Globalization has increased the importance of external actors in shaping national tax policy. Bilateral economic relations between countries, via trade and capital flows often give rise to the need for coordination of tax systems. Bilateral tax relations range from the important institution of bilateral multilateral tax treaties to less formal avenues such as through cooperation between tax administrations, judicial recognition of each other s legal precedents or adoption ofcommon nomenclature and accounting rules.
Coordination is achieved through consultations and through binding agreements and advisory rulings.
Of global organizations, the WTO has the greatest impact on national tax systems and on other aspects dealing with international trade. Additional information on the WTO is in their website. National and International tax associations play a less formal but nonetheless important role in shaping tax systems. On the tax administration side, Regional tax administration organizations play an important role in exchanging experience and developing best practices. Further internet links are described in the entry on Revenue data sources and web-sites .