Companies Face Tax Disclosure Questions as Public Scrutiny Rises

Large multinationals must make tough choices about what tax information they should reveal to minimize any negative impacts of strict new public disclosure laws working their way through the European Union and Australia.

The stakes are high. Company tax data will be analyzed by the media, advocacy groups, politicians, and investors, opening up the possibility of lawsuits and other challenges, tax practitioners say. The EU disclosure rules become effective in 2025, while Australia’s rules are pending in Parliament.

Transfer pricing—financial transactions between related companies in multinational groups—is especially vulnerable to such challenges as it has come under increasing scrutiny by ...