On October 11, 2023 the OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework released a draft text of a Multilateral Convention to Implement Amount A of Pillar One (the MLC) that reflects the current consensus achieved among members of the Inclusive Framework, an 638 page Explanatory Statement and the Understanding on the Application of Certainty of Amount A (describing certain administration and dispute resolution parameters).

Also on October 11, 2023 the U.S. Department of the Treasury invited interested parties to provide input on the draft OECD/G20 Inclusive Framework Multilateral Convention to Implement Amount A of Pillar One (Pillar One MLC) and accompanying documents. Those interested in providing input should submit written comments by December 11, 2023.  All comments must be submitted electronically via email to the following email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

In its announcement of the opening of a public consultation on the matter the U.S. Department of the Treasury stated amongst other the following:

“The Treasury Department considers the release of the draft Pillar One documents a key step forward in the Pillar One negotiations. These documents reflect countless hours of discussions, across multiple U.S. administrations, and among hundreds of negotiators.  Treasury stands behind the negotiations, which have resulted in many difficult compromises by all sides with respect to both the design of the partial reallocation of taxing rights and the elimination of discriminatory digital services taxes and similar measures,” said Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Lily Batchelder.  “However, as the cover note in the documents states, Pillar One represents a uniquely significant reform to the international tax system.  Because of the breadth and complexity of the changes proposed, we view public input as critical to our process—to ensure transparency, to facilitate the resolution of several remaining open issues, and to hear whether the proposed framework would be workable for U.S. taxpayers and other stakeholders.”

The U.S. Department of the Treasury states that it is especially interested in comments related to novel issues identified by a review of the complete text, implementation and administrability issues (including the balance between simplification and technical precision), and technical adjustments to address errors or clarify the operation of the Pillar One MLC provisions.

Remarks ITP

So let us begin with providing some input. Pillar 1 consists out of Amount A and Amount B. And after years of talking and negotiating the OECD Inclusive Framework could not do better than to come with a text for an MLC that has to be accompanied by a 638 page long Explanatory Statement. So we let it sink in and then we say it again: a 638 page long Explanatory Statement. 638 pages that are needed to explain what the MLC tries to accomplish and how it works. Now we have to be honest and admit that we have not studied all these 638 pages yet, but by only looking at the number of pages this seems to indicate that the MLC and the working with it will be very complicated.

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