On 5 December 2017, the Economic and Financial Affairs Council (ECOFIN) determined a list of 17 non-cooperative jurisdictions, which included Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). This list was established based on three (screening) criteria: tax transparency, fair taxation (no harmful tax regimes) and implementation of BEPS minimum standards.

The other jurisdictions on the EU “black list” are: American Samoa, Barbados, Grenada, Guam, Korea (Republic of), Macao SAR, Marshall Islands, Mongolia, Namibia, Palau, Panama, Saint Lucia, Samoa, Trinidad Tobago and Tunisia. Inclusion on the listing could have implications for the jurisdictions named. For instance, ECOFIN recommends, but does not oblige, the Member States to also apply tax sanctions towards the listed jurisdictions. The EU may apply non-tax sanctions.