T&T could be just months away from shedding its long-standing label as a tax haven, with the European Union (EU) confirming the country is on course to be fully removed from its blacklist by February 2026.
Finance Minister, Davendranath Tancoo, believes the move could unlock billions in potential financing, restore international credibility, and give the economy a major boost in trade, investment and development opportunities.
The removal from the EU blacklist delisting comes after the country implemented international standards on tax transparency, automatic exchange of financial information, and corporate tax reporting under finance minister Colm Imbert.
Key measures included the Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters Act, 2020, which gave Trinidad and Tobago the legal framework to share tax information globally and accession to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Multilateral Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters in 2025. The Government also passed multiple 2025 orders and regulations activating automatic exchange of financial account information (CRS) and country-by-country reporting (CbCR) for multinational corporations, ensuring compliance with OECD Base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) Action 13 standards.
The reforms modernised T&T’s tax reporting system, strengthened transparency and addressed the EU’s criteria on exchange of information and harmful tax practices.
As a result, the OECD Global Forum rated Trinidad and Tobago “largely compliant” on exchange of information in 2025, one of the key benchmarks for EU delisting.
In a detailed response to Guardian Media, an EU Commission official said the country has already cleared several hurdles. In February 2025, Trinidad and Tobago was removed from two blacklist categories—harmful tax regimes and failure to ratify the OECD Multilateral Convention. More recently, in July 2025, it earned a “largely compliant” rating from the OECD Global Forum for its exchange of information on request, satisfying another important condition. Two reviews remain: one on country-by-country reporting, due in September 2025, and another on automatic exchange of financial account information, expected in December 2025. Positive outcomes would position T&T for full removal from Annex I of the EU list at the February 2026 update.
At present, the Annex I designation signals to the international community that the jurisdiction is non-cooperative on tax matters. This status can discourage investment, raise compliance costs for banks and firms operating here, and even restrict access to some streams of development finance. Removal from the blacklist, or delisting, would reverse these burdens. The EU itself has stressed that compliance not only eases trade and investment but also enhances international credibility.
In a message to Guardian Media, Tancoo highlighted the sweeping benefits that removal from the delist would bring. Chief among them is being restored access to the European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund, which are institutions that play a critical role in financing infrastructure and development projects across the globe.
“Assuming full removal from the European Union’s list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes in February 2026, Trinidad and Tobago’s borrowing capacity and market access would improve materially,” Tancoo said.
Delisting, he explained, removes barriers that currently prevent the country and its state-owned enterprises from accessing loans, guarantees, equity and blended finance from these European institutions.
He explained that access would not only reduce borrowing costs but also allows for more creative financing options, including sustainability-linked instruments and potential Islamic finance tools like sukuk.
By lowering interest rates and lengthening maturities, he said the government could reduce debt-service costs, ease liquidity pressures, and strengthen balance sheets across both the public and private sectors.
Tancoo noted that the benefits extend beyond capital markets. With fewer red flags attached to T&T’s financial system, he said trade finance transactions such as letters of credit and documentary collections would be processed more efficiently, reducing costs for exporters and importers.
Tancoo noted that many EU-based corporates currently face internal tax-governance restrictions that make investing in Trinidad and Tobago more complex. He said delisting would remove those hurdles, opening the door to new foreign direct investment in areas such as energy-adjacent manufacturing, ICT-enabled services and logistics.
According to the Minister of Finance, export credit agencies from EU member states would also be more likely to extend buyer’s and supplier’s credits, guarantees and insurance for T&T projects, improving access to capital goods and major contracts.
Furthermore, he noted that another major advantage lies in the realm of sustainability financing. With a cleaner status, Tancoo explained that T&T would be better positioned to tap EU green and climate-related funds.
He said this could translate into financing for renewable energy projects, upgrades to the electricity grid, water management, port modernisation and digital infrastructure. Tancoo emphasised that climate finance access could play a pivotal role in diversifying the economy while addressing resilience needs.
The opportunity to tap into global pools of climate capital comes at a time when many Caribbean economies are seeking to align development strategies with environmental sustainability.
According to Tancoo, the expected ripple effects across the economy are broad with increased foreign direct investment and portfolio flows potentially easing foreign-exchange pressures, while rising import volumes of capital goods would likely boost VAT and customs revenue. He added that a broader corporate tax base would strengthen fiscal stability, while expanded credit access for the private sector could spur business growth and job creation.
Tancoo suggested a strategy of leveraging guarantee schemes from the European Investment Bank, the European Investment Fund and EU promotional banks to de-risk priority public-private partnerships. He said this approach, paired with new financial instruments targeted at both local and diaspora investors, could translate reputational gains into tangible capital inflows.
The Finance Minister acknowledged that the previous administration had laid legislative groundwork, but argued that the current government has accelerated the process with decisive action. Since assuming office, Tancoo said he signed six new legal instruments and multiple notifications to operationalise commitments under the OECD framework.
“While others may claim credit, it is this administration that has moved from intent to implementation, and from promises to enforceable instruments that unlock delisting, and, with it, better market access, lower risk premia and improved confidence for investors and trading partners,” Tancoo said.
However, Imbert, who served as finance minister for nine years under the People’s National Movement, said the previous administration did more than just the “ground work”.
“Tancoo had virtually nothing left to do after I signed the Multilateral Convention and three other agreements in Paris in November 2024 and after we passed the Peer Review in April. All that was left was some minor administrative paperwork that was already prepared for him to sign. It took numerous trips to Parliament and intensive work over a period of six years to be deemed ‘largely compliant’.”
