Blockchain and Smart Contracts: A Look at the Future of Transfer Pricing Control

Abstract

This article aims to outline the path towards the future of transfer pricing (TP) control by exploring the new possibilities of blockchain and smart contracts and their potential impact on the international and European policy debate. After the introduction of some preliminary concepts, the first outcome is the identification of a uniform methodology for coding advance pricing agreements (APAs) into smart contracts in which conventional elements properly match with computer language components. Despite the challenges of the coding process and the issue of legal prose, the research also approaches the dynamics and the different stages of a new smart system for TP control. Furthermore, the analysis covers the policy perspective and explores how the new technology could improve the outcomes of the recent OECD and European Commission initiatives in the area of TP. Ultimately, the study suggests the adoption of uniform rules for coding APAs into smart contracts and the establishment of an international consortium blockchain. However, other factors will also be crucial for the implementation of the new system including the collection of sufficient supply chain data and the adoption of an interdisciplinary approach that is open to software engineering and data science. Transfer pricing, advance pricing agreements, blockchain, smart contracts, real-time monitoring, artificial intelligence, data analytics, digital economy, OECD Transfer Pricing Guidelines, convention on mutual administrative assistance in tax matters.