OECD Releases Latest Edition of Transfer Pricing Guidelines

Background on the new guidelines

On January 20, 2022, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”) released the 2022 edition of the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises and Tax Administrations.  The OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines provide guidance on the application of the “arm’s length principle”, which represents the international consensus on the valuation, for income tax purposes, of cross-border transactions between associated enterprises. In today’s economy where multinational enterprises play an increasingly prominent role, transfer pricing continues to be high on the agenda of tax administrations and taxpayers alike. Governments need to ensure that the taxable profits of MNEs are not artificially shifted out of their jurisdiction and that the tax base reported by MNEs in their country reflects the economic activity undertaken therein and taxpayers need clear guidance on the proper application of the arm’s length principle.

This latest edition consolidates into a single publication the changes to the 2017 edition of the Transfer Pricing Guidelines resulting from:

• The report Revised Guidance on the Transactional Profit Split Method, approved by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 4 June 2018, and which replaced the guidance in Chapter II, Section C (paragraphs 2.114-2.151) found in the 2017 Transfer Pricing Guidelines and Annexes II and III to Chapter II;
• The report Guidance for Tax Administrations on the Application of the Approach to Hard-to-Value Intangibles, approved by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 4 June 2018, which has been incorporated as Annex II to Chapter VI;
• The report Transfer Pricing Guidance on Financial Transactions, adopted by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 20 January 2020, which has been incorporated into Chapter I (new Section D.1.2.2) and in a new Chapter X;
• The consistency changes to the rest of the OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines needed to produce this consolidated version of the Transfer Pricing Guidelines, which were approved by the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework on BEPS on 7 January 2022.

What else you need to know

However, individual countries take different approaches with respect to whether and how they incorporate the OECD TP Guidelines into their domestic tax systems. For example, in some countries, the domestic rules explicitly refer to the approved OECD TP Guidelines so that updates are automatically incorporated, while in other countries it requires some form of administrative or other action to incorporate a new version of the TP Guidelines into their domestic law.

We recommend that CPA firms examine their client’s fact pattern to understand and analyze the implications of this development for each jurisdiction in which they operate. For example, companies should review the amendments to the OECD TP Guidelines with respect to their global operations and their current transfer pricing policies and approaches. There will likely be increased scrutiny by tax authorities from OECD member countries and non-OECD member countries on the application of the concepts reflected in the amendments to cross-border intercompany transactions.

We appreciate your continued trust in McGuire Sponsel as a technical resource to your firm. If you have any questions about this update or other international tax compliance issues, do not hesitate to reach out to our Global Business Services team.