Japan has 71 tax agreements in force, as reported in its response to the Peer Review questionnaire. Eighteen of those agreements, the agreements with Australia, Austria, Belgium, Chile, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Iceland, Israel, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, Slovak Republic, Slovenia and United Kingdom, comply with the minimum standard.
Japan signed the MLI in 2017, and deposited its instrument of ratification on 26 September 2018, listing of 39 tax agreements.1 The MLI entered into force for Japan on 1 January 2019.
Japan is implementing the minimum standard through the inclusion of the preamble statement and the PPT for its compliant agreements with Chile, Israel, Poland, Slovak Republic and Slovenia. Japan is implementing the minimum standard through the inclusion of the preamble statement and the PPT combined with the LOB for its compliant agreements with Australia, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, Russia and United Kingdom.2
The agreements modified by the MLI come into compliance with the minimum standard once the provisions of the MLI take effect. Other agreements listed under the MLI are expected to become compliant with the minimum standard by the end of 2019.
Japan also signed a bilateral complying instrument with respect to one of its agreements, the agreement with Spain.
Japan indicated in its response to the Peer Review questionnaire that the agreements not listed under the MLI were concluded with treaty partners that had not joined the MLI or had joined the MLI but not listed the agreements with Japan. Japan also indicated that it would list such agreements if the treaty partners join the MLI and list the agreements with Japan.