ITR World Tax held a live Q&A webinar on January 21st, hosted by John Harrison, Head of Research at ITR World Tax. If you couldn’t make it, don’t panic; below are the key takeaways you need to know if you are planning on submitting soon!
Some important dates reminders first
- The submission deadline is March 13, 2026 (for all regions).
- Practitioner survey deadline: June 12, 2026
- Client feedback survey deadline: July 10, 2026
- Research results published:
- Europe and Middle East – October 2026
- Americas and Asia Pacific – November 2026
- Africa – April 2027
What’s new?
The 2027 submission form has been updated. As a result:
- You will now submit one unified research form covering both ITR Rankings and ITR Awards. Within each matter description, you can indicate whether you would like the matter to be considered for awards.
- Submissions in alternative formats will no longer be accepted. Only the official 2027 submission form will be considered.
- The time period for submitted matters is now clearly stated at the start of the form.
- The “Key individuals” section has been renamed “Key practitioners”, with no substantive change to the information required.
- The matter section requests largely the same information as before, but it is now recommended to specify whether a matter is cross-border.
- The 2027 submission covers a significantly wider range of topics, including CSR/ESG, DEI, technology solutions, innovation, compliance & reporting, tax policy & pro bono work, and global mobility & incentives – mostly relevant for awards consideration.
In short: the new form is unified, more structured, and more detailed.
What does it means concretely: The new form requires broader, firm-wide strategic information than the previous version and will therefore require additional time and internal collaboration from your team.
Submission
- Matters are the primary source of information on deals for researchers.
- Ongoing matters are permitted. Be sure to include key dates and clearly explain what work was carried out during the current research year.
- Matters should be complete, concise, and detailed, clearly explaining the firm’s role, the complexity of the work, and evidence of consistent growth over time.
- Matters are assessed based on complexity, innovation, and jurisdictional or regional impact -> Tier 1 firms are expected to demonstrate leadership at both national and international levels, particularly in cross-border tax matters.
- Avoid generic descriptions. Focus on why the matter is important or novel within your jurisdiction.
- The final question in each matter (“Explain why you chose to highlight this matter?”) is often omitted but is important as it helps analysts who may not be familiar with your local market.
- For example: Was it the first ruling of its kind? A landmark court decision?
- Strong matter should clearly outline the dispute or advisory context, specific legal, tax, or valuation issues, timelines, and innovative or impactful outcomes -> Be explicit about what tax work was actually done.
- Firms may submit up to 15 matters per practice area per form.
- Firms active across multiple practice areas may submit one form covering multiple practice areas, or submit separate forms, each with up to 15 matters.
- -> Submitting separate forms is recommended for larger teams to better showcase breadth and depth.
- -> Smaller firms should focus on their strongest matters and can do so by submitting 3-4 matters per practice area or include them all in a single submission.
- If submitting one combined form, aim for 3-4 matters per practice area.
- One matter per client is recommended.
- The same matter may be reused across two different specialised practice areas, as long as it is relevant.
- Ensure that individuals you want ranked are listed as in Section 1, and featured in the submitted matters in Section 2. -> Key practitioners should appear consistently across matters to demonstrate genuine involvement and maintain credibility.
- Researchers assess firms on a rolling 3-5 year history, so consistent submissions are strongly encouraged rather than one-off participation.
- The DEI section does not impact your rankings.
Referees
- There is no limit on the number of referees you may submit.
- All referees will be contacted, and firms will be notified before ITR reaches out to clients.
- For confidentiality and integrity, firms are not copied on referee emails, and don’t receive the survey link.
- Firms should encourage referees to whitelist ITR emails to avoid delivery issues.
- Quality matters more than quantity! Try to submit relevant, high-quality referees, and confirm their willingness to participate. -> A smaller group of engaged referees who respond to surveys or interviews leads to stronger feedback and better ranking outcomes.
- Referees do not need to be directly linked to a specific matter, but alignment between referees and highlighted cases improves the quality of feedback.
- The client referee survey focuses on general impressions of the firm, which helps analysts assess reputation and client satisfaction.
- Referee titles do not affect the weight of feedback, but firms should include roles or positions for context.
Awards
- Rankings and awards rely on the same submitted matters, eliminating the need for separate award submissions. Additional interviews or follow-up questions may be requested if needed.
- Matters considered for awards must be publishable cases or deals, and have had a significant market impact, either due to size, value, or precedent.
- Awards are available across multiple categories, including transfer pricing, indirect tax, CSR, disputes and litigation, etc.
- DEI considerations are important for awards for the regional DEI Firm of the year.
Additional Helpful Information
- Extensions may be granted on an ad hoc basis if requested by email.
- Practitioner and client feedback surveys are expected to go live in April, after submission deadlines and any extensions.
- Firms can expect to be contacted in April.
- Firms with specific questions or those seeking submission guidance are encouraged to email the researcher directly to arrange one-on-one calls for future improvement.
Here are some helpful links:
- If you need a refresher on their methodology, click here.
- Need to check the ranking description? Click here.
- Need to check the practice area definitions? Click here.
- If you want to watch the entire recorded webinar, click here.
- A previous webinar held on November 19, 2025, walked through all sections of the research form in detail. You can access it here.