APAC tax insurance gains traction beyond M&A transactions

The share of tax insurance placements in non-M&A contexts rose to 20% in 2024.

The Asia-Pacific (APAC) tax insurance market is evolving quickly as demand rises amidst growing regulatory complexity, cross-border investments, and insurers’ willingness to underwrite diverse risks across multiple jurisdictions, according to Marsh’s Transactional Risk Global Tax Bulletin 2025.

The product’s use has now expanded beyond mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions. 

Companies are increasingly turning to tax insurance to manage risks linked to corporate restructurings, refinancing, and balance sheet management. 

The share of tax insurance placements in non-M&A contexts rose from 5% in 2020 to around 20% in 2024, reflecting the market’s growing sophistication.

Tax insurance in Asia covers a broad range of risks, including the classification of income and gains, withholding tax exposures on cross-border payments, transfer pricing, the availability of tax attributes such as loss carryforwards and R&D incentives, and permanent establishment issues. 

It is also used to address indirect tax exposures such as GST, VAT, and sales tax disputes, particularly in India, China, and Southeast Asia.

Markets such as Singapore, Australia, Japan, and Hong Kong have seen strong development of tax insurance products due to clearer regulatory frameworks and active insurer participation. 

These markets often serve as hubs for multi-jurisdictional deals involving tax risks across the region.

In contrast, markets such as Indonesia, China, and Vietnam remain more challenging due to legal and political uncertainties and inconsistent tax enforcement. Still, insurer appetite in these markets is increasing, especially when risks are supported by reliable legal or technical advice.