Charakterystyka centrów finansowych offshore – tzw. rajów podatkowych

The aim of this article is to introduce the concept of offshore financial centres (so - called „tax havens”). The first section briefly reviews definitions and characteristics of a tax haven. Next, the categorisation of offshore financial centres is presented. The last section examines financial and economic competitiveness of offshore financial centres. In the context of the EU’s fiscal harmonisation special attention is given to overseas territories of EU member states that can be classified as offshore financial centres.