EU: European Commission report on evaluation of DAC

The European Commission (EC) today published its report on the evaluation of Council Directive 2011/16/EU on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation (DAC).

As explained in the related EC release, the DAC is a key legislative instrument that fosters tax transparency and cooperation between tax authorities across the EU. The second evaluation of the DAC covers the period from 2018 to 2023 and concludes that DAC provides a robust and well-functioning legal framework that actively supports member states in their fight against tax fraud, evasion, and avoidance.

• DAC substantially increased the volume of information exchanged between member states, by including new areas in which more tax transparency was needed. The information exchanged is increasingly used by tax administrations for risk assessments, control purposes, and to foster voluntary tax compliance—helping to promote fair taxation in the EU.
• While the administrative burden of reporting obligations may appear substantial, the evaluation found that the benefits far outweigh the costs. DAC has played a crucial role in helping member states to increase revenue collection, thereby closing the tax gap in the EU more efficiently.
• The evaluation has identified some areas for improvements, including the need to consolidate and simplify DAC and to expand consistent application of DAC across all member states.

Read a November 2025 report prepared by KPMG's EU Tax Centre