EU Removes Belize From Tax Grey List

The European Union has officially removed Belize from Annex II (the “grey list”) of non-cooperative tax jurisdictions, marking the country’s complete exit from EU tax governance monitoring.   The decision, announced today, October 9, by the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN), comes after Belize secured a positive rating from the OECD Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes regarding its systems for exchanging tax information upon request.  Having previously been removed from the EU’s main non-cooperative blacklist (Annex I) in February 2024 following major legal and procedural overhauls, Belize remained under Annex II monitoring pending the Global Forum’s supplementary review. With the positive evaluation finalized, the EU Council confirmed that Belize has fulfilled all its international tax transparency commitments and is no longer subject to routine monitoring.  For Belize, this means a restored financial standing, eliminating administrative friction and scrutiny on cross-border financial transactions between Belizean institutions and EU member states.  It also boosts the investment climate as Belize now has cleared compliance status to significantly strengthen investor confidence, facilitating direct foreign investment and easing international correspondent banking relationships.  Additionally, it aligns with the global standard, as the de-listing confirms Belize’s full alignment with international standards on fair tax competition, transparency, and administrative cooperation.  With this update, Belize joins the list of nations fully recognized by the EU as compliant with global tax transparency standards. The next biannual update to the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions is scheduled for February 2027.