FlagSageCommon Reporting Standard
Glossary term
The Common Reporting Standard is an OECD system under which financial institutions collect and report information on accounts held by tax residents of other participating jurisdictions, for automatic exchange between tax authorities.
HMRC guidance says the CRS was developed by the OECD and built on the approach used for FATCA. In October 2014, 45 jurisdictions signed a multilateral agreement to start exchanging under it. Financial institutions collect, keep and report account information to their tax authority, which exchanges it with other participating jurisdictions.
For new individual accounts, institutions must obtain a self-certification from the account holder that can establish where the holder is resident for tax purposes. If it shows residence in a reportable jurisdiction, the account is treated as reportable. In the European Union, the exchange of financial account information between member states runs under the amendment known as DAC2.
The CRS is a reporting system. It does not decide where a person is tax resident under any country's law, and it does not itself impose tax.
Not to be confused with
- FATCA. FATCA is a US law focused on US account holders, while the CRS is a multilateral standard used by many jurisdictions.
- Beneficial owner. Beneficial ownership is a legal concept about who really owns or controls something, not a reporting system.
Sources
- IEIM400080 - Background: Common Reporting StandardOfficial guidance
- IEIM403120 - Due Diligence: New Individual Accounts: IntroductionOfficial guidance
- Directive on administrative cooperation DACOfficial guidance
Related
- Countries covered
- General
- Sources
- 3 sources
- Tax year
- Current rules as checked
- Review
- Not professionally reviewed
Sources checked November 8, 2026