Public country-by-country reporting: Time to prepare

What is public country-by-country reporting?

Public CbCR requires corporate groups to publish a report disclosing corporate tax information on a country-by-country basis. This report must be made publicly available within 12 months of the financial year-end balance sheet date.

Who does it apply to?

Public CbCR applies to financial years commencing on or after 22 June 2024, for corporate groups meeting the following criteria:

• Consolidated revenue exceeding €750m in each of the two preceding financial years.
• Either an EU parent or significant operations within the EU.

Key changes under Public CbCR

Historically, CbCR filings were submitted privately to the tax authority in the parent company’s home jurisdiction or a substitute local parent jurisdiction. Notifications were also filed with tax authorities in jurisdictions where the group operated.

Under the EU Public Country-by-Country Reporting Directive, large multinational groups must now:

1. Disclose corporate tax information in a publicly accessible area, either:

• On their own website, or
• Through the Companies Registration Office (CRO).

2. Report tax information for:

• Each EU member state where they operate.
• Jurisdictions on the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions.
• Aggregated data for all other jurisdictions.

This is in addition to their CbCR filing requirement with the tax authorities.    

Information to be disclosed in the report

The reporting requirements for Public CbCR are extensive and include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The name of the ultimate parent undertaking.
• The financial year concerned.
• The presentation currency used for the report.
• A list of all subsidiary undertakings consolidated in the ultimate parent undertaking's financial statements for the relevant financial year.
• A description of the nature of the undertaking’s activities.
• The number of full-time employees of the undertaking.
• The revenues, including revenues from intercompany transactions, calculated as either:
  • The sum of net turnover, other operating income, income from participating interests (excluding dividends received from affiliated undertakings), income from other investments and loans forming part of the fixed assets, other interest receivable and similar income.
  • The income as defined by the financial reporting framework that forms the basis for preparing the financial statements, excluding value adjustments and dividends received from affiliates.
• The amount of profit or loss before income tax.
• The amount of income tax accrued during the relevant financial year.
• The amount of income tax paid on a cash basis during the financial year in each tax jurisdiction in which income tax is accrued.
• The sum of the profits that have not yet been distributed from prior financial years and the financial year to which the report relates.

The information detailed above must be disclosed separately for each country in the EU and each country on the EU list of noncooperative jurisdictions. Information for all other jurisdictions may be aggregated.

It should also be noted that, where the financial statements of a group company are audited, the audit report must confirm if a group company was within the scope of Public CbCR and confirm whether the report was published. 

Deferment of commercially sensitive information

Ireland allows groups to defer disclosure of certain commercially sensitive information for up to five years. However, this deferment applies only if the group believes that including such information would “seriously prejudice the undertaking’s competitive position.” Importantly, this option does not apply to information about jurisdictions on the EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions.

Deadlines and penalties

Public CbCR regulations apply to financial years commencing on or after 22 June 2024. Groups falling within scope will be required to publish a CbCR report within 12 months of the balance sheet date for the relevant financial year.

Failure to report may incur a penalty fine of up to €5,000. Additionally, if non-compliance is due to the consent or neglect of an officer of the company, or a person acting in such capacity, that person will also be held liable and may receive a €5,000 fine or up to three months imprisonment.

As you will note, the amount of information required is substantial and preparing the report for publication will be a significant undertaking for impacted groups.

If you have any questions in relation to the above, or if you would like to discuss this topic further, please contact a member of our corporate tax team.