.
On the receiving end, the competent authority is the Division of Customs, Treasury, Revenue & Taxation within the Ministry of Finance, Banking & Postal Services. No published processing-time standard or domestic procedural statute governing the response timetable was found in the sources reviewed.
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Confidentiality and Limits on How Exchanged Data Is Used
Information passed under a TIEA carries confidentiality obligations and a use limitation. The requesting state cannot apply the data to purposes beyond those stated in its original request.
Onward disclosure is tightly controlled. Sharing with courts or judicial bodies is allowed only to determine the specific tax matter at issue, and disclosure to anyone outside the persons named in the agreement requires the written consent of the requested state's competent authority.
These tax confidentiality terms take precedence over domestic freedom-of-information laws, though some countries write specific exemptions into their FOI statutes for data obtained under tax treaties. The exact Marshall Islands provision giving domestic legal effect to these obligations was not retrievable from the sources accessed.
How TIEAs Differ from Double Tax Treaties and CRS
A TIEA does one job and stops there. It governs information exchange and carries nothing on withholding tax, the allocation of taxing rights, or relief from double taxation, which is the territory of a double tax agreement. Because the Republic has no DTAs, this distinction is largely academic for entities formed there.
The contrast with CRS is more consequential. A TIEA delivers information only on request, tied to an identified investigation, whereas the Common Reporting Standard pushes financial-account data automatically and annually.
The Republic signed the CRS Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on 29 October 2015, and automatic exchanges began in September 2018. Under CRS, financial institutions report accounts held by non-residents to their own authority, which then forwards the data to the account holder's country of residence with no request involved.
A separate position applies to the United States. There is no FATCA Intergovernmental Agreement in place, but the US–Marshall Islands TIEA gives the IRS a legal basis for specific on-request queries, while the Compact of Free Association creates FATCA-related reporting dynamics through which RMI financial institutions are effectively compliant.
What TIEAs Mean in Practice for a Non-Resident Owner
For most owners, the realistic exposure runs through two channels, and they behave very differently. A TIEA is reactive: a foreign authority such as HMRC, the ATO, or the IRS can submit a request only where its country holds an agreement with the Republic and only by naming the specific taxpayer and tax matter. Speculative bulk requests fail the foreseeably relevant test.
CRS is the larger practical risk for most non-US owners. Adopted by more than 120 countries, it sends financial-account information from the Republic to the account holder's home tax authority automatically each year, with no TIEA request needed.
US persons face their own layer. Owning or controlling an RMI international business company can trigger FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) for foreign accounts exceeding $10,000 in aggregate, and Form 5471 for officers, directors, or shareholders of a foreign corporation.
- The Republic's zero tax on IBC income, absence of withholding taxes, and lack of exchange controls do not reduce your obligations at home. Income and account reporting in your country of residence continues regardless of the local tax position.
Beneficial ownership expectations have tightened since the 2012 review first flagged the absence of an ownership-information obligation for non-resident LLCs. CRS reporting and subsequent reforms have progressively closed that gap.
Outlook: The Future of Information Exchange in the Marshall Islands
Assessment is ongoing rather than concluded. The Republic has completed four Global Forum cycles, in 2012, 2015, 2016, and 2019, with the 2019 second-round EOIR report the most recent full review. The specific overall rating from that report was not definitively confirmed in the sources reviewed.
Several signals point to continued cooperation. The 2023 removal from the EU blacklist followed improved economic substance enforcement, and the country participates in the OECD AEOI commitment process as an early CRS adopter.
Two open items deserve monitoring. The Republic has not signed the BEPS MLI, and no public commitment to the OECD's Crypto-Asset Reporting Framework, the next wave of automatic reporting, was retrievable from the sources accessed.
The external pressure is unlikely to ease. Global Forum members have identified at least EUR 135 billion in additional revenue since 2009 through transparency standards, and the EU reviews its non-cooperative list twice a year, with the next scheduled update in October 2026.
Conclusion
TIEAs give thirteen partner countries, plus India, a formal route to request tax information about a Marshall Islands entity, but that route is reactive and case-specific. For most non-resident owners the automatic flow under CRS is the bigger consideration, since account data moves home every year without any request. The sensible posture is to treat your home-country reporting as the controlling obligation and structure accordingly, since the Republic's zero-tax features change nothing about what you owe where you live.
How Expanship Can Help Your Business in the Marshall Islands
Expanship advises foreign owners on how TIEA and CRS exposure interacts with their home-country reporting, and supports the wider work of forming and running a Marshall Islands entity in line with international standards. The team handles the practical steps below for non-resident clients.
- Company formation and structuring for non-resident owners
- Registered agent and registered office services
- Tax registration and annual filing support
- Ongoing compliance and economic substance management
- Accounting and bookkeeping
- Introductions to banking and financial-account providers
To discuss your situation, contact Expanship Marshall Islands.
Frequently Asked Questions
Thirteen agreements are in force, with Australia, Denmark, the Faroe Islands, Finland, Greenland, Iceland, Ireland, Korea, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, and the USA. India signed a separate TIEA that entered into force on 6 December 2018, so the working total may be higher; a single definitive official count was not confirmed in the sources reviewed.
Only if your country of residence has a TIEA in force with the Republic, and only through a request naming a specific taxpayer and tax matter. Bulk or speculative inquiries do not meet the foreseeably relevant standard that governs these requests.
Yes, through CRS rather than through TIEAs. The country signed the CRS Multilateral Competent Authority Agreement on 29 October 2015 and began automatic exchanges in September 2018, sending financial-account data to the account holder's home tax authority each year without any request.
The competent authority is the Division of Customs, Treasury, Revenue & Taxation within the Ministry of Finance, Banking & Postal Services. No published response-time standard was found in the sources reviewed.
No. It was removed from EU Annex I in October 2023 after improving its economic substance enforcement, and it sits on neither the blacklist nor the greylist. The EU updates these lists twice a year, with the next scheduled revision in October 2026.
No. Zero tax on IBC income, no withholding taxes, and no exchange controls apply locally, but they do not change what you must report in your country of residence. US persons in particular may face FBAR and Form 5471 filing requirements tied to their RMI interests.
Legal Disclaimer
The information provided in this article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, tax, or professional advice. While we strive to ensure the accuracy and timeliness of the content, laws and regulations are subject to change, and the application of laws can vary widely based on specific facts and circumstances.
Readers should not act upon this information without seeking professional counsel tailored to their individual situation. Expanship and its authors disclaim any liability for actions taken or not taken based on the content of this article.
For specific advice regarding your business setup, compliance requirements, or any legal matters, please consult with qualified legal and tax professionals in the relevant jurisdiction.
