Background

Public Finance for Development (PFD) programme has been established in 2009 by the Ministry of Finance of the Slovak Republic and UNDP with the aim to assist the partner countries in their efforts to reform public finance and set up the effective public finance management (PFM). Programme is based on Slovak and other international expertise and experiences gained during the major reforms and follow up PFM developments and UNDP presence and deep knowledge of countries.

The project is implemented by the UNDP North Macedonia with the support of IRH-based Project Team and the Donor (Slovak Ministry of Finance).

The Republic of North Macedonia became beneficiary of the Programme in 2019. The aim of the intervention in North Macedonia is to provide technical assistance to the Ministry of Finance (MF) in improving overall financial management and ensuring good governance in managing public resources.

The project Support to Public Finance Management Reform in the Republic of North Macedonia in the area of international taxation, local taxes and fight against tax evasion and informal economy is aligned with the measures and activities of the PFM Reform Programme 2018-2021 and the long-term vision and efforts of the Ministry of Finance to maintain stable fiscal stance over the long run while keeping on delivering better services to the citizens and private sector. In addition, the project activities are also directly and indirectly linked with the Government priorities set in the latest Economic Reform Program 2020-2022.

The main goal of the project is to support the Ministry of Finance of North Macedonia and the Public Revenue office in strengthening the transparent and accountable public finance management on central and local level. The project focuses on improving the administrative capacities of the Ministry of Finance and the Public Revenue Office to develop effective business processes in the areas of information exchange for tax purposes and tax collection, and to improve the quality of services to taxpayers; to reinforce the capacities of the Ministry in the administration and information exchange and to improve the overall administration of taxes on central and local level institutions

Duties and Responsibilities

In the Republic of North Macedonia, the exchange of information is implemented under the provisions of the Double Taxation Conventions (DTCs), the regional instrument and the Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEAs). The rules for exchange of information and administrative cooperation are also part of the national legislation: Law on Tax Procedure, Law on Public Revenue Office, and Law on ratification of the Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters as amended by the 2010 Protocol, as well as manuals and guidelines. Considering the very high number of legislative acts regulating the subject matter, there is a clear need to synchronize and unify the different aspects into one legal act, a Law on Exchange of Information and Administrative Cooperation in the field of taxation.

The International Consultant on the AEOI will support the International Consultant on Legislation and Policy by providing consultancy in drafting a new Law and sharing experience and best practices from perspective of legal vs. practical application of the AEOI.

The International Consultant on the AEOI Implementation together with the National Consultant should assist and support the Public Revenue office and the Ministry of Finance of North Macedonia in providing assistance with developing comprehensive Guidelines defining the rules and procedures for practical implementation of the automatic exchange of information.

The International Consultant will be a member of broader consultancy team consisting of other international consultant(s) and national consultant. The International Consultant will specifically work on the following tasks:

1.Provide assistance in drafting the Law on Exchange of Information and Administrative Cooperation in the Field of Taxation

The International Consultant on the AEOI Implementation should provide support to the International Consultant on Legislation and Policy in terms of sharing best practices and experience-based knowledge as well as providing recommendations to a draft Law on Exchange of Information and Administrative Cooperation in the Field of Taxation in cooperation with National Consultant, the Ministry of Finance and the Public Revenue office.

2.Provide recommendations to the Public Revenue Office and the Ministry of Finance in terms of developing an Internal Instruction Guidelines on the practical procedures and rules regarding exchange of information

The International Consultant on the AEOI Implementation in cooperation with the National Consultant should design and draft the Internal Instruction Guidelines on the practical procedures and rules on the automatic exchange of information. The purpose of the Guidelines is to facilitate the implementation of the automatic exchange of information on the basis of the OECD Model legislation on Country-by-country reporting and provide recommendations for the Use of Data from AEOI in conditions of the Republic of North Macedonia.

3.Actively participate on one capacity building training for the tax auditors fromthe Public Revenue office and the Ministry of Finance

In cooperation with other consultants involved in this project, the Consultant on the AEOI Implementation should conduct one 3-day mission aimed on capacity building for the tax auditors and the employees in Ministry of Finance focused on: practical implementation of the MAC and the OECD Model legislation on Country-by-country reporting; implementation of the international standards developed by the OECD for AEOI and recommendations for the Use of Data from AEOI and etc.

The International Consultant should develop training program, training materials and conduct the training sessions in his area of expertise. Under this activity, one workshop with all relevant stakeholders will be organized where the proposed draft Law and recommended procedures for practical implementation of OECD Model legislation on Country-by-country reporting and recommendations for the Use of Data from AEOI will be presented and discussed.

The implementation of this activity strongly depends on the COVID 19 restriction for traveling and safety health measures imposed by the governments. If the following measures remain on force during the year, the Consultant will conduct the capacity building trainings online supported by the UNDP project team.

