In a statement, the Federal Council revealed that it had adopted a “draft mandate for negotiations” which suggested that discussions will start soon.
The Swiss authorities also approved the signing of the “OECD/Council of Europe Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters”, which implies another step forward in the cooperation with foreign authorities on tax issues.
Switzerland maintains that it has been willing to discuss a revision of the savings tax agreement with a view to eliminating the existing loopholes since 2009.
“However, an amendment of the agreement should be agreed only if within the framework of MiFID a satisfactory solution is found with respect to how the regulation of third country regimes is structured for the provision of cross-border financial services.”
The draft mandate is being submitted for consultation to the competent parliamentary committees and to the cantons. The Federal Council will then adopt the final version of the mandate, at which point Switzerland will be able to commence negotiations with the European Union.
Last month, it was revealed that a scheme to tax the secret Swiss bank accounts of UK taxpayers, first unveiled in 2011, has failed to bring in £2bn of the projected £3.2bn it was projected to raise. To read more, click here.
