The European Union announced the United Arab Emirates and Switzerland were among nations removed from a list of countries described as tax havens. Switzerland "delivered on its commitments" to reform its tax rules.
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The European Union removed seven countries from its blacklist of tax havens, the bloc's finance ministers said in a statement on Thursday.
The United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands were removed from the blacklist, while Switzerland was among the five countries struck from the so-called "grey list."
Switzerland, one of the EU's close trading partners, had been on the gray list. The Alpine nation has "delivered on its commitments" to prevent being a tax haven, according to the EU announcement.
The two different lists reflected the level of commitment countries had given to implementing change. Countries on the gray list were being monitored by the EU after promising to commit to EU tax laws.
"Albania, Costa Rica, Mauritius, Serbia and Switzerland have implemented ahead of their deadline all necessary reforms to comply with the EU tax good governance policy," the finance ministers said.
Meanwhile, countries on the blacklist had provided no such commitment to the EU. The UAE was removed completely from this list, after rushing through tax reform in September.
The goal was to "name and shame" countries which support tax evasion by multinationals and wealthy individuals.
"If Switzerland is off this list, it is a success for me," said Pierre Moscovici, European Commissioner for Economic Affairs. "The best list is a short list."
However, the decision has faced criticism from monitors of global tax fraud, including Oxfam.
Chiara Putaturo, Oxfam's EU tax adviser, tweeted that the EU had "whitewashed two of the world's most harmful tax havens."
She also said that "Despite recent reforms, both countries [Switzerland and Mauritius] will continue to offer sweet treats to tax-dodging companies, like very low tax rates, accelerating the race to the bottom on corporate taxation."
The UAE continues to charge no corporate tax, but was removed from the list as it instigated new rules regarding offshore structures in September.
Only nine countries and territories remain on the blacklist: Belize, Fiji, Oman, Samoa, Trinidad and Tobago and Vanuatu, as well the US territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The number of countries on the list has fluctuated between five and 17 over the last two years.
Around 30 jurisdictions remain on the gray list, which will be up for further review in 2020.
Reporters have published a raft of secret documents that reveal the strange investments and tax avoidance indulged in by the powerful and wealthy. The revelations come from the same team that uncovered the Panama Papers.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D.-L. Olivas
Bono and Nude Estates
U2 frontman and activist Bono was one of the highest-profile players named in the papers. In an elaborate web of financial transactions, Bono invested in a Maltese company called Nude Estates that was involved in a shady deal over a Lithuanian shopping mall. Malta is famous for its liberal tax policies. A spokesman for the singer denied any wrongdoing.
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US commerce secretary
President Donald Trump's Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross was listed in the papers for his interests in the Russian gas company Sibur. Ross has now been accused of failing to disclose his Russian connections to Congress during his confirmation hearing, though Ross has argued that as the company is not one facing US sanctions, he was not obliged to disclose them.
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Queen's private estate in hot water
Queen Elizabeth II is provided an income by her private estate, the Duchy of Lancaster. According to the Paradise Papers, the duchy invested 10 million pounds ($13 million) in offshore accounts in Bermuda and the Cayman Islands. The estate has said that the investments are legal.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/D.-L. Olivas
Formula One champion
Reigning Formula One champion Lewis Hamilton reportedly avoided taxes on his private jet through an elaborate tax avoidance scheme, according go the Paradise Papers. The leaked documents show that Hamilton received a £3.3 million tax refund in 2013 after his plane was imported to the Isle of Man, a low tax British dependency located off the western coast of England.
Image: Reuters/A. Boyers
Germany's former chancellor
Gerhard Schröder, leader of Germany from 1998 to 2005, was named for his management role at the Russian-British energy firm TNK-BP in 2009. The company was registered in the tax haven British Virgin Islands. In 2013, TNK-BP was bought by Russian energy giant Rosneft — where Schröder is now the independent director of the board.
Image: Reuters/O. Astakhova
Colombia's president caught
According to the papers, Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos is listed as the director of two offshore companies in Barbados. He previously claimed to have severed ties with them in 2000 when he became minister of finance.
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Lifestyles of the rich and famous
Not all of the revelations in the Paradise Papers necessarily detail illegal activity. But they do shed light on some of the strange investments and luxurious possessions of the world's elite, including Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen's yacht. Besides Microsoft, other US companies like Apple, McDonald's, Facebook and Walmart were found to have ties to Appleby.
Image: picture-alliance/PA Wire/B. Mitchell
Madonna medical supplies
One of the odd investments listed in the Paradise Papers is singer Madonna's stake in a medical supply firm. Actress Keira Knightley was also found to have stock in a Jersey-based real-estate firm.
