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The majority of multinational companies in the UK would support an impact assessment of the fiscal risks of introducing a dividend exemption, claims PricewaterhouseCoopers.
However, 80% of firms would agree to provide information anonymously, according to the results of a PwC poll.
The survey also found that 90% of respondents were in support of a dividend exemption package, with 80% saying they saw benefit in the Treasury implementing such a bundle in the Finance Act 2009.
The findings follow the Government's position statement proposing the 'unbundling' of the taxation of foreign profits, raising questions as to whether the fiscal risk of introducing a dividend exemption next year would be too great.
PwC tax partner Peter Cussons said: 'Following the Government's recent response the only route to getting [a dividend] exemption in 2009 would be by offering evidence that the fiscal risk could be manageable.
'PricewaterhouseCoopers would accordingly support business and Government working together with a view to bringing in the dividend exemption as quickly as possible,' he added.
'Working with businesses would help ascertain to what extent there would be an increased repatriation of both historic foreign reserves and future foreign profits, and the positive effect via repatriation of profits to the UK and any unwinding of upstream loans that this should have on the UK tax take.'
