Germany, Britain expect patent box deal at G20 meeting

[BERLIN] The finance ministers of Germany and Britain said on Wednesday that they expect an agreement on closing a loophole called "patent box" tax breaks to be reached at a meeting of the leaders of the Group of Twenty (G20) in Brisbane.

Under the loophole, firms use tax breaks on profits generated from patented research to minimise tax bills.

Germany's Wolfgang Schaeuble and Britain's George Osborne were speaking at a conference in Berlin where 51 countries agreed to automatically swap tax information as part of the OECD's efforts to combat tax evasion.

"The technical work is well under way and therefore I am confident the summit in Brisbane will ... produce an adequate result and I am also optimistic the G20 leaders will adopt it and accept it," Mr Schaeuble said.

REUTERS