The Cayman Islands' Department for International Tax Co-operation's AEOI (automatic exchange of information) Portal Team is working through a massive backlog of technical queries, problems and requests that have been emailed to its mailbox.

Cayman financial institutions that have emailed the team can expect responses soon. The tax department is asking them to wait for the team’s response and not to send further emails relating to known issues.

Emails received in the AEOI Portal mailbox after 13 September (when the portal closed for reporting) will not be reviewed for response until 16 October at the earliest as the team works to resolve the backlog. The portal is not expected to reopen until late October or early November at the earliest.

A recent advisory document states: "For compliance purposes, the department...will consider the efforts made by Cayman financial institutions to fulfill their reporting obligations on time. Financial institutions that were unable to complete their obligations as a result of issues emailed to the AEOI Portal Team prior to the reporting deadlines can reasonably expect these factors to be taken into consideration."