Growing tax complexity and expanding compliance requirements have become the biggest concerns for multinational businesses, according to the Deloitte 2026 Global Tax Policy Survey, which found that transparency and reporting obligations now have a greater impact on organisations than digital taxation and international tax reforms.
The survey, conducted between January and March 2026, gathered responses from 1,010 senior tax and finance executives representing organisations with annual revenues exceeding US$100 million across 28 jurisdictions. It paints a picture of an increasingly uncertain global tax landscape shaped by regulatory change, digitalisation and evolving international tax rules.
According to the findings, tax transparency and reporting ranked as the most significant policy issue affecting businesses, cited by 65 per cent of respondents. This was followed by digitalisation of tax (56 per cent), taxation of work and wealth (47 per cent), international tax reform (46 per cent), while sustainability and trade policy and tariffs each accounted for 43 per cent.
The report identifies increased compliance, administrative and reporting obligations as the primary operational challenge facing businesses. Nearly 38 per cent of respondents said rising reporting requirements had the greatest impact on their operations, while 13 per cent pointed to higher compliance costs and another 13 per cent cited growing demand for qualified tax professionals. Additional concerns included increased tax disputes, talent shortages and the diversion of resources away from other business priorities.
The survey also found that transparency and reporting has remained the top-ranked tax policy theme for the third consecutive year. More than 84 per cent of respondents expect public tax transparency disclosure requirements to increase over the next two to three years.
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Businesses identified several key drivers behind the growing transparency agenda, including the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), Public Country-by-Country Reporting (PbCbR), mandatory tax disclosure requirements, national tax transparency laws and voluntary reporting initiatives. Respondents said these measures are having a moderate to significant impact on public disclosure expectations.
In a foreword to the report, Amanda Tickel, Deloitte Global Tax and Trade Leader, said policymakers should place greater emphasis on simplifying tax systems despite continuing global reforms and digitalisation efforts.
“This year’s Survey delivers one very clear message: the biggest challenge facing tax leaders worldwide is the complexity of the requirements being imposed by policymakers,” Tickel said
“Digitalization – whether through AI, digital tax administration or e-invoicing – holds out the promise of transformational change. The benefits to both tax administrations and businesses are highly anticipated. But as the Survey shows, the immediate costs and challenges involved in achieving them are high –a lot needs to happen before tax “just happens”.
She noted that while initiatives such as the modernisation of international tax rules have delivered important benefits, businesses continue to face mounting compliance burdens driven largely by policy choices rather than technological change.
The capacity tobdevelop a flexible and resilient response to shocks and disruptions remains crucial. Finally, we also asked respondents which aspects of the tax system most influenced their decision-making when evaluating investment projects. The results were revealing—the top response was “tax stability and certainty.” She ended
Tickel also highlighted the growing influence of artificial intelligence in tax administration, increasing use of tax incentives to attract investment and talent, and the need for businesses to build more agile tax functions capable of responding to geopolitical uncertainty and regulatory change.
