The tiny European jurisdiction of Andorra, which has been a tax haven for many years, said yesterday it will vote on laws to introduce taxes on persons, sales and companies as early as next year, Reuters reported.

A tiny landlocked nation with borders with France and Spain, Andorra has yet to sign a number of treaties on policy areas on tax. In September, Andorra, along with 11 other jurisdictions, was told by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development that it fell short of standards on transparency and co-operation with other countries.

Andorra, with its mainly Catalan-speaking population of less than 100,000, has come under pressure to open up its tax and legal systems. Other tiny states, such as Liechtenstein in the Alps, have moved to co-operate with countries such as the UK over tax and throw off the mantle of secretive tax haven.

In a visit to France on Monday, Andorran Prime Minister Marti Petit told President Nicolas Sarkozy - who holds the title of co-Prince of Andorra - that he had introduced a bill to Andorra's parliament that should bring taxes to the country starting in 2012, the report said.

New laws will allow for "total openness" with regard to foreign investment, the French president's office said in a statement, adding that it hailed Andorra's acceptance of European treaties on the issue.

In its report, the OECD commented on the following jurisdictions as needing to do more to improve transparency and co-operation with other countries: Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Austria, Bahrain, the Virgin Islands (British), Curaçao, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Saint Kitts and Nevis and the Turks and Caicos Islands. Additionally, it reported on developments in the UK, Belgium and Cayman Islands.