The Pacific Islands have long battled with an image problem. The region has earned itself a reputation for money laundering and the nations as tax havens, thanks to low or even zero tax regimes. While the nations have been working hard to overthrow this reputation and gain recognition as legitimate financial and business centres, they are still coming up against hurdles as the international community imposes ever stricter rules.
Of considerable concern is the recent blacklisting of several Pacific Island nations by the EU. In March 2019, the EU announced that Fiji, the Marshall Islands and Vanuatu would be joining Samoa, American Samoa and Guam on the EU tax haven list.