4.Actively participate on a study-visit to Slovakia for tax officials from the Ministry of Finance and the Public Revenue Office to Slovakia to increase knowledge on information exchange for tax purposes

The International consultant will actively participate by delivering the lectures and preparing the training materials related to his/her lectures.

The study visit is planned as the 3-days visit to the Ministry of Finance of Slovakia and other relevant institutions for up to 10 representatives from the Ministry of Finance and the Public Revenue office with the purpose to increase their knowledge and understanding of information exchange for tax purposes with focus on the automatic exchange of information.

The implementation of this activity strongly depends on the COVID 19 restriction for traveling and safety health measures imposed by the governments of both countries. 

EXPECTED OUTPUTS AND DELIVERABLES:

The consultancy is expected to deliver the following outputs:

Payment schedule

The payment will be done in five instalments:

• First payment: 15% of the total amount after successful submission of deliverable 1;
• Second payment: 20% of the total amount after successful submission of deliverable 2;
• Third payment: 30% of the total amount after successful submission of deliverable 3;
• Fourth payment: 25% of the total amount after successful submission of deliverable 4;
• Final Payment: Payment of the remaining 10% after successful submission of deliverable 5;
• Reimbursement of travel and allowance expenses for one 3-day missions in Skopje subject to travel restrictions enacted by the Government of North Macedonia in relation to the COVID–19 pandemic;

Institutional arrangment

The consultant will work under direct supervision by the Project Manager. He/she will be in regular communication with the supervisor through e-mail and will provide regular progress reports on bi-weekly basis. All communication and reports will need to be prepared in English language.

In course of performing his/her job, the consultant will need to work with the Ministry of Finance in North Macedonia and the Public Revenue office. The UNDP office will assist with scheduling the meetings.

Duration of the ASSINGMENT

The duration of the Consultancy is estimated on 20 working days in the period June 2021 to July 2022.

Duty station and travel

The assignment will be home-based with one 3-day mission to Skopje, North Macedonia.

Competencies

• Strong interpersonal skills, communication and diplomatic skills, teamwork ability;
• Ability to work under pressure and stressful situations;
• Strong analytical, reporting and writing abilities;
• Good time management, meeting deadlines.

Required Skills and Experience

Academic Qualifications/Education:

• A master’s degree in Law, Economics, Public Finance Management, or related discipline is required. A PhD is a strong asset.

Experience:

• At least 4 years of professional experience (public finance management, exchange of information for tax purposes, taxation or other relevant consulting experience; including academic experience);
• Proven experience in capacity building (trainings, workshops, mentoring) in providing legislative background for implementation of the MAC and the Directive for administrative cooperation in the field of taxation; for implementation of the AEOI; and of CbC reporting;(at least 2 assignments)
• Previous experience in applying exchange of information for tax purposes in Slovakia is a strong asset;

Language skills:

• Excellent language proficiency in both written and oral English.

CRITERIA FOR SELECTION OF BEST OFFEr

The award of the contract shall be made to the offeror whose offer has been evaluated and determined as:

1. Being responsive/compliant/acceptable, and
2. Having received the highest score based on the following weight of technical and financial criteria for solicitation as per the schedule below:

* Technical criteria weight: 70%

* Financial criteria weight: 30%

Only candidates obtaining a minimum of 49 points (70%) in the technical evaluation shall be considered for the financial evaluation.

For the considered offers in the financial evaluation only, the lowest price offer will receive 30 points. The other offers will receive points in relation to the lowest offer, based on the following formula: (Pn/Pl) * 30 where Pn is the financial offer being evaluated and Pl is the lowest financial offer received.

Technical Criteria:

DOCUMENTS TO BE SUBMITTED

Interested offerors are invited submit the following documents/information to be considered:

1. Offeror’s letter, as per the following form LINK
2. Most updated CV with focus on required qualification as well as the contact details of at least three (3) professional references;
3. Financial Proposal The financial proposal must be expressed in the form of a lumpsum all-inclusive cost, supported by breakdown of costs as per template provided in USD for this consultancy.

The financial proposal must take into account various expenses that will be incurred during the contract, including: the daily professional fee; cost of travel out of duty station (if required); communications, any other expenses related to this assignment.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Step 1

1. Click on the "Apply now" button

2. Input your information in the appropriate sections: personal information, language proficiency, education, resume, and motivation (cover letter). You can type in or paste your short Resume into the last box.

3. Upon completion of the first page, please hit "submit application" tab at the end of the page. On the next page, you will be asked to upload other required documents listed in the step 2.

Step 2

Interested individual consultants must submit the documents/information listed in the “Documents to submit section” above.

The system will allow only one attachment. Therefore, please upload all required documents as one file.

Failing to submit any of these documents may result in disqualification of the application.

Please note that shortlisted candidates might be interviewed.

If the deliverables are not produced and delivered by the consultant to the satisfaction of UNDP as approved by the responsible Portfolio Manager, no payment will be made even if the consultant has invested man/days to produce and deliver such deliverables.