On Wednesday, the governing Federal Council announced the entry into force of an amendment to the Ordinance on the International Automatic Exchange of Information in Tax Matters (AEOIO) from January 1, 2021. The revision of the law follows the recommendations of the Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes made last year.
The most significant change from 2021 is greater scrutiny of foreigners investing in Swiss real estate. Apartment owners’ associations will have to share financial information from next year. In addition, the obligation for reporting Swiss financial institutions to retain documents that could be useful for tax purposes will be explicitly enshrined in the law.
However, not all the transparency recommendations were accepted by the Swiss government. Digital currency accounts will not be subject to the requirements of the automatic exchange of information. The same applies to foundations and associations. The Swiss government chose to maintain the status quo on these two issues despite pressure from the Global Forum.
With the new reform, the Federal Tax Administration will also be able to suspend automatic exchange with a partner state if that state does not meet international requirements on data confidentiality and security.
Since January 2017, Switzerland has been providing information on financial information concerning individuals and institutions to other countries on a reciprocal basis. For example, the details of Swiss bank accounts held by foreigners (or those with a fiscal residence abroad) are shared once a year with their countries of origin or residence. The goal is to prevent Switzerland from becoming a hub for tax evasion and being blacklisted by the international community.
Related Stories
Popular Stories
More
International Geneva
A Geneva-based global health foundation came close to ‘collapse’. Where were regulators?
Swiss-EU treaties: signatures handed in for Kompass initiative
This content was published on
The committee behind the Compass Initiative submitted the signatures it had collected to the Federal Chancellery on Friday.
This content was published on
Esther Grether has died aged 89. Considered one of Switzerland’s leading entrepreneurs, the owner of the Basel-based Doetsch Grether Group was also a major shareholder in the Swatch Group and an art collector.
This content was published on
The flag of the Swiss Wrestling Federation has been received at the start of the Swiss Wrestling and Alpine Festival in Mollis, canton Glarus.
Figurine heads in Zurich school not considered discriminatory
This content was published on
The 16 carved figurine heads in the auditorium of the Hirschengraben school building in Zurich are not discriminatory, according to an independent expert report.
Swiss political parties report income of CHF22.4 million for 2024
This content was published on
Ten parties reported income totalling CHF22.4 million for 2024, less than in the 2023 election year. The reports are based on the regulations for transparency in political financing.
FIFA loses multi-million lawsuit against Blatter and Kattner
This content was published on
Former FIFA officials Joseph Blatter and Markus Kattner do not have to pay back their own bonuses or the bonus totalling CHF 23 million paid to another FIFA official to FIFA. This was decided by the Zurich Labour Court.
How cancer cells makes healthy cells work for them
This content was published on
Cancer cells manipulate neighbouring cells for their own purposes: a research team at ETH Zurich has discovered that they can reprogram neighbouring cells in such a way that they help the tumour to grow.
This content was published on
The ban on non-residents entering the swimming pool in Porrentruy, canton Jura, expires on Sunday and would be extended until the end of the season, the mayor said.
Natural disasters: most Swiss back forced resettlement
This content was published on
The authorities should be allowed to order forced relocations if there is a medium-term risk of a natural event, according to 58% of participants in a survey.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Swiss government tables proposal for more financial transparency
This content was published on
The Federal Council wants to increase the reporting requirements with regard to the law on the automatic exchange of financial information.
Switzerland in the age of automatic exchange of banking information
This content was published on
A year ago, Switzerland began to pass on data on the bank accounts held by foreigners in Swiss banks to around 30 countries.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.