By Neil MacLucas
ZURICH--Switzerland and Australia agreed to begin automatic
exchange of tax information on each other's citizens, as the Alpine
country seeks to distance itself from its reputation as a haven for
undeclared offshore assets.
The two countries will supply each other with tax information
based on international standards, the Swiss State Secretariat for
International Financial Matters, known as SIF, said Tuesday. The
standards, set by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development in 2014, require governments to collect and share
information on bank accounts and financial instruments held by
foreign citizens.
Around 100 countries, including Switzerland and all 34 OECD
nations, have said they would adopt the new global standard for
automatic exchange of tax information, according to the SIF. The
standard is designed to help eliminate tax evasion and improve
international tax cooperation.
The agreement comes amid continued pressure on Switzerland over
banking secrecy, an issue that was highlighted last month by
allegations that the Swiss private-banking unit of HSBC Holdings
PLC had aided clients in avoiding taxes. The Geneva public
prosecutor's office has searched the offices of HSBC Private Bank
(Suisse) SA as part of a probe of those allegations.
Authorities around the world are cracking down on tax evasion,
an effort that has picked up steam since the financial crisis.
Swiss and Australian tax authorities will begin collecting data
in 2017 and expect to share the information the following year, the
SIF said.
The agreement with Australia marked Switzerland's first under
the OECD guidelines on reciprocal exchange of tax data. The Swiss
government is currently negotiating with the U.S. on a similar
element as part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, while
discussions with the European Union are at an "advanced stage,"
according to a SIF spokeswoman.
Write to Neil MacLucas at neil.maclucas@wsj.com
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