Tax transparency pact ends Swiss bank secrecy for EU residents

The European Union (EU) and Switzerland on Wednesday signed a historic new tax transparency agreement to fight tax evasion, which also means an end to Swiss bank secrecy for EU residents.

Under the agreement, both sides will automatically exchange information on the financial accounts of each other's residents from 2018. This spells an end to Swiss bank secrecy for EU residents and will prevent tax evaders from hiding undeclared income in Swiss accounts.

"Today's agreement heralds a new era of tax transparency and cooperation between the EU and Switzerland. It is another blow against tax evaders, and another leap towards fairer taxation in Europe," Pierre Moscovici, European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, said in a statement.

Under the new EU-Swiss agreement, Member States will receive, on an annual basis, the names, addresses, tax identification numbers and dates of birth of their residents with accounts in Switzerland, as well as other financial and account balance information. Endit